Marcella King has made it her mission to support mothers (and fathers) in DB and beyond. Elizabeth Kerr reports
“When you’re a new parent, honestly you don’t even notice anyone else.” That’s paediatric nurse, The Baby Hub HK founder and Pathfinders volunteer Marcella King’s painfully honest theory about why those of us without children run the risk of getting hit by an oncoming minibus when compelled to share the pavement with new parents and their all-terrain prams. Marcella, to her credit, takes the cranky question in stride, probably because as a paediatric nurse with over 20 years under her belt – and as a mother of two herself – she’s seen and heard it all before.
Marcella is seated at a table in Café 8, a social enterprise coffee shop near Star Ferry on the Central side, and the choice of venue is in line with her compassionate nature. A long, meandering chat covers a lot of ground: the UK’s possible misstep in leaving the EU; the bizarre reality of gun culture; the perfect weather location (perhaps San Diego); embracing grey hair; how boring wine from Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay can be; travel writer Bill Bryson; the early agonies of running her own business; and the glory of M&S Food Halls. “It’s a luxury I can’t do without. What would I do without their potatoes?” she quips.
THE ROAD TO DB
Born in Ireland, in County Kildare, Marcella took the long road to Hong Kong. After training at King’s College in London and a stint at Royal Brompton Hospital as a registered paediatric respiratory nurse specialist, she and her teacher and movie-nerd husband Matt (he was an extra in all three Lord of the Rings films) took the plunge in 2014 – moving straight to Discovery Bay. The pair met in London. Marcella was at Brompton and Matt, a Kiwi, was teaching; they hit it off after meeting at dance class. Some awkward shuffling led to casual chatter; dating led to marriage.
“It was just a brilliant, brilliant time: and then kids came along and you know, things just changed,” Marcella recalls. “We asked ourselves if we really wanted to live in London long term. I didn’t want to go back to Ireland. Matt didn’t want to go back to New Zealand.”
The answer was Hong Kong. A visit with a South African friend living in DB put them on that path about a year later when Marcella’s son Charlie, now 11, was a baby and daughter Abby, now 14, was a toddler. “DB was definitely the right thing,” she says. “We’re both really into the outdoors, we love the water and the trees. It’s a special place.” Matt accepted a rare ESF teaching position and Marcella dropped out of nursing – for a bit.
“We kind of knew that if we came here, it was just going to be a great move for us and our family,” says Marcella. “I didn’t know what I was going to do work wise. We just took a leap of faith.”
A LEAP OF FAITH
Initially, work turned out to be a challenge. Though Marcella is registered in both the UK and Australia, getting accredited by the Nursing Council of Hong Kong wound up taking four stressful years. There was a fidgety practical exam and a written exam that, should you fail, had a year-long gap between sessions.
“My candidate number was 0001 because nobody else was in paediatric nursing; I think in seven or eight years no one sat the exam. I studied really hard; I went right back to being in nursing college.
It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life,” she says. “When I think about my degree and my training, getting registered with the Hong Kong nursing council was such a reward. And my kids were so proud of me – because they saw me fail and they knew how hard it was to go back the third time. So that was a big ol’ lesson.”
Marcella’s third registration led to working at Central Health Family Practice in DB for nine years and finally The Baby Hub HK (thebabyhubhk.com), which offers “expert support on your parenting journey.” That “support” used to mean a quick call to mother, but as Marcella learnt while running Central Health’s weekly Baby Clinic (and particularly from the pandemic), it’s not always that easy in the age of globalisation.
“Not everyone’s mothers or family are available to them and actually, some people make a conscious decision not to do things the way that their mothers or fathers did,” she argues. “They want to break away, but can’t rely on Google because you get some freaky facts. Google doesn’t say ‘It depends,’ which it often does. Motherhood isn’t a blank canvas where one size fits all.”
ALL THING’S BABY
In the year s leading up to 2023, Marcella pinpointed a real need for a home-visiting service that provided clear, concise, medically-sound answers to parent’s questions, both simple and complex. Hence, The Baby Hub HK. In addition to regular health checkups, a home visit typically includes developmental assessment, postnatal support and advice on bonding with your child. Marcella can offer hands-on help with everything from feeding to sleep routines; asthma and allergies are a specialty (registered respiratory specialist nurse, remember). Home safety assessments, helper training and group workshops are also provided.
The Baby Hub HK’s first year has been one defined by word-of-mouth growth with zero advertising, and Marcella appreciates the validation. Running into former clients who are filled with new confidence is icing on the cake. “It’s really lovely,” she says. “I get a massive kick out of it.”
The time was right for the business, and it gives Marcella more flexibility for her own family – room to enjoy Matt’s long teacher’s holidays (Abby is really into ancient architecture so Greece and Sicily are beckoning). But she still makes time for the Central Health Baby Clinic and Pathfinders (www.pathfinders.org.hk), the NOG that works with migrant mothers during and after their pregnancy. Marcella’s role includes supporting mothers after delivery and providing advice on feeding, vaccinations, growth and weight monitoring, as well as all-around emotional support.
“These mothers at Pathfinders don’t have access to hospitals. They’re overstayers or refugees and they’re not allowed to go to the hospital for checkups or to get their baby vaccines. So it’s a different ‘fill my bucket,’ when I’m talking to someone there about their new baby’s blocked eye, or they’re worried about the tummy button,” Marcella finishes. “If they didn’t see me, they wouldn’t do blush.” But do they share the pavement?