Most New Zealanders have had an interaction with a Plunket nurse at some point in their lives and for many in Southland that point of contact was Judy Millar.

For 32 years Mrs Millar has served the community in both Invercargill and Winton and this week she is calling time on her amazing career.

Mrs Millar said she turned to Plunket nursing when presented with the opportunity in the late 1980s and has enjoyed the experience of seeing new parents grow over the years with their newborn children.

She said it was a particular highlight seeing the raft of safety changes introduced during her career, which included compulsory child seats in cars as well as better education around smoking near children and a reduction in sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI).

Seeing confidence grow in parents as they had multiple children was also a highlight she said.

"The confidence that you see from the first time mum who has hundreds of questions to ask you and when they get to number two and three and their confidence in their own parenting skills and abilities to be good mums grows. That's a real privilege to be part of."

Mrs Millar said she was retiring as it felt "now was the right time to stop".

She plans to spend her retirement spending more time with her grandchildren as well as devoting more time to her hobby of patchworking.