Margaret F. Munro Award

My name is Claire Byrne, and I am a nursing student in the last few courses of my accelerated nursing degree at UPEI. I have two previous degrees, a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in Political Science and Diversity and Social Justice Studies and a Master’s in Global Affairs. After working for a few years in non-profits in my hometown of Charlottetown, PEI, I decided I wanted to go back to school. I felt that the knowledge I gained from working in community would be more highly regarded if I had a professional designation to my name. I initially didn’t think about going to nursing school, but after my grandmother was diagnosed with dementia and I was one of the people responsible for her care, I realized I was capable and good at taking care of people. From the family perspective, admitting a family member into a long-term care facility was very painful and challenging, and this process cemented for me the huge gaps that still exist for immigrant and BIPOC families like mine accessing health care on PEI and in Canada. I am becoming a nurse because I believe I will make a good nurse, and I aspire to be an understanding, empathetic nurse who brings a necessary perspective to health care in PEI.