Dr. Helen Preston Glass Award

My passion for helping others is what initially led me into nursing. After starting my BScN studies at the University of Ottawa and Algonquin College, I realized that I had made the right choice and I was drawn to many other aspects of the discipline – the creativity, critical thinking, advocacy, big-picture thinking, and so much more. I feel very privileged to be a nurse and I have practiced in inpatient medicine, community health, and child and adolescent mental health. 

Although I love being a nurse, I have also been frustrated with how social inequities restrict opportunities for health and wellbeing, especially in the context of mental health and substance use. I sought out graduate education in nursing and public health to getter equip myself to address these inequities. I have since completed my master’s studies and I am now pursuing my PhD in Nursing at the University of British Columbia. My dissertation research is a photography study with 2S/LGBTQ+ youth who use drugs and who have been homeless. Ultimately, I plan to develop a program of community-based youth mental health and substance use research.  

I am absolutely thrilled to be recognized as a Canadian Nurses Foundation Scholar and as the recipient of the 2023 Dr. Helen Preston Glass Award. Thank you!