Military Nurses Association Award

Founded by Col. Agnes Campbell Neill

I chose a career in nursing to care for people in creative and transformative ways. In my early twenties, I met some remarkable nurses whose passion for nursing drew me to the profession. Since entering the field of nursing, I have been provided with many opportunities to contribute to the health and well-being of others as a practising nurse and to grow personally and professionally, as a nursing scholar.

I have always been interested in the complexities and multiple factors affecting health. Therefore, I chose to focus my work in Public Health, allowing me to care for both clients and communities. My roles in Public Health have included working in the Healthy Babies Healthy Children, Tuberculosis Prevention, and Sexual Health program areas.  I am currently working in the Social Determinants of Health Initiative program at Peel Public Health.  This professional work focuses on influencing socially-determined factors affecting health and investigating ways to increase health equity considerations in the work of our health unit.

I am currently in my third year of the Master of Science in Nursing program at York University. Drawing from my work and study experiences, I am working towards completing my thesis project. This project will use a gendered lens to critically examine mothers’ contemporary reproductive health access experiences. I currently hold three undergraduate degrees: Nursing (University of Toronto); Women’s Studies (Laurentian University); and Biopharmaceutical Sciences (University of Ottawa).

I am touched and grateful to be the 2017-2018 recipient of the Canadian Nurses Foundation Military Nurses Award founded by Col. Agnes Campbell Neill.