May 8-14 is National Nursing Week! The theme this year is Our Nurses. Our Future, which showcases the many roles that nurses play in our communities and in the health care journey.
Nurses work with courage and commitment every day, making up almost 30% of Northern Health staff. Nurses work in all types of clinical programs and services including: chronic diseases, long-term care, population and public health, critical care, mental health and substance use, surgical services, specialized services, and many more. We thank all our nurses working in the vast variety of care areas!
To celebrate Nursing Week, we will be sharing interviews with nurses about their roles and experiences in their professions.
James Maillet – Tele-care Registered Nurse at the Northern Health Virtual Clinic
Tell us about your role? What is your favourite part of your job?
My role is a Tele-care Registered Nurse at the Northern Health Virtual Clinic. I primarily work with inter-professional teams within Northern Health to complete intake assessments and referrals for Mental Health and Substance Use services. The best part of my job is working with an amazing team to build supports for individuals in Northern communities to connect with health care providers and services. There can be a lot of barriers for people in Northern communities to access health care services so it has been very rewarding to help build out the clinic to make access easier for those living in the North.
What is something you wish everyone knew about nursing?
Something I wish everyone knew about nursing is the incredible breadth of roles within the profession. Nursing roles are found within all aspects of health care inside and outside of the traditional hospital setting. The profession truly allows nurses to work in many diverse positions and enables nurses to have an impact on all levels of health care.
What does “Our Nurses. Our Future” mean to you?
The phrase “Our Nurses. Our Future” means a few things to me. The first is an understanding of the important and vital role nurses have in implementing health care services throughout the health care system and how that role is essential for continued access and services for everyone.
The second meaning to me is the importance of supporting nurses now and in the future. Increasing recruitment and retention of nurses as well as encouraging nurses to have a voice in healthcare policy decision making will be vital for ensuring all Canadians have good access to health care moving forward.
Where do you live, and what do you like about it?
I live in Prince George, BC. What I like most about PG is that it is a relatively larger city with good options for shopping and entertainment but it’s not overly crowded. PG is also about as centrally located as you get in BC so it’s fairly easy to get to access any kind of outdoor activity or other destination in BC.
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