WACHS nurses step up to rural excellence

From rising stars to leaders in their field, four WA Country Health Service nurses have been named as finalists in the WA Rural Health Excellence Awards thanks to their dedication to their communities.

South West nurse Paige Weaver has been named a finalist for the Rising Star award thanks to her work during the COVID-19 pandemic, where she led the South West Inland COVID-19 Support Squad.

She travelled across eight inland hospital sites providing support to communities and establishing strong relationships with local GPs and health staff to help support the region during the pandemic.

Since then, she has been appointed as the Director of Nursing and Health Service Manager at the Warren Blackwood Multipurpose Service. Here, she regularly engages with the Warren Blackwood Communities to ensure the service is evolving with the community to meet their needs.

Bridgetown Hospital Clinical Nurse Manager Helen Stuart has been named a finalist in the Clinical Leadership category after advocating for her community for 30 years.

Growing up in Bridgetown, Helen’s father was a local GP, and it was at his side where she learnt the importance of advocating for regional hospitals and communities.

She is known to receive great satisfaction from client advocacy, assisting patients as they navigate the health system, reducing their stress and making their lives that little bit easier and brighter.

As a long-standing member of the South West, Helen strives to create a hospital environment where patients receive best practice clinical services as well as excellent compassionate care.

Similarly, the Wheatbelt’s Catherine Kirby has been recognised for her leadership across the region where she’s spent 25 years as a child community and school health nurse.

As a Clinical Nurse Manager, she is renowned for supporting staff in their clinical practice and professional development.

Her passion for the region’s children can be seen though her membership with the WACHS Community Nursing Leadership Group where she drives strategic development of child school and immunisation services across the state.

Closer to home she is directly involved with the primary health team to improve positive health outcomes for young children and families.

Pilbara nurse Chantelle Pears is also a finalist for Rural Nurse/Midwife of the Year, thanks to her leadership role during the global pandemic.

In 2018 Chantelle relocated to Karratha from the metro area and has since undertaken a variety of clinical roles across the Pilbara and Kimberley, passionately advocating for equitable health outcomes for regional communities.

She has led a number of regional public health programs and initiatives, including coordinating the frontline COVID-19 contact tracing response for remote Aboriginal communities in the Pilbara.

During this time Chantelle also drove the establishment of primary care and immunisation clinic at the Karratha Health Hub which led her to winning the Excellence in Patient Centred Care Award at the 2020 WA Nursing and Midwifery Excellence Awards.