Esperance Clinical Nurse Manager leaves lasting mark on country health

Esperance Clinical Nurse Manager Chris Vye hung up her scrubs last week after a standout career that spanned the country and will leave a lasting mark on the rural health service. 

From Sydney to Brisbane, then Broome, Halls Creek and finally landing in Esperance, Chris discovered her true calling – helping others by building stronger services for communities. 

She likens WA Country Health Service to a “lifestyle” rather than simply a job. 

19 years as a Clinical Nurse Manager has given Chris a front row seat to WA Country Health Service’s evolution, shaping her own leadership today in the unique and closeknit Esperance community where the “culture of caring” extends far beyond hospital walls. 

“The laid-back surfie influence is everywhere, befitting a town with the best beaches in Australia,” Chris said. 

“It took me a while to adjust from the Kimberley, but with the enormous amount of support from the WA Country Health Service Population Health managers and my wonderful, amazing and thoughtful staff, over time, I started to feel very much at home. 

“I have seen places and met people that most Australians wouldn’t even know about; the Kimberley red dust and Esperance saltwater is in my veins.” 

For Chris, nursing has been a constant over the past 24 years, and the country is where she spent a large amount of her time. 

Chris recounted her early nursing days at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in inner Sydney and offered a glimpse into different era in the early days of HIV, AIDS and women’s health research, following Cold Chisel and Midnight Oil across Sydney, passing exams and becoming ‘like sisters’ with the other nurses. 

After several years in Brisbane, Chris found herself in Broome to teach the Aboriginal Health Worker course at the local Aboriginal Medical Services, Chris fell right into “Broome-time” and was overcome by the “sheer magic” of the place. 

No bitumen, listening to the Pilgram Brothers at the Roey and sleeping out under the stairs in the Cable Beach dunes with plenty of sandflies, Chris felt this “paradise” was exactly where she was meant to be. 

Chris later worked at Balga Youth Health Service, with the program receiving a local Lions Club Award for community service but she traded it for strolls with her dog in the quiet, cool evening air and waking up to birdsong, making the clear choice to go back out bush. 

Chris’ journey took her to Halls Creek for contact tracing in Public Health and her Clinical Nurse Manager role. 

“Working for WA Country Health Service has challenged me in ways that I never thought possible.” 

“WA Country Health Service has grown into an entity that I firmly believe supports staff to deliver world class rural and remote health care, day in and day out,” she added. 

As Chris reflects on a career and lifestyle that took in the width and breadth of the country, we extend heartful appreciation for the legacy she will leave behind, and her profound impact on patients, colleagues and communities in rural and remote WA.