Nerissa St. Bernard, Senior Nurse at the Bottle Creek Clinic in North Caicos was voted Nurse of the Year at the Second Annual Nurses Week Planning Committee’s Awards Presentation held at the Atrium Hotel on Thursday, May 11.
Carol Frith walked away with the title of Most Outstanding Client Care Assistant of the Year, while Shakita Misick was voted Most Outstanding Clinical Nurse/ Nursing Assistant of the Year.
St. Bernard, a 12-year veteran, who told reporters that she finds joy in helping those who need help, took home the top prize from a talented bunch, nominated for the enviable prize.
“I am a third-generation nurse, so it is kind of in my blood. But seeing that people need help…people need other people regardless of where they are in life, I said to myself, ‘I am going to be that person that you need’, so, it is just part of me, I guess,” the Grenadian-born caregiver explained.
She said winning Nurse of the Year Award was a shock and honor at the same time, since she did not expect to top the field, even though she believed it was a matter of her hard work paying off.
“It was a shock, and it was an honor, but I guess it was deserved. It pays to be humble and not be seen…remain in the background. But it is on honor to know that I add value to this team of primary healthcare in Turks and Caicos, and I am looking forward to seeing how the next year comes around, and whether I can be of more service,” St. Bernard continued.
She said the period of COVID-19, like for so many caregivers, was a depressing time for her, especially that she was far from home.
“So, whenever I talk about COVID, I kind of cry because I am not from here…I am the only one of my kind that lives in Turks and Caicos. And being stuck here, making sure that no one dies on my watch, I still think of the people at home and my family abroad in my country Grenada. At times I was depressed and sad, like so many people.
"But I continued to try my best, and every day I woke up, I was motivated that I had people to serve…there were persons depending on me…these patients who are my neighbors are depending on me to save them, and that was kind of how I kept pushing through,” St. Bernard continued.
She added: “I am glad this (COVID-19) is no longer a problem because 2020 to 2022 was trying for any nurse in any part of the world. But I think for us who are foreigners here had to put aside the fact that we are worried about other people…our home…to put the people of Turks and Caicos first…that’s our main goal, and I think we’ve stuck to that.”
Minister of Tourism Hon. Shaun Malcolm, who delivered the main address, assured medical practitioners that the government had their interest at heart, and planned to stop at nothing to ensure that their hard work does not go unnoticed.
He said that government was also aware of the chronic world-wide nurse shortage, and had endeavored to cultivate homegrown nurses.
For her part, Jackurlyn Sutton, Chief Nursing Officer for the Turks and Caicos Islands, said that the Nurse of the Year Award takes place in many countries across the world, and so deemed it fitting to get together with other nurses to come up such an event, with the hope that it becomes institutionalized.
“We would recognize the hard work that our nurses are doing here in Turks and Caicos. Last year we recognized our retired nurses, and we really paid homage to them. And so, this year, we are recognizing those who are in active service,” Sutton said.