General News
20 May, 2022
Inspirational Local Nurse Receives Nurse Of The Year Award
ON Thursday, May 12, the Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Services (CHHHS) celebrated International Nurses Day with their third annual Nurse of the Year and Midwife of the Year Award to honour their hard and selfless job over critical moments like the COVID-19 crisis.
This year’s Nurse of the Year Award winner was Cairns Hospital’s Older Persons Evaluation Rehabilitation and Assessment Ward (OPERA) intake referral clinical nurse, Hayley Evans. Nurse Evans was nominated and voted by her colleagues for her passion, commitment and love for her craft; she has been a nurse for 18 years and 15 of those have been in the Cairns Hospital.
Ms Evans said she was surprised when she found out she was the recipient of the Award. “It’s an honour; I was blown away and overwhelmed,” she said.
“I’m currently working on the OPERA, which I love and enjoy, so I’m really honoured to be nominated by my peers and let alone win.”
For over eight years, Ms Evans has been working with older people at the OPERA ward, which has been her life’s dream and where her co-workers recognise her excellence and passion for supporting the elderly.
“What I love about my job is that it’s not always easy but is always worth it,” she said.
“Being able to honour and value older people is what drives me.
“It’s important that, as a society, we recognise them; older people built the foundations of this country, so it’s crucial to show them their value and look after them well in the health sector.”
Ms Evans also highlighted the magnificent work that all nurses have done throughout the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think the world has seen nursing shift in the last two years from what our role used to be to what it is now with all the things that entails like not being able to have visitors, which is so important, especially to our older patients,” she said. “What I saw during that time is the phenomenal teamwork.
“If you think about a car, it can’t move if it doesn’t have wheels, a steering wheel, and an engine, and I saw that through the hospital, everyone brings something to the table.
“And I just saw a real coming-together of colleagues which become your friends, your family; you work long hours together, you have to trust each other, and I’ve seen some really positive outcomes in what could’ve been a hard time.”
CHHHS Acting Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery Mark Goodman said it was crucial to celebrate our nurses and the excellent and challenging job they do every day.
“It’s a great opportunity for nurses and midwives to pause, reflect, and celebrate upon their achievements across time, particularly through these last couple of years dealing with the pandemic,” Mr Goodman said.
“Hayley was nominated by her peers for her commitment, her empathy with patients and staff and provision of excellent service within OPERA.
“Wendy Hilless is our Midwife of the Year; her colleagues also recognise her for her leadership within the Midwifery practice, breastfeeding policies and her baby-friendly initiative at the Mareeba Hospital.”
Nurse Evans wants to continue to work with the elderly for many years to come, and she hopes that the future brings many improvements to aged care and the health industry.
“I’m excited to see how our aged care system is progressing and moving forward in recognising the need for care out in the community and in hospital,” she said.
“I think easier access to care for our elderly, more options available for them to go home instead of residential aged care prematurely would be good steps in the future.”
