Conacher honoured for excellence in nursing.

MUSKODAY FIRST NATION 

When Elaine Conacher heard she had won a National Award of Excellence in Nursing for First Nations and Inuit communities, she was humbled. "I couldn't believe it. There are so many others worthy of the award," she said.

Conacher has been enjoying her profession for 34 years and currently visits 12 communities in the northern half of Saskatchewan, including Stoney Rapids, Black Lake and Fond-du-Lac. She provides supervision and diabetes education to the residents who fall under the membership of the Prince Albert Grand Council.

"It means a lot of travelling but we now have three communities ready to carry out their own programs. As a diabetes educator, I do one-on-one counselling, facilitate prevention and prenatal programs, and also visit the schools to get the young people started in the right direction," she said.

Conacher and her husband lived in various northern First Nations communities when she was employed as a resource officer, and she always felt welcomed by the residents. When an opportunity came up to work as a community health nurse and home care nurse with the Muskoday First Nation, she grabbed it and even though she eventually moved on and no longer lives there, she still tries to keep in touch. "I have so enjoyed working with Aboriginal people, and have always felt at home," she said. She has also been a community health nurse with Health Canada's Medical Services Branch throughout the Prince Albert area and currently resides in Eston, an hour's drive from Saskatoon.

She also finds time in her busy schedule to mentor many nursing students taking diabetes management programs through the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology and makes presentations regularly at the First Nations University of Canada nursing program. On days off, she enjoys relaxing at her Candle Lake cabin and pursuing golf, curling and fishing.

Through her many years of service, she was also juggling duties at home, raising two daughters and now, recently, welcoming her first grandchild. "As a matter of fact, the baby was born just before I got on the plane to travel to Ottawa to receive the award on May 16," she added.

Of the 232,000 registered nurses in Canada, there are approximately 1200 who work in First Nations and Inuit communities. The Award of Excellence was created by the federal government to recognize nursing practice excellence and the key roles nurses play in improving the health of Canada's Aboriginal peoples. Also in attendance at the ceremonies were Minister of Health Tony Clement and Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs Chuck Strahl, who commented that nurses often represent the main point of health care on reserves and that dedication needs to be recognized.

Nurses are nominated by their peers and each winner receives a $2,500 non-cash award to be used for their professional development as well as a certificate and crystal sculpture. Also receiving an award at the ceremony was Joyce Ritchie of Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, who is a home care nurse at the Kiska Wapton Bighorn First Nation.

The rewards of nursing as a career are multiple, but Conacher hastens to assure people that a team effort is required, and the Community Health Representatives, the dieticians, other nurses and staff all contribute. "So when I accepted the award, I was accepting it on behalf of everyone on the team and in the community," she said.

Conacher has many fond memories of her years of nursing.

"I think that earlier in my career I lived in several communities in the far north, and now in my present position, being able to go back and see the changes and improvements, has been really rewarding. The staff, friends and Elders have been wonderful," she remembers.

The rewards of working with people include the learning of something new everyday. "Nursing has been very good to me because I have been able to experience new things and I've been able to come up with innovative ways of getting the job done, given that we weren't always situated near the resources that folks in the city take for granted," she concludes. "It's been so rewarding and very exciting and I urge more people to consider nursing as a career."

HEATHER ANDREWS MILLER

Sage Writer