Whittington honoured nationally and internationally.New Zealand Red Cross The New Zealand Red Cross began in 1914 shortly after the beginning of World War I generally for the purpose of responding to natural disasters or man-made disasters and also helping out vulnerable or needy people both in New Zealand and abroad. nurse and humanitarian aid Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for humanitarian purposes, typically in response to humanitarian crises. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity. worker Marianne Whittington has been involved in almost every humanitarian crisis A humanitarian crisis (or "humanitarian disaster") is an event or series of events which represents a critical threat to the health, safety, security or wellbeing of a community or other large group of people, usually over a wide area. that has occurred in the past 17 years, including Iraq, Darfur, Afghanistan, Angola, Kenya, Thailand and the former Yugoslavia. Last month, she was part of a very different scene, when the Governor-General and Red Cross patron Anand Satyanand presented her with a Florence Nightingale Medal at Government House in Wellington.The medal, instituted in 1912, is only awarded to 50 people around the world every two years. It is the International Committee of the Red Cross's highest nursing honour and is given to people who distinguish themselves in times of peace or war by showing exceptional courage and devotion to the wounded, sick or disabled or to civilian victims of conflict or disaster. New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. Trained Nurses' Association's first president and Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand's founding editor, Hester Maclean, was one of 50 winners in 1920, after a gap during World War 1 when no awards were made. Whittington is the 23rd New Zealand nurse to be honoured. Whittington was also made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit Order of Merit Noun Brit an order awarded for outstanding achievement in any field in the 2008 New Year Honours. She has undertaken three missions to Afghanistan with the Red Cross, both during and after the Taliban's rule. Her last mission to Kandahar began only months after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of and consequently during a time of considerable tension and uncertainty. The idea of working in a humanitarian role was first planted in Whittington's mind in 1987 during a trip to Nepal. While there, she visited Kunde Hospital, established with the support of Sir Edmund Hillary's Himalayan Trust. "The hospital and the work the people there were doing for the local community inspired me to come home and search out a humanitarian organisation where I could use my nursing skills to help make a difference. I have a strong belief in the principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Red Crescent n. 1. A branch of the Red Cross organization operating in a Muslim country. 2. The crescent-shaped emblem of such a branch. Movement and the work they do assisting victims of conflict." [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When not on a humanitarian mission, Whittington works at Waitakere Hospital's emergency department. She is thoroughly enjoying being home, but may well consider accepting another Red Cross mission later this year. |
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