May 2018

Through an unusual set of circumstances, this year all five awards were given to alumni of the school at the annual gala held at the Robert H Lee Alumni Centre.

The 2018 Community Partnership Award, which is normally not limited to alumni, was delivered into the hands of alumna Candy Garossino (MSN ‘91). She has been a long-term visionary nursing leader in Providence Health Care who strongly advocates for our students researching there. Candy has been and continues to be a wonderful champion of our programs, encouraging nurses at St Paul’s Hospital to continue on to complete their master’s and PhDs.

Our Young Alumni Award for 2018 went to Marissa Bird (BSN ‘14) who graduated with top marks and is already becoming a positive influence at McMaster Children’s Hospital. There, combining evidence-based practice, clinical experience, and a passion for improving care, Marissa designed an early warning sign system for pediatrics that leads to a safer hospital experience for children. She has recently returned to McMaster University to acquire her PhD in the first full time direct-entry doctoral position to be offered by the school.

Janice (Jan) Radford (BSN ‘79, MSN ‘89) received the Alumni Recognition Award. As a teacher at Douglas College and adjunct professor at UBC, Jan has always been a stellar educator and mentor, but she truly found her niche as a leader. Jan assumed many leadership roles over her career, including nurse manager, clinical nurse specialist, and Director of Maternal Child Services in the Fraser Health Authority. Most recently, Jan has been providing nursing support on the Sue Bujold Floor: a program provided by Atira for women in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside who are at the end of their lives and struggling with substance use, homelessness, and mental wellness. In all of her roles, Jan has been a powerful champion for the rights of women and children who are burdened with health equity challenges.

Dr Susanna Cunningham (BSN ‘66) received the Alumni Award of Distinction. Her extensive and lauded career as a teacher at the University of Washington began in 1969, where she held dual appointments in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics and in the Department of Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Informatics. Susanna’s strong interdisciplinary background gave her the ability to build stronger connections between nursing and the basic sciences. Under her leadership, a team of researchers from multiple disciplines has translated the latest knowledge about neuroscience into useful, understandable information for students, educators, and the public. The project has for more than two decades enabled teachers everywhere to be better, more effective educators.

As anyone who knows them will tell you, the BSN Class of 1958 are thoughtful and efficient. For their 50th reunion they thoughtfully initiated a fund to assist nursing students through difficult financial times. Ten years later, they efficiently combined part of their 60th class reunion with the School of Nursing’s Alumni and Partnership Awards Gala, where they were presented with the Donor Partnership Award for 2018.

We heartily congratulate our 2018 award recipients for their continuing contributions to nursing in word, deed, and donations.

For more images from the evening, visit: bit.ly/2018SoNGala.