AWARDS
Auspicious Start to Nursing Programme by Marie-Claire Williams
Stephanie Cox-Mayers
I n 2011, Nurse Stephanie Cox- Mayers was an expectant mother working on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and paediatric wards of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Eleven years later, she was back on the Paediatric Ward, and once again, preparing to welcome the newest member of her family. This time, however, she was a registered nurse pursuing a Postgraduate Diploma in Paediatric Nursing at The UWI, Cave Hill Campus. And she was doing all this at the height of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.
Cox-Mayers was part of the first cohort of the programme, which was introduced in 2021, the first of its kind in the Caribbean and the latest in the suite of nursing programmes to be offered at Cave Hill. She and 13 colleagues graduated with distinction on 22 October, along with six fellow nurses who completed the Master of Science (MSc) in Nursing Programme. Last November, the Faculty of Medical Sciences held a pinning ceremony for the nurses who represented several institutions including the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, geriatric and district hospitals, polyclinics, and the Barbados Community College. Cox-Mayers recalled that among the many challenges they faced were transitioning to online learning while juggling work duties and trying to keep themselves and their families safe during the pandemic.
“Though at times many of us had doubts about whether we could go on and complete this programme, our tutors, local and international, became our beacon of hope by encouraging, motivating and supporting us to persevere to the very end. “During this transition period, each of us can agree that we were empowered with knowledge and developed skills which have enhanced our personal and professional development, and ultimately, [has been] of tremendous benefit to the paediatric clients and their families in Barbados,” she said. Minister of Health and Wellness Senator Dr. the Most Honourable Jerome Walcott congratulated the healthcare providers on their graduation from nursing school during the global pandemic. “Their determination to make the best of the situation while
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