LASCO Chin Foundation honoured the hardworking nurses with an awards ceremony on Friday, July 23, 2021.
The luncheon, held at the Jamaica Pegasus, marked the end of this year’s observation of Nurses' Week. It also saw the resumption of regular activities after the disruption in 2020 due to COVID-19 which led to the cancellation of the LASCO/NAJ Nurse and Student Nurse of the Year competitions.
The nurses held a COVID-conscious ceremony, which ended with the announcement of Lillian Lewis McDonald, infection prevention and control nurse at Victoria Jubilee Hospital as the 2021-22 LASCO/NAJ Nurse of the Year.
The finalists were Dion Murphy Nedrick, Nursing Director at the University Hospital of the West Indies; Rachel Lee Francis, Infection Prevention and Control Nurse for the Intensive Care Unit at the Kingston Public Hospital; Machel Edwards Lewis, Registered Nurse at the Mandeville Regional Hospital; Davia Tucker, Acting Nurse Manager for Bustamante Hospital for Children; and Claudine Douglas Cole, Nurse Manager at Linstead Public Hospital.
The Nurse of the Year copped the champion trophy and cash prize of $200,000. Second-place winner Nurse Douglas Cole and third-placed Nurse Murphy Nedrick, received cash prizes of $150,000 and $100,000 respectively.
Alicia Vickers was announced as the LASCO/NAJ Student Nurse of the Year as she celebrated her birthday and copped the cash prize of $100,000 and a trophy.
All the finalists for the Nurse of the Year and Student Nurse of the Year received gift baskets courtesy of LASCO. The 2021 Nurses’ Week celebration, included the observance of the NAJ’s 75th anniversary, with a Thanksgiving Service on Sunday, July 18; a Founder’s Day Ceremony that saw 75 COVID Champions awarded; career development workshops on Wednesday, July 21 and a disco lyme on Thursday, July 2 all under the theme “Nurses: A Voice To Lead — A Vision For Future Healthcare”.
