Summer 2020

Brantford General Hospital resumed elective surgeries in June, following months of these being put on hold because of COVID-19.

In Hamilton, nearly a quarter of all COVID cases reported in June – 180 of 747 – involved health-care workers. A job-by-job breakdown shows PSWs bear the highest burden with 57 cases. Nurses are the second-highest with 48. Hamilton Public Health, which released the data, says 82 per cent of infected workers are women.

Louela Manakil-Rankin and Karey McCullough were recognized by RNAO at its 95th Annual General Meeting (celebrated virtually) for their tremendous leadership in nursing education and nursing research, respectively.

Angela Cooper Brathwaite, RNAO immediate past-president and co-chair of the association’s Anti-Black Racism Task Force, writes a letter to the Brampton Guardian (July 9)

Right now, I’m scared. I’m a nurse and my job is to face the beast the rest of the world is hiding from. Tensions are high and I adopt the anxieties of others. I feel paralyzed by so many fleeting ‘what ifs.’ What if I contract COVID-19 and pass it on to those I love? What if I don't get compensated if I’m off sick?

The passing of the gavel at RNAO’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in June was certainly different than in previous years, with the AGM taking place virtually as opposed to in-person given COVID-19.

For three decades as a public health RN, Betty Wu-Lawrence has given back to the community through knowledge and understanding.   

It has been a privilege and an honour serving as RNAO’s president for the past two years. When I assumed the role back in 2018, RNAO had 41,000 members. Today, there are 43,408. Leading from the boardroom has been a joyous experience.