Western Isles nurses given long service awards
TWO Western Isles community nurses, who have collectively worked the equivalent of 45 years as nurses for NHS Western Isles, have received long service awards from the Queen’s Nursing Institute Scotland (QNIS).
Joan Macarthur, senior charge nurse, Eastside Team, and Ann Fraser, retired community nurse, were both presented with their awards on November 7 at Carloway Surgery in front of past and present nursing colleagues to mark their long service for the NHS.
Awards are presented by QNIS to community nurses who have worked for more than 21 years. Joan has already worked 24 years and Ann worked for 21 years before retiring in 2016.
Chris Anne Campbell, NHS Western Isles nurse director, who presented the awards, said: ‘I was delighted to have been invited to present the long service awards to Joan and Ann for their unfailing dedication to their roles as community nurses. Their awards were very well deserved.’
NHS Western Isles chief executive Gordon Jamieson added: ‘Community nurses provide a steadfast and crucial role; caring for people in their own homes and providing support to patients and their families. Community nurses also have a teaching role, working with patients to enable them to care for themselves, or with family members, teaching them how to give care to their relatives.
‘In addition to this, community nurses play a vital role in keeping hospital admissions and readmissions to a minimum, supporting patients to safely return to their own homes as soon as possible.
‘I would like to congratulate Joan and Ann, and also thank them sincerely, on behalf of the board, for collectively delivering decades of care to patients.
‘The dedication and commitment shown by these nurses is inspirational and both NHS Western Isles and local patients are extremely fortunate to have such experienced nurses providing care and support across the communities of the Western Isles.’