UNB Alumni
Telling our #ProudlyUNB stories
Sewing the solution
Dria McKenna, BBA student
Posted: September 25, 2024 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: Inspiring Stories , Nursing , UNB Fredericton
Connie Smith (BN'83) can still vividly recall the moment she discovered that all eight of her Congolese stepdaughters were using old rags as menstrual products. It was her first encounter with period poverty. It wouldn't be her last. Having relocated from Canada to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) following her marriage to her Congolese husband, Connie quickly learned that the lack of access to sanitary menstrual products was an issue that extended far past her...
Transforming healthcare through systems thinking and design
Kelly Anderson
Posted: May 2, 2024 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: Nursing , Inspiring Stories , UNB Fredericton , UNB Saint John
Ali McGill (BN’02) recently returned to UNB as a researcher and assistant professor in the Faculty of Nursing, and she’s thrilled to be working in a progressive, community-centred environment. Ali is working at the Fredericton Downtown Community Health Centre to study how immigrants are accessing healthcare in our region, and design a system that works. Ali uses a systems thinking research methodology to examine, model, and analyze complex healthcare processes and systems. From...
UNBeknownst #38: Dr. Jen Woodland on integrated health research and the importance of knowledge translation
UNB Alumni
Posted: April 18, 2024 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: UNB Fredericton , Nursing , Science , Arts , Podcast , UNB Saint John
Dr. Jennifer Woodland (MA’09, PhD’15) is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at UNB’s Saint John campus and an Integrated Health Initiative researcher who teaches within the Bachelor of Health program at UNB. She has a PhD in experimental psychology from UNB, with a focus in multisensory perception. Jen has over 10 years of experience in health research – as a research methodologist for Horizon Health Network and Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick....
The many ways this nurse practitioner is saving lives in small-town New Brunswick and around the world
UNB Alumni
Posted: January 22, 2024 12:00:00 AM AST
Category: Nursing , Inspiring Stories
When Kelly Dunfield (MN'03, C-NP'03) graduated from UNB’s inaugural class of the nurse practitioner program in 2003, she was thrilled to be back into clinical practice once again.After years of nursing and health care experience in occupational health, surgery and emergency nursing in Saint John and her hometown of Sussex, she had moved into emergency room management and quality risk management. But when the new nurse practitioner program was announced at UNB, she jumped at the chance...
Debbi Amirault has made a big impact in nursing in New Brunswick by bringing clinical experience to the classroom
UNB Alumni
Posted: May 8, 2023 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: UNB Fredericton , Nursing , Inspiring Stories
Debbi Amirault (BN’78, MN’01) was one of those people who knew from a young age what she was meant to do. Her sister Shannon experienced complex medical challenges from birth and the family spent a large chunk of time at Montreal Children’s Hospital, where Shannon endured over 30 surgeries. The experience for Debbi was eye-opening. “Nursing fascinated me. There was this whole community of healthcare professionals right there at the hospital. I liked hanging out there....
Shelley Francis challenges us to understand the historical context of Indigenous Peoples in Canada
Shelley Francis
Posted: June 15, 2021 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: Inspiring Stories , UNB Saint John , Nursing , UNB Fredericton
This story is part of the Voices of UNB Alumni series and is written by Shelley Francis (BN'91), UNB alumna and current master of nursing student.It is critical for all Canadians to understand the historical context of Indigenous People for there to be true reconciliation, peace, and friendship between Nations. I have spent my entire nursing career lifting the voices of Indigenous Peoples, providing non-judgmental, culturally safe, and compassionate care to all citizens. I have...
Jennifer Splane (BSc'11, BN'15) creates her path as a nurse practitioner and healthcare researcher
UNB Alumni
Posted: May 17, 2021 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: UNB Fredericton , Nursing , UNB Saint John , Young Alumni , Inspiring Stories
Jennifer Splane (BSc'11, BN'15) is a current MN.ANP candidate and soon-to-be three time UNB alumna. She recently defended her thesis "Transitioning from Pediatric to Adult Healthcare: Exploring the Practices and Needs of Care Providers" and takes a moment to share why she is passionate about healthcare. Did you always know you wanted to study nursing? I actually did not know that I would end up in this field. I was always interested in science, in particular the human sciences. It...
Nicki MacPherson (BN’14, BScKin'14) chooses to use her skills to provide care and education for students at UNB
UNB Alumni
Posted: May 12, 2021 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: Nursing , Inspiring Stories , UNB Fredericton
Nicki MacPherson (BN’14, BScKin'14) is a registered nurse who currently works at the UNB Student Health Centre on the Fredericton campus and has been instrumental in the COVID-19 student-isolation project since the pandemic began. She took a beat to talk to us about her journey to get here and what it means to her to support students. Did you always know you wanted to be a nurse? I knew I wanted to be a helper of some kind and thought it would be between teaching or nursing. My mom was...
A non-traditional path for Joan Kingston (BN’78) where nothing is unattainable
Dr. Lorna Butler
Posted: May 7, 2021 12:00:00 AM ADT
Category: Inspiring Stories , Nursing , UNB Fredericton
Written and submitted by Dr. Lorna Butler, Dean of UNB's Faculty of Nursing. Joan Kingston's (BN’78) career pathway as a Registered Nurse is neither linear nor traditional. Rather it reflects her character and the results of numerous initiatives that not only changed peoples’ lives but altered the landscape of their communities so others could thrive. Her career accentuates the power of what being a Registered Nurse means. Ms. Kingston began as a staff nurse and continued to...