RPN, North Bay Indigenous Hub
Sarah Goodreau is the health promotion nurse at the North Bay Indigenous Hub and this year’s Nursing Now Ontario Award recipient in the category of RPN. She demonstrates exemplary nursing practice by always going above and beyond for patients and communities involved with the Hub. As part of her role, Sarah visits Temagami First Nation, which is a partnering Indigenous community located on Bear Island, to assist in running their Clinic Day. She ensures that all clients’ needs are addressed and performs thorough assessments of patients before they are seen by their primary care provider. She also ensures that all equipment and medical supplies required for the Clinic Day is organized prior to travel and performs many hands-on nursing skills including skin treatments, wound care, ear flushing and more.
Sarah has made a huge impact on her clients by helping them reconnect with their culture. She frequently refers clients to other hub departments — including the traditional healing team — to allow them to connect with elders, get involved in cultural events and activities and access traditional medicines. Sarah also plays a major leadership role at the Hub and is frequently involved in making decisions for the organization regarding things like program planning, training and hiring. Her nominator, Carly Collins, says her “work ethic and ideas are invaluable to the Hub, and the work she has done for (her) patients will have a life-long impact."
Sarah also frequently collaborates with community members, such as the health unit and community partners, to improve services available to patients. She even recently spearheaded the North Bay Indigenous Hub smoking cessation program and will be seeing patients for smoking cessation appointments in the upcoming months. Sarah's collaboration with team members and others is making a huge difference in the lives of Indigenous people in North Bay and surrounding communities.
