Centenary Medal – Nora Whyte

Nora graduated from the UBC School of Nursing with her BSN in 1973 and completed her MSN in 1988. Building on early career experiences in community health nursing followed by policy work with the former Registered Nurses Association of BC, Nora launched a consulting firm specializing in primary health care. Her projects have focussed on her longstanding interests in global health, the role of professional nursing associations, policy advocacy and leadership development. She has served on boards and committees including the founding board of the Community Health Nurses of Canada. During the past decade, she has worked with First Nations health organizations in community health nursing program planning and evaluation.

Nora’s international consultations have taken her to Japan, Nepal, India and South Africa where she worked with leaders in nursing associations and with faculty and students in schools of nursing.  Many of these projects had a common theme of mobilizing nurses to advance primary health care in their communities and to influence change in national health systems. A career highlight was getting involved in UBC’s partnership project with the Guru Nanak College of Nursing in India and the Canada India Education Society in carrying out a primary health care project in rural Punjab.  She is grateful for her strong nursing education, exciting career opportunities and ongoing connection to the UBC School of Nursing as an adjunct professor.

MSN, RN