The hard work of staff at the Royal Women’s Hospital has been recognised with the announcement of the 2022 Women’s scholarships.
The prizes were awarded at a ceremony at the Women’s earlier this week that was attended by the generous philanthropy partners who make the scholarships program possible.
Five scholarships were presented by the Women’s Chief Executive Officer, Professor Sue Matthews, who said the scholarships support the hospital’s staff to continue to create exceptional experiences for patients.
“This year marks a new beginning for our hospital with an exciting vision and strategic plan that reflects our aspirations towards bigger and broader horizons. Supporting our staff to be their best at work so that they can create exceptional experiences is a central pillar of our new strategic plan,” she said.
“It’s amazing to see the impact our philanthropic partners have on our staff through our scholarship program.”
The Women’s Philanthropy and Community Investment Executive Director Jason Smith said the event was a powerful demonstration of the Women’s culture of philanthropy.
“Generosity never ceases to amaze and touch heart and soul,” he said. “It is in that spirit of gratitude that we thank our philanthropic partners for their support of the Women’s.”
2022 scholarships awarded
The winners of this year’s scholarships will use the prizes for learning and training opportunities that will allow them to expand their skills and expertise.
Congratulations to the 2022 scholarship recipients:
- Betty Amsden Women’s Health Leadership Scholarship: Stephanie Mahon, Manager, Patient and Visitor Services
- Oscar and Luca Scholarship: Hayley Cochrane, Graduate Nurse, NICU, and Genevieve Hicks, Registered Nurse, NICU
- Staff Development Scholarship – with thanks to Aware Super: Fleur Llewelyn, Manager, Clinical Education Team, and Deborah Rhodes, Manager, Infection Control
- Diane Foster Bursary: Laura Seymour, Graduate Midwife
- Pat Baer Scholarship: Fiona Creaven, Manager, Social Work
Impact of scholarships recognised
The Women’s Alcohol and Drug Service (WADS) Manager Kerri Felemonow recently returned from a study tour after receiving the Pat Baer Scholarship in 2019.
Kerri completed training with one of the founders of mentalisation-based therapy treatment through the Anna Freud Foundation in Barcelona, Spain and visited services similar to WADS in Copenhagen, Denmark.
“It was an amazing experience. I learnt a lot about how other countries deliver services to pregnant women and families affected by alcohol and other drugs," she said.
The Women’s Social Work Manager Fiona Creaven, who is the 2022 recipient of the Pat Baer Scholarship, will use the prize to undertake a course delivered by the Australian Institute of Company Directors on protecting and supporting vulnerable people. This will help to further improve the experience of women receiving social work care at the Women’s.