The Bridget Claire McCartan Scholarship

The WCH Foundation is proud to be able to award Newland Ward nurses at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital (WCH) with a professional development opportunity each year thanks to the generous support of the McCartan family.

In memory of Bridget

This scholarship is provided in memory of Bridget Claire McCartan who was a nurse at the WCH.

The Bridget Claire ‘village’ made up of her parents Rebecca and Danny, brother Ciaran, and many other family and friends will continue to raise funds for causes that were important to Bridget, and professional learning and development is one of these.

Rebecca and Danny said, “Bridget was a vibrant, caring and compassionate nurse who achieved her dream of becoming a clinical paediatric nurse on Newland Ward in the Women’s and Children’s Hospital.”

“Bridget had a special interest in burns nursing and attended the 2017 Australian and New Zealand Burns Association (ANZBA) conference in Sydney. She was full of enthusiasm, confidence and additional nursing knowledge on her return. The scholarship is close to our hearts.”

Bridget Claire McCartan.

Scholarship

This year, the Bridget Claire McCartan Scholarship will assist with the expenses for two nurses to attend the ANZBA Annual Scientific Meeting in Melbourne from 12-15 September 2023. This sponsorship will cover the cost of registration, flights and accommodation.

Applicants were reviewed by Burns Advanced Nurse Consultant, Linda Quinn, and Ward Educator, Kasey Medlow, and we are very pleased to announce that Elizabeth Paige and Louisa Stjepanovic were selected for the 2023 opportunity.

Linda said, “The conference is a great opportunity for information sharing and networking with the Bi-National Burns Community and our nurses have always gained a lot from attending. It makes it all the more special knowing how much it meant to our colleague Bridget, and it allows them to carry on the learning in her honour.”

We wish Elizabeth and Louisa all the best with their professional development opportunity and hope they, like Bridget, return with new knowledge to support brilliant care at the WCH.