ALUMNA
Angela Wilkinson: Nurse Unit Manager
Left: Angela and fellow IGGS Old Girl Katie Auld working at the Springfield Fever Clinic. Right: Angela and her daughter Ella.
2020 has truly been the year of the Health Hero. All of us have been affected by COVID-19 in one way or another, but perhaps none more so than our doctors, nurses and healthcare workers. IGGS Old Girl and current parent, Mrs Angela Wilkinson, is a Nurse Unit Manager for the Specialist Outpatient Department at the Ipswich Hospital and has worked on the frontline throughout the global pandemic. 6 | @GRAMMAR | ISSUE 17 | 2020
Mrs Wilkinson has worked at the Ipswich Hospital for over 21 years and believes that while 2020 has been an incredibly challenging year, it has only reinforced the love she has for her profession even more. It has been a humbling and rewarding experience for her, being part of a team that includes several other IGGS Old Girls working together to support the community during this time. “At the Ipswich Hospital, staff have had to step out of their comfort zone and have completely excelled while doing so. I have seen staff across the entire hospital support each other tremendously and everyone has stepped up to do the best job they can under incredibly difficult circumstances. But as much as we have had challenges in the health industry, people across every sector have had to deal with COVID-19 and the
impact it has had both on professional and personal levels,” Mrs Wilkinson said. For some industries, COVID-19 has meant forced closures and everchanging protocols. For some staff this meant head-to-toe personal protective equipment including compulsory masks, gowns and gloves for over eight hours each day. Whilst these measures are just another challenge delivered by COVID-19, they are absolutely imperative to protect patients, staff and the wider community. “Queensland Health and the Ipswich Hospital have responded with speed and precision to establish processes in response to COVID-19. While it’s definitely changed the way that we do business, I don’t think these changes will stop, but they will actually improve the way that we provide care in the short term and the
