Andrea Bernard

Public health nurse Andrea Bernard offers client-focused services

Andrea Bernard has just been appointed as a public health nurse in the Prince West region. Her office is at the O'Leary Community Hospital, but the territory she serves is more specifically the Alberton region and its surroundings.

“I love this job. Even back in Grade 10 at École Évangéline, I knew I wanted to work with babies. That’s why I became a nurse. I graduated from the University of Prince Edward Island in 2005. I worked in pediatrics, maternity, and on the float team at Prince County Hospital for a year. Then, with my husband, Damien Arsenault, I moved to Western Canada. I worked for a year in British Columbia and four years in Alberta.”

After those few years in the western part of the country, the desire to return to Prince Edward Island became more pressing. “We bought a farm in Richmond, and I had no trouble finding work. I worked as a public health nurse in Prince County, a registered nurse at the Stewart Memorial Home in Tyne Valley, and later as an instructor in the practical nursing program at the College of the Island. Throughout all of this, I had two children who are now 7 and 5 years old.”

Andrea loves working with new families and their babies, especially in rural areas. When a one-year public health position opened up in Alberton, she applied and is very glad she did. “My days are full. There are a lot of births these days. Every week, I add one or two families with newborns to my schedule. When a mother leaves the hospital with her baby, I receive a follow-up file and arrange a home visit. These visits include an assessment of both the baby and the mother. I answer the new parents' questions and assess their needs. Sometimes one visit from the public health nurse is enough, and sometimes several are needed. It really depends on each family's needs. I'm there to support them.”

In addition to her work with young families, Andrea Bernard holds vaccination and growth assessment clinics for children, provides school health services in schools, follows up on communicable diseases, and performs various other tasks, all related to public health.

Andrea Bernard is bilingual and enjoys speaking French at work. “I know from experience how important it is to be able to speak in your own language when discussing your health. I’ve felt the relief of a client when I spoke to her in French, so I don’t hesitate to offer services in French when I think a client speaks French. Currently, I’m the only Francophone public health nurse in the Prince West region, and I hope to be able to offer services in French to the Acadian and Francophone community here. That’s how we meet clients’ needs and provide person-centered services,” says this friendly and smiling nurse.