Nursing Story Slam

Dr. Merilee (Meredith) Brockway​ is a registered nurse, a lactation consultant and an assistant professor with expertise in human milk composition, infant feeding, and maternal-child health outcomes. She completed her PhD in nursing at the University of Calgary, examining maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy and infant feeding outcomes in moderate and late preterm infants. Merilee’s program of research examines donor human milk as a clinical intervention to mitigate early life perturbations to the infant microbiome and how these relate to child health outcomes. When Merilee is not researching breastfeeding and human milk, she enjoys skiing, biking and hiking with her family.

Nicole is a public health RN who enjoys direct client and community nursing care. Her various community health roles have included working as an Assistant Head Nurse (AHN) with the Alberta provincial Communicable Disease Control team and at a COVID immunization clinic. She has also worked as a staff public health RN with Alberta’s school health nursing programs, well child health clinics, refugee health services, and notifiable disease and outbreak control. Her love of public health developed out of an interest in immunizations and the prevention of vaccine preventable disease.

Jennifer Dorman is a PhD graduand and current sessional instructor with the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary. She has been a hospice palliative care nurse for more than 15 years, working with both adult and paediatric populations. Had she not gone into nursing, Jennifer could see herself as either a thanatologist (someone who studies death and dying) or a storm chaser. Outside of nursing, Jennifer is an ardent Calgary Flames and Calgary Stampeders fan, enjoys getting out in nature, and dreams of publishing a fiction novel and/or winning the lottery.

As the Director of Mental Health, Addictions, and Outreach at The Alex, Jennifer brings more than 20 years of leadership, mental health, and addiction experience. Jennifer remains dedicated to frontline work, supporting AHS addiction and mental health programs on weekends. Sharing insights at conferences, she presents on topics such as addiction medicine, peer support, and health equity. Pursuing her Doctor of Nursing degree, Jennifer seeks to deepen her understanding and impact in the field. Her education includes studies at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Mount Royal University, and the University of Calgary. Jennifer enjoys ultra-marathon running and is a voracious reader. 

Juliana is a passionate student with the goal of community nursing when she graduates. She loves to get involved in her community and make friends wherever there’s an opportunity. Juliana is crafty and artistic and spends her free time dreaming up her next big project. Although dealing with chronic illness, Juliana does not let this stop her from achieving her dreams and is passionate about sharing her story advocating for others going through similar illnesses. 

Logan's career ADD has seen him work as a special needs teacher, an immigration officer, ski patroller, and since graduating from the UofC, an RN in the CVICU, main Foothills ICU, as a quarantine officer for PHAC, and currently as a critical care flight nurse in the Canadian Arctic. 

Katherine Stelfox is a doctoral candidate in the Faculty of Nursing, University of Calgary. Her research centres around older adults and long-term care. Katherine is an instructor for Nunavut Arctic College, where she teaches nursing research and gerontological nursing. Katherine has a diverse nursing background, having worked as a registered nurse in Nunavut and the Yukon, as well intensive care in Edmonton and long-term care in Calgary. Having done her master’s degree in global health with a focus on healthcare policy and economics, Katherine feels passionately about the intersectionality of policy, economics, and quality of care in long-term care facilities. 

Dr. Lorraine Venturato is an associate professor in the Faculty of Nursing and the former Faculty of Nursing Chair in Gerontology. She has worked as a clinician, educator and researcher and her work is focused on enhancing quality of life and quality of care for older adults. She enjoys sleeping, taking photos of everyone until they tell her to stop, and writing poetry that no-one ever reads.