Emergency Medicine Was My Calling

Brilliant, courageous and thorough are just some of the adjectives that can be used to describe Director for the Emergency, Disaster Management and Special Services (EDMSS) Branch in the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW) Dr. Nicole Dawkins-Wright.

One of the members of the senior management team at the MOHW that has been leading the nation’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Dawkins-Wright is one of the country’s health care heroes that are being recognized during July, which has been declared Healthcare Workers Appreciation Month.

In an interview with JIS News, Dr. Dawkins-Wright shares how she ventured into Emergency Medicine which she knew was her calling from a very tender age.

“This is something I wanted to do before I even knew how hard it was, but it keeps me going. I don’t do it for money or for fame. I really love the systematic approach to Emergency Disaster Management,” the EDMSS Director says, even as she concedes that the job can be daunting.

Dr. Dawkins-Wright was appointed to head the EDMSS branch in 2018. The branch systematically: analyses and manages health risks posed by emergencies and disasters; develops, implements and monitors medical and health emergency and disaster management programmes; establishes and operationalises the MOHW National Emergency Operations Centre; and develops, monitors and supports the implementation of public information and education programmes for the health aspects of emergency and disaster management.

It therefore follows that when the world’s latest pandemic hit, she was one of the first to respond, helping to craft a national response.

She recalls being pulled back from vacation leave when the first case was identified in March 2020 and the MOHW senior management team decided to treat with the pandemic from an International Health Regulations perspective, while building on lessons learned from the influenza pandemic.

Dr. Dawkins-Wright coordinated activities, including meetings with Technical Working Groups to pull all response plans together and to bring all relevant stakeholders to the table. She was also responsible for overseeing the urgent task of setting up the National Quarantine Facility which literally had to be done overnight.

“That night, I walked down my shoes, got a flat tyre, and so many things went wrong. Everybody was tired, but we had to facilitate the nurses to come in and start working. Led by our Permanent Secretary (Mr. Dunstan Bryan) who was there with us that night, we got it done,” Dr. Dawkins-Wright recalls.

As the Director for the EDMSS Branch, she is also the National Health Disaster Coordinator, and director for the essential Health Emergency Operations Centre (EOC). This is the central coordinating hub for any health response, crisis or disaster.

“The EOC takes the information on the current situation, assesses what resources are needed, who to pull together and sends out the message,” she adds.

Outside of the COVID19 pandemic, the EDMSS branch also attends to seasonal occurrences such as mosquito-borne and respiratory illnesses, as well as mass casualty incidents from road traffic crashes and large international events. On a weekly basis, a team from the unit provides health coverage for cabinet meetings and Parliament.

“As a requirement, we coordinate the health and medical services of the Head of State and the Head of Government, so that’s both Governor General and the Most Honourable Prime Minister. We coordinate with the protocol section of the Office of the Prime Minister and ensure that there is emergency medical coverage during a state or official visit from the point of arrival, until wheels up when the plane goes and our VIP has departed,” the EDMSS Director explains.

She is grateful for the opportunity to be making an impact on the country’s health sector, which is the fulfillment of a childhood dream.

She describes herself as a sickly child growing up in rural Jamaica. She recalls choking on a fish bone which resulted in severe tonsillitis, leaving her unable to swallow.

Her first encounter with the health sector was at the St. Ann’s Bay Hospital which was unable to accommodate her, something she reflects on today.

“Everything in the book said you should admit this child to hospital, but in as much as we talk about overcrowding in hospital now, it is not a new problem. It happened from back then,” she says.

Her mother took her to the Bustamante Hospital for Children for treatment where, again, there was no space to admit her. “Mommy had to take me to the hospital every day for ten days to get an injection. By day five, I couldn’t walk so she had to carry me. I thought about the situation and even at that age, I knew that there had to be a better way to provide health service,” she recalls vividly.

The dream and determination to enter the medical field began there. It grew even more each time she saw her mother and grandmother watching their favourite television show ‘Trapper John MD’, a popular medical drama.

Further medical trauma propelled the dream further. A large scar on her hand is a permanent reminder of a mass casualty road traffic crash in which she was involved as a teenager. She again ended up in St. Ann’s Bay Hospital where the experience was less than pleasant.

“I promised myself that day I was going to work at St. Anns Bay Hospital when I was finished and that no one should come in get sutured the way I did,” she recalls as she glances at her hand. After completing her studies at the University of the West Indies, the young doctor lived out her childhood dream of returning to St. Ann’s Bay Hospital to serve, eventually rising to the position of Senior Medical Officer.

A hard-fought battle with an aggressive form of breast cancer kept her off the job for two years between 2014 and 2016. This led a courageous Dr. Dawkins-Wright to shift focus. She took up duties at the MOHW head office as the Director of Disaster Risk Management. This move was made in April 2017 and one year later she was promoted to her current position where she continues to serve.

Today we salute Dr. Nicole Dawkins-Wright, a local healthcare hero.