Mandy La Fleur will be the first resident nurse in Guyana to receive a Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Saint Joseph. She accepted the honorary degree on Sunday in Connecticut, USA.
According to an article published by the Department of Public Information (DPI), Nurse La Fleur was identified to receive the endowment after her résumé was reviewed in 2017 by University President Rhona Free and the Board of Trustees.
La Fleur was considered because of her commitment to improving the health and wellness of the people of Guyana and her efforts towards advancing the expertise of nurses globally, and locally. The University also reviewed her role in HIV/AIDS prevention among health-care workers, and her service as the United Nations Population Fund liaison for Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health in Guyana.
These, President Free noted, “reflect the compassion and dedication to meeting society’s needs that the University encourages among their students”. The final decision to allow the University to follow through with Nurse La Fleur’s selection was endorsed by the PAHO/WHO Representative for the Guyana Country Office, Dr William Adu-Krow and Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence.
As a trained Nurse/Midwife, La Fleur holds an MSc in Nursing (Education, Leadership & Management and Public Health); BSc Nursing (management focus); and a Registered Nurse/Midwife diploma.
With over 30 cumulative years of knowledge, skills, and experience in health sector management and practice, and in planning, programming and implementing of health programmes, La Fleur is well poised with the knowledge and skills toward the successful accomplishment of the mission and goals of the Public Health Ministry – particularly in the division of Health Sciences Education.
Having earned a Master’s degree from the University of Saint Joseph, Nurse La Fleur was invited by the Board of Trustees to deliver the feature address at their undergraduate commencement ceremony on Sunday.
