FWLHD Longtime Nurse and Midwife Dale Sutton retires after 41 Years
A nurse and midwife who was trained and worked in Broken Hill all her career is retiring after 41 years of service. Dale Sutton commenced her nursing career on 11 February 1980 at the Broken Hill Hospital, becoming a certified midwife in 1985.
During her career she obtained numerous qualifications and she worked in numerous departments in the health service before moving into senior executive positions including holding the dual role of Executive Director Nursing & Midwifery, Clinical Governance for Far West LHD since 2019 until her retirement this week on 3 December 2021.
Ms Sutton said that during her time in health she has met some amazing people and has certainly made lifelong friends. She has laughed and cried with many families and the teams of nurses and midwives that she has worked with.
'I have always had a passion to help people, both the community and nurses and midwives I have worked with,' she said.
'I think it has been a privilege to be a nurse and a midwife and work with patients, carers and their families to make a difference to their lives.'
FWLHD Chief Executive, Mr Umit Agis, congratulated Ms Sutton on her retirement and thanked her for her years of dedicated service to delivering excellence health outcomes for the Broken Hill community and the Far West.
Ms Sutton said she approached her retirement as another beginning.
'This is not the end, it's just another beginning to spend time with family and friends, travel, resume lead lighting projects and knit,' said Ms Sutton. People will find her at the community markets on a stall with her homemade wares.
Ms Sutton has develop an impressive CV during her career. She attained her Bachelor of Health Science, with Post Graduate Certificate in Critical Care and was a Clinical Nurse Specialist in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and progressed to Nursing Unit Manager (NUM) level 3. She was both clinically and operationally responsible for a 25-bed surgical unit, haemodialysis, oncology and ICU services. She held this position for five years.
In 2002 Ms Sutton was appointed the Area Manager of Clinical Quality Improvement within the Directorate of Nursing & Midwifery Service (DN&MS) of the former Far West Area Health Service. In October 2005, she was appointed to the Area Manager of Nursing & Midwifery Services in Professional Policy and Practice in the DN&MS within Greater Western AHS. In 2009 Dale became the Director of Nursing at the Broken Hill Hospital, a position she held until 2015. In 2011 Dale was appointed the District Director of Nursing & Midwifery of the LHD and held dual roles across the LHD since this time.
In 1997, Ms Sutton was the successful recipient of the David Bowler Memorial Scholarship, which enabled her to complete a Graduate Certificate in Critical Care. In 2002 she was awarded Far West Area Health Service Nurse of the Year and represented rural and remote nurses as the Registered Nurse on the NSW Nurses and Midwives Registration Board from 2001 to 2004. In 2012 she was awarded a NSW State Award Excellence in Leadership.