Kathy-Ann Swan was devastated the first time she lost a patient.

She was 23 and about a year into her nursing career.

“I’d only talked to the patient a few minutes before on my rounds and he was comfortable,” she said. “He wasn’t elderly at all which was why it was so difficult. I couldn’t believe it was happening. We worked on him for about 45 minutes. I was totally exhausted and, unfortunately, he died. That was my first time losing someone and it was very disheartening.”

She returned to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital for work the next day — and kept going.

It’s an attitude that Mrs Swan has applied throughout her 32 years in the profession and which saw her named Nurse of the Year by the Bermuda Nurses’ Association.

“I love people, and I love nursing,” said Mrs Swan, the director of nursing education at the Bermuda College.

She tries hard not to sugarcoat things for students.

“It is not a job you can go into if you don’t like it,” she said. “People become more vulnerable when they are sick, so you can’t take it personally if they don’t act pleasantly. Sometimes it can be a thankless job and it is up to you to recognise that you have done your best. If you didn’t do you best, it is on your conscience even if someone wasn’t around to see what you did.”

She decided to become a nurse at the ripe old age of five.

“I got a first aid kit for Christmas,” she said, “and I practised on all my family members.”

The desire to be a nurse never went away, although an aptitude test persuaded her to try engineering after she received her nursing diploma.

“After a year in engineering I said, ‘It’s not for me. I’ll engineer people to get better’.” She’s since held a number of positions with the Bermuda Hospitals Board including programme manager of Continuing Care, director of Clinical Services and vice president for nursing in Allied Health. She was also chairwoman of the seniors’ charity Age Concern.

Mrs Swan was seconded to the Bermuda College nursing programme in 2012.

“I was chosen because Warren Jones, permanent secretary to the Ministry of Education, at the time, knew I had a passion for nursing education,” she said.

In her career she’d been mentored, and wanted to give back.

“One of my mentors was nurse Sandra Allen who was in charge of the Continuing Care Unit,” said Mrs Swan. “She has now retired. She was very instrumental in my life and I admired how she stood up for what was right.

“Another person who mentored me was Aldwin Savery, who has now passed away. My mentors taught me not to stay in one place as there are too many opportunities in nursing. They said, if someone asks you to do something out of your comfort zone, do it.”

As a result, Mrs Swan is very comfortable with change and working on teams.

“If you love nursing you get a taste of it all,” she said. “I try to think positive. I try to listen and do what I have to do.”

She expected to receive only a handful of applications when she started the College nursing programme.

“I’d heard that nursing wasn’t very popular anymore,” she said.

She was shocked to receive approximately 80 serious applications. The expense and inconvenience of going abroad to study had been a big obstacle to many potential nursing students.

“I think people were really reaching out and were looking for something on Island to do,” she said. “I think we have met that need.”

Her first group of students will graduate with Associate of Science degrees this month.

“I am so excited to win this award,” she said. “At the [awards presentation on Sunday], when all we nurses were together, I really felt proud.

“It made me feel I am so glad to be among this profession.”

She’ll speak about the Bermuda College programme in South Korea next month, at the International Council on Nursing. She’s spoken at the Royal College of Nursing in London on the same topic.

“It is a great honour,” she said.