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A network of possibilities
3
Nathalie Boivin
A taste for teaching
A native of Grand’Mère, Quebec and the youngest
of a family of eight, Nathalie Boivin has lived in all
the Canadian provinces and in two of the country’s
three territories.
She studied science in college and completed a
bachelor of science in nursing in university.
Her diploma in hand, she joined the Canadian Armed
Forces. As a nursing officer in community health,
she was very sensitive to the difficulties experienced
by the military families, especially the uprooting and
the isolation. She organized a support group for new
mothers and joined a group of volunteers who laid
the foundation for a new service: a resource centre
for military families. Upon retirement from the Forces,
she completed a master’s of science degree (community
health: health promotion option), and later a doctorate
degree in community nutrition.
She came to the Université de Moncton when the
École réseau de science infirmière had just been
established. She liked the network operation that
allowed her to cooperate with colleagues who shared
her interests and taught the same courses.
A few years later, she became interested in health
care literacy. Partnering with the Bathurst Community
Health Network, she secured funding from Health
Canada to conduct a media campaign aimed at making
health care information more readily accessible to
New Brunswick’s North-eastern French-speaking
population. In 2009, Nathalie created a research
team to study health care literacy. With the support
of researchers Charles Gaucher from the School of
Social Work and Colette Arsenault from the Collège
de l’Acadie in Prince Edward Island, she described
the knowledge, attitudes and practices of health care
professionals, students and regarding the literacy of
the New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island French-
speaking population.
Since 1999, initiatives and partnerships have increased
to equip individuals with the information they need to
take an active part in improving their health. Through
these partnerships and initiatives, Nathalie Boivin can
share the experiences and knowledge she acquired
on-the-ground at various academic, professional,
scientific and community forums.
Challenges and possibilities abound as the themes of
health promotion and well-being as well as health care
literacy gain more visibility and are identified as key
elements in the restructuring of the health care system.
She liked the network operation
that allowed her to cooperate
with colleagues who shared
her interests and taught
the same courses.