Jessica Coulter-Brown worked as a Patient Care Aide at Vancouver General Hospital, where she was known by her colleagues for going above and beyond in providing care and improving the patient experience.

Those who worked with Jessica point to her as a star player in creating a culture of safety through her consistent professionalism, kindness, and respectful attitudes. Her daily actions and interactions with patients helped to build trust and confidence in the health care system, and she was a role model to her peers in the positive and empathetic way she supported patients.

Jessica sadly passed away in July, but her colleagues at VGH wanted to honour her extraordinary contributions.

Support Jessica’s nomination

Jessica is an Everyday Champion finalist in the 2017 Quality Awards, a program hosted annually by the BC Patient Safety & Quality Council. The Everyday Champion category recognizes someone who has gone above and beyond to improve quality of care, even though they may not work in a role that specifies doing so, or in a formal leadership position. The award lets British Columbians vote online to decide the winner. Voting ends October 26. 

Remembering Jessica

Examples of Jessica’s great work during her life are easy to come by. Her enthusiasm for championing change was exemplified by VGH’s C. Diff. Initiative to reduce infections. Jessica took initiative and inspected furniture and devices, ensuring everything was in working order for patients and arranging to have equipment repaired if she couldn’t fix it herself.

Her colleagues speak of her fondly: that she was always attentive to patients, spending her downtime chatting with them and walking them through the hospital’s hallways. She was admired in particular for her interactions with patients who had dementia and cognitive impairments, working to make them feel safe and meaningfully connected to others.

In the words of Jessica’s nominator, “We need more people like Jessica. It is only when we live the values and dreams we believe in, consistently aligning our sense of deeper calling with our practice that we undertake every day, that we can collectively make the world a better place for everyone.”

More information

You can read more about Jessica – and vote for her – on the award’s website. Vote soon – it closes October 26!