A nurse who worked her way up from junior carer at a Caernarfon dementia care centre has been shortlisted for Independent Nurse of the Year at the Wales Care Awards.
Amy Rowlands, 33, qualified as a nurse at Pendine Park’s Bryn Seiont Newydd specialist dementia care centre through an in-house ‘grow your own’ scheme, which Pendine Park launched to address the shortage of nurses in the social care sector.
The winners will be revealed at a dinner and ceremony at Holland House Hotel, Cardiff, on Friday 16 October.
Amy joined Bryn Seiont in 2015, the year it opened. She gained a series of NVQ qualifications before becoming a senior care practitioner and joining the clinical team.
The Open University degree course allowed her to learn and earn at the same time. Amy and her colleague Sioned Williams were the first two nurses to complete the four-year course, and she achieved a Bachelor of Science degree with first class honours.
She said: “That was coming on to three years ago and it really is the job of my dreams. I would not have been able to progress this far were it not for Pendine and their determination to provide in-depth training and career progression for all staff.”
Amy has since taken further qualifications and is now also training in leadership and management under the guidance of Bryn Seiont manager Sandra Evans, who nominated her for the award.
Sandra said: “Amy has been a source of strength to the whole team here at Bryn Seiont since the very beginning.”
She added: “I cannot speak highly enough of her and had no hesitation in nominating her as Independent Nurse of the Year. Whatever happens on the awards night she will always be a winner to us.”
Amy said: “I was so nervous at the interview stage that I never thought I would make it through to the finals. I am now just looking forward to the big night.”
She added: “The night coincides with the third anniversary of my qualifying as a nurse so it is a great way to celebrate. It’s also the first time I will ever have been to Cardiff so what better occasion to see our wonderful capital?”
Amy grew up in Bangor and now lives on Anglesey with her husband Andrew, who owns a welding and fabrications business, and their two children, Sam, 10, and Mila, two.
Mario Kreft MBE, owner of Pendine Park and founder of the Wales Care Awards, said: “I am immensely proud of Amy and everything she has achieved in her career, from starting out as a junior carer to becoming a highly qualified nurse and now a finalist in these prestigious awards.”
He added: “I founded the Wales Care Awards in 2003 to shine a light on the outstanding people working in social care, and with the awards having now recognised around 900 frontline heroes, it is particularly special to see someone like Amy among this year’s finalists.”
