Gemma Peter Director BIO
Hi my name is Gemma Peter, the Managing Director for Patient Information Corner. I would like to tell you a story about my life, and what led me to where I am today. Maybe you will have an idea as to what drives my unquenchable thirst for knowledge, and my passion for healthcare that grows stronger everyday. Allow me to bring you on a journey to the past. I was 7 years old and I grew up loving to teach. You would often find me writing on any paper I could find around the house. I can remember like it was yesterday; there was a shed by the road, and my mom who loved gardening, planted beautiful pea trees which were growing next to our shed. I dressed up pretending to be a teacher and I would take my time to teach each plant like they were my students. I would even take a stick and beat them if I caught them misbehaving in class.
At the time nothing or no one in the world could convince me that I wasn’t a teacher and I took my job very seriously, although I didn’t know what I saw in my students who were just plants at the time in my heart even as a child I felt like the most important teacher in the world.
After school I used to love writing and drawing on all the walls of the shed, leaving a bit of english and math on every corner of the shed. At times my teaching persuits would put me in trouble with my mom and I would have to run and hide her to avoid getting spanked. Even at school during lunchtime or breaktime I could still remember the smell of the chalk on the blackboard as I would write to my hearts content, expressing my creativity and bringing the thoughts of my imagination to life.
Now let’s jump forward in time to when I was 14 years old. I attended the Choiseul Secondary School and I could remember like it like it was yesterday. I was in form 3, getting ready to prepare for CXC. My older sister at the time who had a strong passion for nursing was attending nursing school. She was a huge role model in my life and I looked up to her and followed in her footsteps. Her name is Desirana and she has played a core role in every aspect that has led me to become the professional that I am today. So Des, if you’re reading this, thank you so much for your support and guidance. Thanks to you, I became obsessed with nursing. At class during my breaks I would daydream of being a nurse and what it would require of me to perform my duties. So much so that in school I made sure to choose the subjects that would bring me closer to my dream, excelling in biology, chemistry, physics, social studies, principles of accounts, principles of business, not forgetting maths and english which of course is compulsory. When it was time to receive my CXC results and I found out that I had passed all my subjects. I wiped away tears of joy from my eyes because I knew that I was one step closer to my dream. At school, I was a quiet child; always sticking to myself. You would often find me reading one of my favorite novels, going over what my teachers taught us during class or studying for exams. My favorite sport growing up was cricket. This amazing sport taught me the principles of team work. I played it often, whether it was with school mates, friends within my community and most importantly my family. I think it would be safe to say that I am a family orientated person and family is a very important aspect of my identity and even to this very day i would say without a doubt, it is and will always be an important aspect of my life.
When I was not studying or reading a book, I was a normal teen growing up. I loved watching tv just like any normal child, but most importantly I would always dream, even as a little girl that I would someday be able to make a huge impact on the lives of others. I always felt a deep sense of purpose and servitude to not only my country but humanity as whole. I am a selfless person and I would never be able to see people suffering or in pain. I love and admire all the beautiful aspects of humanity and for as long as I can remember I’ve said it would be my responsibility to help and bring wellness to people’s lives. The day I really made up my mind to become a nurse, started when I was home and my sister Lucilla, who was pregnant, collapsed without warning. I was shocked, surprised, worried, scared and confused all at once. I quickly realized that I did not know what to do, or how to assist her. I wasted no time and called the ambulance who came and immediately took her to the hospital. Upon arriving to the hospital, my heart felt like it was beating inside my throat and I noticed that I was breathing slowly, but I remained calm. I became amazed at how the doctors and the nurses took great care of her, so i became intrigued. I can remember telling myself that I would want for anything in the world, to someday be able to follow in the foot steps of everyone who assisted her on that special day.
Throughout my career I recognized that there was a significant deficiency with the knowledge and understanding of the vast majority of the St. Lucian public when it comes to healthcare, this concerned me because I noticed that a lot of people were not knowledgeable when it came to the details of their medication. They would have problems understanding the medical terms or jargon the doctor or nurse would use. They would pretend to understand the information and then ask the nurse to explain to them or they would also resort to doing their own procedures, ignoring what the doctor instructed them to do. These issues have made things worst, patients have sadly passed away through lack of knowledge. I have also noticed that other patient’s health deteriorated after mishandling their medication or by disobeying the orders of the doctors. This led me to create Patient Information Corner, which is not only an answer to all of the issues I came across during the 10 year span of my career but it now brings all the services of the hospital directly to the homes of our people.
I love the outdoors, I love exploring and traveling, I’m very adventurous, and I also love a challenge and learning new things, when I’m not at work education is and will always be an integral part of my life’s journey and I will always strive to continue furthering my studies. Growing up, religion was very important to me and my family. I grew up in the Catholic church, and this has molded my morals and values to the high standard that they are today and I am very grateful.
As ive grown older, I have realized that my love for teaching extended beyond just plants and I became a knowledge seeker learing everything and anything I could so that I would excell in my studies. However, as fate would have it, I found myself drawn towards the path of nursing. It was then that I discovered my true passion in life which has always been, helping others.
I found that nursing offered a unique opportunity to not only teach but to guide patients through their health journeys, and I have been proud to serve as an advocate for my patients ever since.
I have no doubt that my passion was instilled in me from a young age, and for that I thank my family. Sherian and Leanda were both teachers who served as amazing role models for me. They taught me the importance of education and inspired me to pursue my own passions in life.
I am grateful to all my siblings for their unwavering support throughout my journey. Agatha, Lucilla, Feria, Smith, Christopher, Madlyn, Sherian, Farrel, Jane, Desirana, Leanda my Mom Therese, and my Dad Desir who have all played important roles in my life, shaping who I am today. Their love and support have been instrumental in molding my dreams, making a difference in the lives of the ones who mean the world to me, my patients.
As a nurse, I am proud to continue the legacy of teaching in my bloodline and It is my goal to provide my clients with everything that they would need, In order to make informed decisions about their health, and to guide them through the healing process with great care & compassion and I truly believe that teaching is one of the most powerful tools we have, and I feel blessed to have the opportunity to change the lives of everyone that I work with.
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