2026 Excellence in Registered Nursing

Su Kitchen

Su is the Clinical Nurse Consultant (CNC) and Clinical Lead for Falls Management at Sir Charles Gairdner Osborne Park Health Care Group. She was one of Australia’s earliest Falls CNCs. A systems thinker and trusted collaborator, she has shaped a role now embedded across health services, bringing clinicians, researchers and consumers together to design pragmatic, person‑centred solutions that keep people safe and independent.

Su’s programs deliver measurable results. Her Frequent Faller and Injury Reduction Program cut frequent falls by 87% among patients under her care. A ward‑level deep‑dive informed a 35% reduction in falls, contributing to an 11% decrease at Osborne Park Hospital year‑on‑year. She has convened WA Falls Conferences, developed consumer education, and created a long‑running monthly Falls Lecture Series which is now shared interstate and translates evidence into everyday practice at scale.

Partnerships fuel her impact from statewide roadshows with consumers and carers to external advisory roles with interstate health services and leadership of a WA working group developing adaptable ED falls guidelines for diverse settings. As Co‑Chair of the WA Falls Special Interest Group, Su advances policy, education and service redesign, earning patient praise as “a pillar of support” and recognition as “the steady force behind falls management.”

What defines Su is her humanity. She listens deeply, makes complex ideas simple, and brings people together to create safer systems. For patients and families, that means fewer injuries and more confidence, for staff, clarity, capability and pride. Su’s enduring contribution is a safer, kinder health system built through evidence, partnership and unwavering advocacy.

Leah Williams 

Leah is an exceptional Nurse Practitioner (NP) whose leadership, expertise, and deep compassion have transformed HIV care across Western Australia. As the NP for the Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) Immunology Service, the largest tertiary HIV service in the country, she is responsible for the management and treatment of more than 1,700 people living with HIV. Leah delivers highly specialised, evidence‑based, person‑centred care to a diverse cohort, including many experiencing homelessness, mental health challenges, addiction, visa instability, or incarceration. Her calm presence, advocacy, and genuine warmth create a safe space for patients who often face stigma and isolation, and she is widely regarded as a clinician for whom “nothing is ever too much trouble.”

Leah has played a pivotal role in one of the most significant service innovations in Australian HIV care: the introduction of long‑acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LAI‑ART). As a key clinician and leader of the internationally recognised JABS trial, she helped demonstrate how LAI‑ART breaks the cycle of pill burden and stigma, dramatically improving adherence and quality of life. Today, RPH delivers LAI‑ART to over 190 patients, with outstanding retention and viral suppression rates, a testament to Leah’s vision, persistence, and skill.

Her impact extends statewide and nationally. Leah mentors emerging NPs, delivers education to GPs and nurses, and leads masterclasses attended by clinicians from across Australia and overseas. She has expanded LAI‑ART models into regional hospitals and prisons, always striving to bring care closer to those who need it most.

What matters most to Leah, however, are the relationships. She treasures the long‑term partnerships built over 15 years and the moments of trust such as facilitating a social group for older adults with HIV where many connected safely for the first time. Her work blends science, advocacy, and humanity, leaving an enduring imprint on patients, colleagues, and the future of HIV care

Mary-Anne Lynch

Mary-Anne is the embodiment of nursing excellence as an extraordinary clinician, educator, and advocate whose compassion, integrity, and unwavering dedication define a 34‑year career devoted to supporting patients and families at life’s most vulnerable moments. For the past 16 years, she has served as a Donation Specialist Coordinator with DonateLife WA, guiding families through the organ and tissue donation process with reassurance, dignity, and deep humanity. In this highly specialised, 24/7 on‑call role, Mary-Anne coordinates referrals, interprets complex clinical information, and unites intensivists, coroners, surgical teams, and tissue banks across multiple hospitals to ensure safe and timely donation.

Mary-Anne is also a nationally recognised educator. As a Family Donation Conversation facilitator, Introductory Donation Awareness Training trainer, and WA’s sole National Web Coach she equips clinicians nationwide to approach donation conversations with clarity, empathy, and confidence. Her leadership shaped national protocols and education frameworks through her work with the National Organ and Tissue Donation Collaborative, and she helped pioneer WA’s first perioperative workshops for theatre teams, strengthening technical readiness across the country.

What Mary-Anne is most proud of in her career, however, is not the programs she has built or the national reforms she has shapes, it is the privilege of caring for families at the end of life. Helping families make compassionate, informed decisions in moments of profound grief has been the honour of her professional life. She recalls escorting a young child to the operating theatre for donation as one of her most touching experiences. Hearing the mother whisper, “I’m so proud of you,” remains a defining reminder of the courage, love, and legacy carried in each donor family’s story.

Mary-Anne’s work transforms tragedy into hope. Her presence brings comfort, her leadership advances practice, and her compassion leaves a lifelong imprint on families, colleagues, and Australia’s donation community.  

Shannon Hewitt

Shannon is an exceptional Clinical Nurse whose leadership, compassion, and innovative thinking have transformed the nursing culture on Ward G74 at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. As the 2025 recipient of the Olive Anstey Nurse of the Year – Excellence in Innovation Award, Shannon is recognised for her remarkable contribution to strengthening staff wellbeing, psychological safety, and clinical confidence within one of the hospital’s busiest acute medical wards.

Shannon’s most significant professional achievement is the design and implementation of the Guidance Gurus Program, a pioneering mentorship model created in response to the challenges faced by newly qualified nurses entering fast‑paced general medicine. Drawing on research, staff feedback, and her lived experience as a Registered Nurse, Clinical Facilitator, and Clinical Nurse, Shannon built a program that pairs graduates with experienced mentors who provide structured support, debriefing, and clinical guidance. This initiative has transformed the culture of G74, fostering a workplace where vulnerability is met with compassion, questions are welcomed, and staff feel confident to speak up and grow.

Her leadership extends beyond her own ward. Shannon collaborates widely across the hospital, sharing insights, helping other wards explore similar frameworks, and championing the connection between staff wellbeing and safe, high‑quality patient care. She is known for her calm presence on shift, her unwavering advocacy for junior nurses, and her commitment to creating a supportive environment where both patients and staff can thrive.

Shannon’s proudest moment was watching the Guidance Gurus Program take root, hearing graduates describe how it changed their early nursing experience and seeing stronger communication, teamwork, and morale across the ward. One of her most touching memories was receiving her Olive Anstey Award and realising the impact of her kindness, mentorship, and advocacy.