CAMRT honours Nicole Harnett with Life Membership
Nicole Harnett received top honours at this year’s Canadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists (CAMRT) Annual General Conference.
The CAMRT presented Nicole with a Life Membership, which is the highest form of recognition by one’s peers and recognizes members who have promoted the MRT profession internationally, motivated others to join professional activities and raised the CAMRT profile. “I am very honoured by the recognition by my peers and the professional body,” Nicole told UT-DRO.
Nicole’s efforts over the last 20 years have focused on advancing radiation therapy practice. In 1998, Nicole co-developed the first degree-based RTT program in Canada. Following this, she was heavily involved in a 12-year project to investigate an advanced practice radiation therapist role (APRT) for Ontario. The project successfully proved that APRTs have a positive impact on the capacity of the system and on the care that patients receive.
“Nicole is highly deserving of this prestigious award from the CAMRT,” said UT-DRO Chair, Dr. Fei-Fei Liu. “It recognizes her immense contributions to advancing the professional scope of practice for radiation therapists, promoting inter-professional care and education, and serving as an excellent role model for other members of the profession. Her innovative work in developing the CSRT (Clinical Specialist Radiation Therapists) model for Ontario has been invaluable not only for radiation therapy professionals, but also for our cancer patients across the province.”
At UT-DRO, Nicole has been spearheading a new graduate program for radiation therapists interested in advanced practice. She said that while she feels honoured, she is very aware that she didn’t do any of this work on her own, and wishes that she could have acknowledged everyone who helped along the way. She added, “It is bittersweet because a lot of this work was done with Dr. Pam Catton and I wish she could have been here to see me receive this award.”
On behalf of everyone at UT-DRO, we wish Nicole congratulations on this achievement.