NAJ Installs New Executive at 80th Annual Conference

Dawn Marie Richards (second right), President of the Nurses Association of Jamaica (NAJ) shares a light moment with Antonette Bent (left) second runner up, NAJ LASCO Chin Foundation Nurse of the Year 2025- 2026;Shantal Remekie Meek (second left), NAJ LASCO Chin Foundation Nurse of the Year 2023-2024 and Abigail James NAJ LASCO Chin Foundation Nurse of the Year 2024-2025.

The NAJ hosted its 80th Executive and 56th Island Conference from October 9 to 11, 2025, at the Moon Palace Hotel in Ocho Rios, St. Ann, under the theme “Our Nurses, Our Future: Caring for Nurses Strengthens Economies.”

The annual event brought together nurses from across the island to reflect on their contributions to national development, discuss key issues affecting the profession, and chart a path for the continued advancement of nursing in Jamaica.

During the conference, the Association installed its newly elected executive and Island Council members for the 2025–2026 administrative year. Re-elected to serve a third term as president was Dawn Marie Richards, senior public health nurse from the St Mary Health Department.

The new slate of vice presidents includes Natalie Hylton Levy of the University Hospital of the West Indies as first vice president, Lillian Lewis McDonald of the Victoria Jubilee Hospital as second vice president, and Erica Brandon Betty, also of the University Hospital of the West Indies, as third vice president.

The conference reaffirmed the NAJ’s commitment to strengthening the nursing profession, improving working conditions, and advocating for policies that recognise nurses as essential contributors to Jamaica’s health and economic resilience.