Name: Cheryl Whittleton
Job Title: Chief Nursing and Allied Health Officer, Professional Practice Leader
Length of Service: 40
Worksite: Kootenay Boundary Health Service Area office
Community: Castlegar
Ancestral Territory: Ktunaxa and sylix
Favourite Quote / Advice to Live By: “The relationships you build help reduce your future to-do list."
In a career with Interior Health (IH) that spans 40 years, what stands out for Cheryl Whittleton is the friendships she has made.
Born and raised in the Kootenays, Cheryl was inspired by a Grade 12 biology partner to pursue a nursing career. “She was going into nursing and sold me on becoming a nurse. She was so passionate. I was also interested in learning about the human body,” recalls Cheryl.
After graduation, she moved to Vancouver and worked for five years at Lions Gate Hospital and St. Paul’s Hospital where she started in the intensive care unit (ICU) as the AIDS crisis was emerging.
“When COVID hit, it brought back memories of the AIDS crisis. Back then, we didn’t know what we were dealing with. Patients were being admitted to the ICU in critical condition. We were wearing full personal protective equipment because we didn’t know what was causing their illness.”
After she had her first son, she decided to move home to the Kootenays. She spent 25 years as a bedside nurse working in the ICU in Nelson at Kootenay Lake Hospital and in ICU and Emergency at Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital.
“Every day is different in health care,” she says. “I have met people from all walks of life and made a difference in their health-care journey. Nursing allows you opportunities to work in different settings in a variety of communities and leadership roles.”
Twenty years ago, she was asked to take on her first management role. “I have always kept my door open to opportunities. Each step in my career has led to offers to consider new and exciting work and roles.”
