Dana Connolly
Public Health Nurse, Prenatal Connections
Dana Connolly is a Public Health Nurse with the Prenatal Connections team. She is one of the three nurses working with their mini- but mighty team. She has been a nurse for 31 years, has worked in many different areas of nursing, and has a wealth of clinical knowledge.
Prenatal Connections is a public health program that offers comprehensive and culturally responsive nursing services and support to pregnant people and their families who have to travel to Winnipeg for birth from Churchill and the Killaviq region of Nunavut (NU). Prior to COVID-19 pregnant people would fly to Winnipeg about 4 weeks before their due date and return home within a couple days after giving birth. Since COVID-19 pregnant people from the Killaviq region of NU now have to self-isolate for 14 days after they give birth before they can return home. A public health measure that was put in place to help keep all communities and families safe. Even though this practice is necessary, it can be extra hard for families as they are now away from their home, their communities and support systems for up to 8 weeks.
The Prenatal Connections team recognized the stress this was causing for families and the gap in services that resulted from these extended stays. Dana assisted with coordination of services to fill these gaps by bringing together public health teams and primary care and working with the eight communities within the Kivalliq region of NU to ensure seamless perinatal health care. This coordination of care has helped to improve the mental and physical health of our clients and families, which in turn has reduced their stress.
