Care Across Distance: Honouring the KTC Nursing Team
Delivering First Nations-led care across northern Manitoba
May 15, 2026
At Keewatinohk Inniniw Minoayawin Inc., we are proud to recognize the Keewatin Tribal Council (KTC) nursing team, who have been awarded the 2026 Outstanding Nursing Unit, Program or Interprofessional Team award. Presented during National Nursing Week, the recognition celebrates nursing teams that demonstrate exceptional collaboration, leadership, innovation, and commitment to patient care across Manitoba.
This recognition reflects the strength, dedication, and impact of the 20-person nursing team made up of First Nations nurses who live in Thompson and fly out to 11 remote and isolated First Nations communities to provide services. Their work goes far beyond traditional nursing roles. From home and community care to foot care, maternal and child health, and public health programming, this team consistently shows up for people, often in challenging and unpredictable conditions.
What makes these nurses exceptional is not only the breadth of services they provide, but how they provide them. Many nurses bring the two-eyed seeing approach as they have been trained in western medicine and have the same language, cultural understanding, and lived experience as the community members they provide care to. Several of the KTC nurses speak Cree or Dene, which helps build trust, strengthen relationships, and support care that respects the people and communities they serve.
Anita Crate, Tribal Nursing Officer with KTC, nominated the entire nursing team for recognition, saying their work deserved to be acknowledged. The nomination was supported by KIM Interim CEO Michelle Monkman and Senior Nurse Advisor Caroline Chartrand.
“I felt it was important to nominate this team because they deserve all the accolades in the world for what they continue to do,” said Crate. “Despite the challenges they face, they continue to show up for communities every single week. Their dedication to the people they serve is something truly special.”
“There’s such a strong connection between this team and the communities,” added Kim Moose Cooper, Tribal Home & Community Care Coordinator. “The nurses have well developed relationships with the people and have lived the same realities and same challenges the communities are currently facing. They care deeply about their clients and about each other, and that support system makes a real difference in the work we do.”
Their commitment has been especially evident during times of crisis. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and recent wildfire seasons, the KTC nursing team adapted quickly, stepped into critical gaps, and continued delivering care even as conditions became increasingly difficult.
Nurses describe working in communities facing infrastructure challenges, including water shortages and service disruptions. Moose Cooper pointed to the realities many First Nations continue to face.
“One of our communities, … right now there’s no water, but our nurses are at the airport as we speak, going to that community because that’s what they’re dedicated to.”
Moose Cooper also shared an example of nurses travelling through the community during a phone outage when they encountered a woman in respiratory distress signaling for help outside her home. Unable to call for assistance because the phones were down, the woman was transported by the nurses to the nursing station and later medevaced for further care. Moose Cooper said the outcome could have been very different if the nurses had not been there when they were.
Equally important is the way this team supports one another. Their work is grounded in strong relationships, not only with communities, but within the team itself. They operate as a collective, lifting each other up, sharing knowledge, and bringing a wide range of experience and skills together to provide holistic care.
“It’s like a family,” said Crate. “They really lift each other up when things get hard. Even beyond the work itself, there’s always someone checking in, supporting one another, and making sure nobody carries those challenges alone.”
“We need those nurses in the communities to continue. There needs to be more investment in northern nursing positions because nurses working in those communities face more challenges on a day-to-day basis,” said Crate.
Whether supporting immunization efforts, responding to emergencies, or travelling into communities despite delays and disruptions, their dedication has not gone unnoticed.
KIM was honoured to attend the awards ceremony on May 14, 2026, where the Keewatin Tribal Council Nursing Team was recognized alongside other outstanding nominees. It was a powerful evening that brought together health-care leaders from across the province to celebrate excellence in nursing. We are proud to share a glimpse of the event and recognize the incredible impact this team continues to make across northern Manitoba. These Indigenous Nurses are admired for their dedication and commitment to serve remote and isolated communities and the well-developed relationships they have with the community leadership and community health staff.
Congratulations to:
Anita Crate, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Kim Moose Cooper, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Jocelyn Buchannon, Opaskweyak Cree Nation
Jocelyn Andrews, Gods Lake First Nation
Cleopatra Grandy, Chemawawin Cree Nation
Audrey Moore, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Laverne Smith, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Marina Kesteris, Mathias Colomb Cree Nation
Winnie Shlachetka, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Kim Chevillard, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Michelle Dumas, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Tracey Personius, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Jennifer Bignell, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Natalie Ledoux, Chemawawin Cree Nation
Nancy McLeod, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
Donelda Hart, Bunibonibee Cree Nation
Agnes Denedchezhe, Northlands First Nation
Arla Tait-Linklater, O-Pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation
Virginia Samuel, Northlands First Nation
Deanna Hoeppner, Pimicikamak Cree Nation
