Our Faculty

Kim Sowinski, RN

Continuing Care Assistant Instructor

Kim received her diploma from Georgian College in 1997 and was employed in both homecare and long-term care before turning her passion for education into a career. She began her career as a health care educator by facilitating in-services for nurses. An approved Palliative Care facilitator, Kim specializes in palliative care and received her Certificate in Adult Education in 2006.

Kim enjoys sharing her experiences and watching people come in to the CCA program and succeed. She believes it’s a great environment to be a part of and feels fortunate to be one of the people involved in educating new staff to be part of this growing industry.

Marlene Fairhurst-Vaughan, RN BScN

Continuing Care Assistant Instructor

A graduate of St. Francis Xavier University, Marlene began her nursing adventure in Houston, Texas on a busy cardiac unit.  After feeling a pull to return to the Maritimes she joined the team in the Coronary Care Unit at the Victoria General Hospital (now known as the QEII Health Sciences Centre) in Halifax, NS.  Marlene's passion for teaching was sparked by an opportunity to work with a medical equipment company, providing workshops and in-services for nurses.  Prior to joining the Centre for Health Care, Marlene enjoyed 14 years working alongside some of the best researchers in Canada within the specialties of cardiology, kidney transplant and hematology.  It is during this time that a great appreciation was gained for the specialized care that is needed and required for our geriatric population.  Much of her research experience involved seniors with a debilitating disease.  
 
Marlene is also a facilitator with the College of Registered Nurses of Nova Scotia (CRNNS) providing a link between RN's and the college's educational information.  In June of 2008, Marlene received her certificate in adult education from Dalhousie University.
 
Teaching in the CCA program offers Marlene the opportunity to build a strong team of caring, professional and highly skilled individuals.  Empowering and inspiring CCA students to appreciate and value the importance of their role is a journey that she fully enjoys.