A Bayhealth nurse has been elected as President of the Black Nurses Association of the First State. Eunice Gwanmesia, RN, MSN, MSHCA, is a staff nurse on the 4A Medical Surgical Unit at Bayhealth Kent General, and is also a full-time faculty member in the Department of Nursing at Delaware State University. Gwanmesia is a member of the Bayhealth Cultural Diversity Committee and the Chair of the Delaware State University Department of Nursing Cultural Heritage Committee.
“We hope to raise awareness about health disparities here in the state of Delaware and find a common voice to address the issues. Our organization is inclusive of anyone who cares about the health care needs of the underserved,” said Gwanmesia, who notes that the Black Nurses Association of the First State has 30 active members and will be chartered at the 40th Annual Conference of the National Black Nurses Association in Orlando, Florida this coming July.
The National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) was founded in 1971 under the leadership of Dr. Lauranne Sams, former Dean and Professor of Nursing, School of Nursing, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama. NBNA is a non-profit organization, which represents 150,000 African American registered nurses, licensed vocational/practical nurses, nursing students and retired nurses from the U.S., Eastern Caribbean and Africa, with 83 chartered chapters, in 34 states.
If you’d like to join the Black Nurses Association of the First State, please contact Eunice Gwanmesia at egwanmes@desu.edu or at (302) 399-5776.