Fil-Canadian honored as ‘Nursing Hero’

Mark Gravoso is the top “Nursing Hero” in Canada. Photo from Kevin Van Paassen/Sunnybrook

A Filipino Canadian nurse has received the highest recognition in the annual Nursing Hero Awards organized by Hospital News, one of Canada’s leading health care newspapers.

Mark Anthony Gravoso, a registered nurse at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto, was awarded first prize in this year’s national recognition event.

The Nursing Hero Awards, announced in celebration of National Nurses Week from May 6 to 12, salute Canadian nursing heroes and highlight their exceptional work.

Nominations were submitted by peers, managers, patients and patients’ family members. This year’s winners were selected from 86 submissions from across the country.

Gravoso has 16 years of clinical nursing experience in the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates and Canada.

He is an internationally educated nurse (IEN) and is currently working as a registered nurse in general internal medicine at Toronto General Hospital (UHN) and on the vascular access team at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

Serving the community

Gravoso has completed his Clinical Educator Certificate from the Michener Institute of Education at UHN. He is a member of the Canadian Vascular Access Association and serves as the president of the Integrated Filipino Canadian Nurses Association (IFCNA).

As IFCNA president, Gravoso provided “unwavering support, unrelenting guidance and mentorship” to Filipino Internationally Educated Nurses(IENs) in Canada, according to Hospital News.

“He values the importance of patient-centered care, and he enjoys working with his team to ensure his patients are receiving the best care possible,” Hospital News said.

“With his passion for nursing and commitment to serving the community, (Gravoso) advocated for the credential recognition of IENs to address Canada’s looming nursing shortage.”

In roundtable discussions with parliamentarians and policymakers, Gravoso pushed for credential recognition, streamlining the process of nursing registration of IENs and assistance to those with immigration issues.

Gravoso’s colleague at Sunnybrook, Valeriya Potapov, got the third prize and 10 other nurses at the hospital were nominated for this year’s awards.

“Our nurses are there in your toughest moments and are a part of what makes Sunnybrook special,” the hospital said in a statement.

Learn more about Gravoso and why he was selected as the top “Nursing Hero” in Canada here.