Cxurlean Duncan-Britton was just five when she and her family left Jamaica.
Her mom was a nurse and had a great influence on her. She recalls, “When I was in elementary school in Florida, I was the one kids came to when they got hurt. I was a child nurse.” As a young teen she was a candy-striper in the local hospital.
For 22 years Ms. Duncan-Britton has worked in the emergency room at Kings County Hospital. “I’m a critical thinker,” she says, “I deal with trauma.”
Kings County is a public hospital where, “We serve everyone, the privileged and the underprivileged. We’re here only for the patients.” She says, “I love it because it’s real; I wouldn’t trade it.”
And the reward? “A thank-you, a smile, and follow-up care. Saving a life, coming in on a stretcher and walking out, that’s the satisfaction!”
Ms. Duncan-Britton also sees herself as an advocate for nursing. “I treat people how I want to be treated.” And, “I’m a patient advocate–no wrong to be done. Everyday, I have to intervene on their behalf.”
Ms. Duncan-Britton is the president of her Local Bargaining Unit at Kings County Hospital.
She is working toward the completion of her BSN at Long Island University.
She emphasizes, “My mom is my role model. She was very intuitive and humble helping people. She gets high from helping people and this has trickled down to me.”
“My favorite quote is: What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us by Henry S. Haskins,” she says.
In her community she volunteers at health fairs, local schools, and at her church soup kitchen.
