By Sugar Ray Thomas
Linda Sutherland-Hines’ independence, self-motivation and determination are the qualities that have helped her to succeed throughout her life.
Having risen from rural St Mary, the 63-year-old whose life is centered on helping others gives credit for this to the strong women that she had in her life while growing up.
After giving over four decades of sterling service in the health sector, Mrs Sutherland-Hines retired on at the top in her field as matron of the Port Maria Hospital in 2014.
However, “matron” as many call her continues to have the passion and zeal for service, as she continues in another area as a research nurse working with the Ministry of Health. She is based at the St Ann’s Bay Hospital. She also serves her parish as a justice of the peace, continues to give service in culture, through the JCDC and is involved in various community outreach programmes, catering to the less fortunate.
“I learned what is expected of a decent, civilized human being and I knew from very early the hallmarks of persons considered important. It wasn’t about wealth or elite friends. It was about service to human beings and I learned that from I was a young girl,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines argued.
GROWING UP WITH STRONG WOMEN
Born Linda Darnel Sutherland in western St Mary, Mrs Sutherland-Hines explained that she spent her early years in Mango Valley in the parish, where she lived with her grandmother, Imogene Kelly, who is now deceased.
“I grew up in an extended family with strong women. This impacted on me in such a way that I considered myself a very strong woman. Independence was a hallmark for me. Initiative, resourcefulness and being in control all came from those women who I grew up with… I learned independence, self-control and self-care,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines stated.
Young Linda’s mother, who gave birth to her when she was only a teenager, had migrated to England to seek better for herself. However, her father had returned to live with his wife and his children.
“I was born out of wedlock,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines said.
She was not embarrassed of that fact as she indicated that “this was a part of my story. I am proud of my story.”
EARLY EDUCATION
Young Linda began her education journey at the Ramble Primary School at the age of seven.
“In those days, we didn’t have the benefit of early childhood education,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines said in reflection.
In the early sixties, her grandmother, with whom she was living died. As a result, Linda Sutherland was sent to live in Kingston with relatives. She attended the Denham Town Junior Secondary School for a short period and then Wolmer’s Girls School, which she explained impacted significantly on her life.
“I did all the things that a good Wolmerian did. We had to live by our motto ‘Age quod agis’, which means ‘whatever you do, do it well.’ We had no choice than to do well… There were standards all around you,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines pointed out.
The Wolmerian played netball and tennis and was part of the prefect body. She did a mixture of the arts and the sciences at the GCE level.
“I was not a big student in terms of height, but I had a strong character. I gravitated towards what was good for me and positive. That was because there was a demand on me to do well.”
THE STEP INTO NURSING
Mrs Sutherland-Hines explained that the independent nature in her made her take the route of going to nursing school, instead of going on the sixth form at that time.
However, she initially had wanted to venture into the field of dramatic arts, but at that time, she did not see how that field was making money, so opted to go into nursing.
She enrolled at the University School of Nursing in Kingston, and graduated in 1976. Her first job was at Port Maria Hospital in St Mary, as a nurse.
“You would have to do the entire hospital. We did not specialize at that time. We worked where ever we were assigned, so you became very knowledgeable and your skills developed. You were making good decisions early. Those were some of the benefits working at a rural hospital, because you grew faster,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines indicated.
MIDWIFE
In 1981, Linda Sutherland-Hines spent a year studying midwifery at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital in Kingston and returned to the Port Maria Hospital, where she worked as midwife.
“I was able to monitor and deliver pregnant women and take care of their babies. I would have delivered many of our product men and women in and around St Mary. It gives you a sense of pride, when you walk into the various organizations and you know that you delivered them. This gives you a wonderful feeling to know that you had something to do with their coming into this world,” explained Mrs Sutherland-Hines proudly.
Next for her was a management course with the Ministry of Health in Kingston and once again returned to the Port Maria Hospital in a new capacity as she landed a supervisory role.
DEPUTY MATRON
Mrs Sutherland-Hines was accepted at the University of the West Indies’ (UWI) Department of Advanced Nursing Education, where she pursued a certificate in management between 1989 and 1990. She again returned to the Port Maria Hospital to continue working.
In 1994 she was elevated to the position of deputy matron of the hospital.
“I was working along with the matron and helping in the management process.”
With the elevations and promotions in her career, she still had other intentions of improving her skills. She received her Master’s Degree in Public Health from UWI in 2002.
THE JOURNEY AS MATRON OF PORT MARIA HOSPITAL
Mrs Sutherland-Hines then continued working at the Port Maria Hospital, and in 2004 she once again was promoted. This time, she became the matron of the hospital until she retired in 2014.
However, a year earlier, she recalled that there was “administrative rift surrounding a decision” for her to be promoted. She was transferred to the St Ann’s Bay Hospital in 2003 to work for a year.
“I didn’t mope or complain. I did what I had to do and took it in strides and I think I won. I took up my transfer to the St Ann’s Bay hospital using it wisely. I learned about another organization and I went back to Port Maria (Hospital) better able to manage,” Mrs Sutherland-Hines explained.
There were challenges during her tenure, buts he explained that through her strong upbringing from family members including her grandmother, she surpassed the challenges.
Among her many creative initiatives during her tenure was her assistance of workers at the hospital to gain CXC qualifications in Mathematics, Biology and English Language. This she did by getting various teachers on board to help with this cause.
In her capacity as director of nursing services (then matron), she also had the opportunity to work with the community of Port Maria in assisting in various projects.
POST RETIREMENT ACTIVITIES
After retiring in 2014, Mrs Sutherland-Hines explained that she had felt that she should spent a year at home, but she thought she had enough skills and information to continue working rather than sitting at home.
She later gained a job as a research nurse on a special project with the University of the West Indies, in October of 2015. In June of 2016, her contract was renewed by the Ministry of Health, who took over the programme and she now works from the St Ann’s Bay Hospital.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Over the years, Mrs Sutherland-Hines has been engaged in several community and church outreach initiatives aimed at improving the lives of others.
She has served as president of the Parent Teachers’ Associations (PTA) of Port Maria Primary School PTA and St Mary High School.
Mrs Sutherland-Hines has also done a lot of public speaking for graduations and functions, where she has given several motivational talks. She also volunteers with the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) branch in St Mary.
Her role in the JCDC also extends to being the vice-chairman for the cultural committee of the parish branch. In addition, she has served as chairman for the board for HEART/Trust NTA campus in Port Maria, and Emmanuel Basic School board.
Mrs Sutherland-Hines has also been a justice of the peace (JP) since 2011 and serves the parish diligently in her role, where she works with the police and the justice system.
“In a disaster I would gather my friends and family members and under my umbrella of the Emmanuel Baptist Church social ministry, we would do a feeding programme for persons living in flood prone areas and persons on the street in areas of Port Maria, such as Paggee, Wentworth, Cox Street and Port Maria,” she added.
In her own private capacity, she and a group of friends, mainly from her church carry out private projects in which they sponsor children for school, buy school books for children and pay CXC fees of a number of children.
She is a member of the Emmanuel Baptist Church in Port Maria, where she serves as a member of the church’s social ministry and a deacon/lay preacher.
For her various community outreach efforts, she received the Governor General’s Award for Community Service in 2010. She was also given the North East Regional Health Authority (NERHA) Award of Excellence in 2013. She has also received several other awards and recognitions for nursing and community service.
FAMILY LIFE
Mrs Sutherland-Hines has been separated from her husband since 2007.
She has two daughters; Avril and Petra Hines. Avril is an educator, while Petra, who studied medicine in Cuba, is a medical doctor. Both have been following in their mother’s footsteps as being engaged in community work.
Mrs Sutherland-Hines has a nephew, Kemar Sutherland, who she considers to be her son and she has been taking care of him, following the death of his parents. He is a student of the sciences at UWI. She has three granddaughters, Asha, Surprise and Adia.
ADVICE TO WOMEN
Mrs Sutherland-Hines’ message to women across the north coast is to value themselves.
“I want to ask young women who feel that they cannot make it and have to remain where they find themselves, to place a value on themselves. I learned this very early in life from my grandmother,” she said.
She is also encouraging women to make something out of the challenges they are facing.
“Women need to make something out of the challenges that they are facing. They need to learn that people like me had many challenges, but I didn’t take them to be challenges that only I can face. I used them as stepping stones towards success,” said the Woman of Worth (WOW) nominee for 2017, Linda Sutherland-Hines.
