When Cameron Nolter’s car failed on the way to his clinical placement in New Glasgow, a School of Health Sciences Clinical Placement Bursary helped save the day.

By Sal Sawler

Faculty of Health student Cameron Nolter began looking into respiratory therapy programs after he heard about the surge in demand from neighbour who teaches ultrasound technology. The opportunity to fill a need appealed to him — and so did the flexibility of being able to choose between a critical or community care setting. But his decision was cemented when his grandfather had an accident that necessitated respiratory therapy.  

“I got to see the impact respiratory therapists can have on your family first-hand,” says Nolter. “So when I was accepted, I was pretty excited.” 

Nolter’s academic journey has come with challenges – but he’s proven to be remarkably resilient. Now in his second year of his Respiratory Therapy program in the School of Health Sciences, he was initially waitlisted, but instead of taking a gap year, Nolter enrolled in as many relevant courses as possible. The following year, he successfully transferred into the program. “My first year was a lot,” he says. “But it was very interesting. I knew this is what I really wanted to do.” 

Transportation trouble

In May 2023, Nolter began an eight-week clinical practicum at Aberdeen Regional Hospital in New Glasgow. While many students hope to be placed within the more urban areas of Halifax Regional Municipality, Nolter chose a rural community because it felt like his hometown of Enfield. Housing, however, was hard to come by, so he had to stay on Dalhousie’s Agricultural Campus in Truro – which resulted in a commute of almost an hour and a half each day.  

“Then right before clinical started, my car’s engine blew up,” he said. “So then I had to borrow my parents’ vehicle, which meant I had to come home on the weekends. I ended up spending a lot of money on gas, but also accommodations and food.” 

Then Nolter found out there was a School of Health Sciences Clinical Placement Bursary. The bursary, which is fully supported by Dalhousie Fund donors, helps students offset costs associated with completing placements or practicums in remote or underserved communities. He was awarded the bursary partway through his clinical practicum. “It really made a big impact for me,” he says. “Knowing that I didn’t have to worry about $500 gave me such a huge sense of relief.” 

With some of his stress alleviated, Nolter was able to completely focus on gaining clinical experience.  “I really enjoyed being at a smaller rural site because it was very personalized,” he says. “New Glasgow only gets one student a year, so I got a lot of opportunities to develop my skills.” 

Prioritizing patient care

When Nolter reflects back, it’s the patient care experience that stands out. “My preceptor was really great,” he says. “She went out of her way to buy this one person a piece of pie at a local market, because they just loved having pie,” he says. “And that was one of the last things that they really enjoyed while they were there. She really introduced me to the fact that although I’m going to be a respiratory therapist with specific duties, I can still go out of my way to make sure the patient experience is as positive as possible.”  

Working at a remote hospital gave Nolter plenty of opportunity to develop his patient care skills. “I got to sit down and speak with each individual patient,” he says. “When you’re learning so much science, sometimes you lose sight of the impact you could have on someone’s life – but you’re seeing a lot of people in some of their hardest moments.”