As the community mourns the loss of celebrated Cayman Islands healthcare professional Nurse ‘Josie’ Solomon, those who knew the Bodden Town stalwart say she was “a force to be reckoned with”.
Former Chief Nursing Officer at the Health Services Authority Hazel Brown, speaking with the Cayman Compass, said these islands owe Solomon a debt of gratitude.
“It would be safe to say that she [was] the mother of public health nursing in the Cayman Islands, and she worked unstintingly to protect the health of mothers and children. She set an example for all of us who came behind in commitment to her people, in commitment to her profession, in her willingness to go the extra mile,” Brown said.
Solomon, 90, passed away peacefully at her Bodden Town home on the morning of 8 Jan. with her family at her bedside.
Brown, who took the reins from Solomon when she retired from the HSA in 1995, said it was “interesting” working with the nurse stalwart as she was “a very colorful character and she brought a lot of color to the service”.
“She was a very dedicated worker,” she said, adding that, before working together, she knew Solomon, having grown up in the same community as her.
Even after retirement, Brown said, Solomon remained active.
“Once she engaged in something, she was a force to be reckoned with. If there was a fundraiser going on, you wanted her on your side, because they were very, very few people who could say no to her,” Brown added.
Solomon’s niece Caroline, speaking with the Compass, said it has been difficult losing the “monarch” of the family, whom they affectionately called “Dodo.”
However, she said, she was proud to see the outpouring of love for her aunt and the impact she made in the community throughout her career.
She said Solomon has a significant impact in the family’s lives.
“We look at her not just as a monarch of family, but as a person that had valued Cayman, valued its people. We look at her as her dedication and we have taken that into own work lives, being dedicated and being persistent in our goals,” she said.
Solomon, she said, was humble and never looked for adoration or accolades and that same work ethic has been emulated by herself and her brother pilot, Newton Solomon.
She said her aunt, who had no children of her own, would refer to her and her brother as “we’s boy” and “we’s girl” and took pride in their achievements.
She admitted that her aunt urged her to get into nursing, but she opted to get into corporate finance instead.
“She’s also felt that education was important because it would add value to family life and give children a better opportunity, and she was so adamant about the medical care,” Caroline said.
Contribution celebrated
Health and Wellness Minister Sabrina Turner, in a 10 Jan. statement on Solomon’s passing, paid homage to her contribution to healthcare in the Cayman Islands and the service she provided throughout her career.
“Nurse Solomon was a staple and an icon of this community. From the early 1970s through until the 1990s, she was a key driver in developing the maternal and child health programme. Her work was multi-faceted and included antenatal care, post-natal care, and of course the childhood vaccination programme,” Turner said in her statement.
Solomon, she said, was a driver of Cayman’s national immunisation programme, and her work undoubtedly saved many lives.
“Nurse Solomon built the foundation for public health over her many years of dedicated service, and we are all the better for it,” Turner added.
Solomon played an essential role in forming Cayman’s Public Health Department and is recognised as being instrumental in the creation of the Medical Officer of Health post, the health ministry statement said.
“She was also one of the key persons responsible for the recruitment of Dr. Kiran Kumar, Cayman’s first Medical Officer of Health, whom she met while pursuing her studies in Jamaica,” the ministry added.
Nurse Solomon, the statement said, is perhaps best remembered for the vital role that played in the development of maternity and children’s health in the Cayman Islands.
Following her retirement, she continued to be active in the community and would participate in social outings with seniors in Bodden Town.
In 2006, when Bodden Town’s seniors centre, a place for the district’s older people to share their heritage and socialise, was opened, it was named after her.
Solomon was surprised at the opening, having no idea the centre would carry her name.
Funeral arrangements are still being finalised.
Related Videos
