Catholic Health Australia names John McAllister 2023 Nurse of the Year

01 Sep 2023

St Vincent’s nurse of 33 years, John McAllister, has been recognised as 2023 Nurse of the Year as announced by Catholic Health Australia.

John initially worked in our cardiothoracic intensive care unit, however by the early 90’s, the impact HIV was having on the community and amongst his own friends and peers became the catalyst for a change in focus - and in 1993 he started working in the St Vincent’s HIV ward, 17 South. It was here that John’s passion for HIV nursing began, forming the foundation of his career, and a lifeline for so many young men and women.

“It was a safe space, a space where there was no stigma, no discrimination. There was care and there was love. And we looked after people from all walks of life. We had the whole demographic”.

A core member of the Infectious Diseases team (IBAC), John has been a leader in the transformation and growth of the HIV and immunology services at St Vincent’s, the largest HIV service in Australia. He also cares for patients requiring biomedical intervention to prevent HIV infection using anti-HIV drugs to protect HIV negative people from acquiring HIV – HIV post and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PEP and PrEP).

His role in HIV care and prevention encompasses advanced skills in diagnosing and managing HIV and other sexually acquired infections.

“I’ve seen the whole evolution of there being no treatment for HIV with lots of death and condoms as the mainstay of prevention to the era of one pill a day to both treat and prevent this awful disease”.

His clinical expertise in this space is underpinned by a Master’s of Science in Medicine with a focus on HIV and STD management. Over the last two decades as principal author or co-author, John has published over 20 studies in peer review journals and presented at conferences Australia-wide.

His research includes novel HIV testing methods, which drugs to use in HIV PEP and the socioeconomic and psychosocial factors associated with poor treatment outcomes in Australian adults living with HIV.

“Patients can come into our service and be loved and cared for and nurtured. We pick up the pieces and we help people get on with their lives”.

He is a champion for Medicare ineligible patients with HIV or who require PEP/Pre. These patients incur no cost to access the service including consults, pathology, investigations and treatment.

In addition to his substantive roles, John recently helped initiate the St Vincent’s World Pride Hub during Sydney World Pride, which saw approximately 200 presentations a week, providing free sexual health care, HIV checks, PEP and PrEP and MPOX vaccinations.

This award is fitting recognition of John's unwavering dedication to serving some of our most disadvantaged patients, and of an exceptional career. Congratulations John!