Nancy Halsted Bryant, former faculty member at the AKU School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan, passed away on August 8, 2024, in Virginia, USA. She is survived by two daughters, Mayche Brigham and Chirawan Wells, and son, Peter Halsted Bryant.
Ms Bryant served as Director of the School’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BScN) programme in its early years and played an instrumental role in building its curriculum and core structure. She championed community health nursing education, and was the editor of many publications including the book,
Women in Nursing in Islamic Countries.
Nancy Bryant was the wife of Dr John ‘Jack’ Bryant, founding Chair of AKU’s Department of Community Health Sciences (CHS). The duo moved to Karachi in 1985 when Dr Bryant accepted the position of Nourdin M. Thobani Endowed Professor and Chair, AKU-CHS, and Ms Bryant began teaching at AKU’s School of Nursing.
One of the couple’s most cherished teaching and community initiatives in Pakistan has been their work in the squatter settlements of Karachi’s Baba Island. It is here that they mentored and teamed nursing and medical students with community health workers, nurses and physicians, and those living in the settlements, to collaboratively assess, plan, implement, and evaluate strategies to improve health outcomes, with a particular focus on reducing the alarming infant mortality rates on the island.
“Every now and then you meet a person who has the power to change you just by being themselves. Nancy was one of those persons in my life. She literally changed the course of my career trajectory,” said Dr Salimah Walani, Dean at AKU-SONAM and former student of Nancy Bryant. “Her passion for advancing the field of community health nursing was remarkable. As young students we learnt from her the critical role nurses play in promoting the health of populations.”
“Nancy was my boss in the early years of the School. I can’t recall anyone being as humble and helpful. She did not just teach me lessons in education and a community health nursing but taught me, by example, how to be an effective and fair leader,” said Dr Yasmin Amarsi, former colleague of Nancy Bryant and professor emeritus at AKU.
Dr Jack Bryant passed away on July 5, 2017, after battling a chronic illness. Both Jack and Nancy are remembered by students and colleagues at AKU to date - a testament to their lasting legacy in community healthcare.
