Northern Ireland’s Nurse of the Year has been praised for helping to prevent blindness in premature babies.
Linda Hamilton, a paediatric opthalmology manager in the Belfast Trust, was presented with the Royal College of Nursing award by the Health Minister Mike Nesbitt.
Speaking to the Irish News, the Monaghan native explained how the use of new imaging technology meant that 100% of at-risk babies are now screened for preventable blindness.
When she took over the service for Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) only 72.5% of babies were screened on time.
Introducing a “zero-fail” system, this was increased to 100% within three months, with the new technology also allowing nurses to carry out most screenings and allow doctors to focus on more complex cases.
“ROP is one of the most preventable causes of blindness in the western world, Stevie Wonder is one of those people,” she said.
“So it was unacceptable that we knew which babies were at risk and they weren’t all screened.
“When you’re in the neonatal environment it’s all consuming, there’s alarms ringing, cardiac monitors, respiratory issues and ROP gets no one’s attention.”
Pictured is (L-R), Sarah Travers, awards host and Linda Hamilton, RCN Northern Ireland Nurse of the Year 2026. PICTURE: RCN 
International star, Stevie Wonder’s blindness was cause by Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP). PICTGURE BEN BIRCHALL PA
Starting her nursing journey in 1998, she said it was the care an uncle with brain cancer received in Dublin that first inspired her career.
“I would go up all the time to visit him and I used to admire the nurses, their uniforms and professionalism and how they cared for him,” she said.
“Everyone really respected them. People always say to nurses that they’re amazing for the job they do, but you also get an awful lot back from it and go home feeling you’ve done something beneficial.”
While she’s now at the top of her profession, Linda said it wasn’t always an obvious fit.
“I always wanted to do nursing, but the career guidance teacher at my school in Monaghan told me to forget about it because I wouldn’t get the grades,” she said.
“I did get a job as an auxiliary nurse in a tuberculosis hospital near Dublin, but every time they took blood from a patient’s arm I fainted.
“So they told me I was useless and not to bother. So I’d say to all the young staff nurses out there to hang in there, if it’s your dream and you really want to do it don’t give up.”
Training in Edinburgh and marrying a Belfast man, she eventually started working for the Belfast Trust as a junior nurse in 2004.
While delighted with the success of her screening programme, she said caring for premature babies was highly challenging.
“It’s really difficult for the parents because there are deaths every week.
“It’s also very hard for the nurses and the doctors to keep going and I think there should be some more support for the team.
“For the parents it’s the hardest job in the world, it’s about managing their expectations and being real and honest about what the journey looks like and supporting them.
“But the children’s eye service, they are amazing and they’re the dream team. It’s all about working well together and that starts at the top.”
Professor Rita Devlin, head of the RCN in Northern Ireland, said Linda’s determination had delivered “life-changing results.”
“Linda has not only improved outcomes for families but also set a national benchmark for excellence.
“Her work is a powerful example of how nursing leadership can transform services, reduce risk and make a lasting difference to patients’ lives.”