Dr. Balbir K. Gurm, a life-long student and enthusiastic educator, is one of BC CRN’s newest Board Members. She is a nursing instructor in the Faculty of Health at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) and sits on various committees and boards that promote well-being. She has a strong passion for research centred around creating equity and loves sharing her knowledge with her nursing students and the world.
Advocating for Equity
Dr. Gurm’s post-secondary journey started with becoming a registered nurse. During her program training, she was a minority at the university and ended up suffering quite a bit of racism. However, during one semester, she enrolled in an elective for adult education and found an inclusive faculty team who helped her develop a love for it. She decided to do her master’s degree in education and went on to earn her doctorate, writing her thesis on employee well-being. Because of her experience with prejudice, the theme of equity has been a common thread in all her subsequent research and education.
She has always been interested in the older population and has worked in extended care. Early in her career at KPU, she taught practice courses for elder care and completed her master’s thesis on life review and the institutionalized elderly.
Dr. Gurm knew of long-time BC CRN board member Dr. Gloria Gutman’s research for decades and was recently introduced to her through a common friend to collaborate on a project for queer older adults. Dr. Gurm joined their team as the expert on cultural safety and began collaborating on developing literature and educational events to raise awareness of the unique needs of older queer adults and their risks of abuse. When an opening came up for a new board member, Dr. Gutman invited her to consider joining.
Advocating for the Elimination of Violence
Around 2009, Dr. Gurm was approached by a community in Surrey to join a city-formed committee to address domestic violence. This led her to a study on understanding the abuse cycle from multiple perspectives in 2011. From there, her passion and knowledge translation in this field grew, resulting in founding the Network to Eliminate Violence in Relationships (NEVR) housed under the KPU umbrella. Originally her research project, it is now a nonprofit charitable organization. Along with other NEVR members, she created multiple toolkits for community use and collaborated on an ebook (now in its second edition) that addresses all aspects of relationship violence and its ripple effects. Dr. Gurm has also been collaborating on a national initiative exclusively for women and girls, the Alliance Against Violence and Adversity (AVA). Like many nonprofits, their biggest challenges are navigating how to effectively reach the public, securing ongoing funding and advocating for municipal, provincial and federal action to prevent relationship violence.
She currently serves on several committees and boards, including: Director at Large RN Council, Chair of the Surrey Libraries Board, Chair of the Advisory Committee to the Minister of Tourism, Arts, Sports and Culture for the South Asian Museum and Facilitator and Executive Director of NEVR.
Future Goals
One of Dr. Gurm’s deepest desires is to see more collaboration between similar organizations. She believes more good can be done through unified efforts rather than many smaller initiatives struggling to start up and compete for the same limited funding sources. She would also like to see strides in preventative measures introduced within society to foster health and well-being as a proactive approach to reducing the violence and trauma cycle.
When Dr. Gurm is not lending her brilliance and energy to the many organizations and committees she is involved in, she enjoys meditation, yoga, weight training and hiking. She recently completed the Machu Picchu trail in Peru and has plans to conquer the ascent to the base camp on Everest or Kilimanjaro.
Explore our website to learn more about BC CRN or connect with your local CRN for more information or resources.
