Citizen journalist Natasha Baldin wins nursing association award

Natasha Baldin, a reporter at the Ottawa Citizen, has won the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario's award for best news story in a daily newspaper in Ontario for 2025.

Baldin's award-winning article, published December 9, told the story of Sa'id Altawalbeh, a 47-year-old Jordanian nurse who moved to Ottawa five years ago seeking permanent residency for himself, his wife, and their three children. The story chronicled Altawalbeh's struggle against bureaucratic red tape and an unresponsive immigration process that threatened to force his family to leave Canada when his work permit expired December 20.

The reporting was particularly poignant given Canada's ongoing nursing shortage. Altawalbeh's wife also worked as a nurse at CHEO, and their eldest daughter worked in cardiovascular technology in the health-care system. If forced to leave, all three would have had to depart.

"I saw the frustration and a little bit of hopelessness from him and his family as they did everything they could to keep their life in Canada and everything they had worked so hard to build in Ottawa," Baldin recalled. "It touched me right away, and I knew it was a really important story to tell."

Following publication of Baldin's story, Altawalbeh's work permit was extended, allowing him to continue nursing while pursuing permanent residency. "We'll never know for sure, but even if I played a really small part in helping Sa'id and his family, it was pretty cool to be part of it," Baldin said.

Nicole Feriancek, editor-in-chief of the Citizen, called the recognition a testament to local journalism's power. "Seeing our work make an impact is the ultimate reward," she said. Baldin is one of seven journalists honoured by the RNAO this year.