One month after a 21-year-old student in Mangaluru was stabbed by her male friend in an incident that shocked the city, the young nurse who approached the attacker and brought the situation under control was awarded the state-level Florence Nightingale Award at a ceremony in Bengaluru on Saturday. The victim meanwhile has been shifted out of the Intensive Care Unit and is recuperating.
Nimmy Stephen Kulakkattu, the nurse who had earlier refused to reveal her identity when TNM first spoke to her, has now given permission for her name to be published.
The 22-year-old nurse, who is a native of Payyavoor in Kannur district, said that she never imagined she would be honoured with the prestigious award so early in her career. “I was just doing my duty and was not thinking of anything except saving the girl on that fateful day last month,” she told TNM.
On July 28, Nimmy reached the scene, on the road behind the compound of KS Hegde Medical Academy (KSHEMA) and saw 27-year-old Sushanth drenched in blood. After she began speaking to him, she was finally able to convince him to step away from the victim, who had already been stabbed multiple times.
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Nimmy, a staff nurse at KS Hegde Medical College Hospital, Mangaluru had completed her nursing education at the same institution. “I always dreamed of being a nurse and consider myself lucky that the institution hired me soon after my education. It’s been 11 months since I started working here as a nurse,” she said.
Hailing from an agriculturist family, Nimmy said that her father, Stephen Kulakkattu, is a farmer, while her mother, Thankamma, is a homemaker. Nimmy, who has two brothers, said she was always interested in serving people.
In recognition of her bravery, she also received an award from the KS Hegde Institute.
However, more than receiving an award, Nimmy said she is relieved that the stabbing victim is recovering. “I have visited her couple of times. Recently, the doctor introduced us formally. I remember her saying, ‘thank you’,” Nimmy said.
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