Before Austine Gaqui ever set foot in a hemodialysis unit in Canada, he spent three years pushing a mop.
The Filipino healthcare professional — now a Registered Nurse at Scarborough Health Network in Ontario — is a finalist for the 2026 Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Awards, and he needs the Filipino community’s support. Voting is open until June 12, 2026. Cast your vote at https://top25canadianimmigrantawards.ca/ and locate his photo to register your support.
Gaqui arrived in Canada in 2009 after serving as a Police Nurse Captain in the Philippines. Canadian licensing requirements did not transfer his credentials, leaving him to take on janitorial work while he worked toward re-entry into the profession he had spent years building. He eventually obtained his Registered Practical Nurse designation — a stepping stone that got him into a part-time nephrology role at Scarborough Health Network — before finally achieving full RN status in 2024, more than a decade after his arrival.
Along the way, he completed a Nephrology Nursing Certificate from Humber College and grew his part-time post into a full-time position in the hemodialysis unit, where he now also serves as a preceptor, training newly qualified nurses in one of healthcare’s more technical disciplines.
His impact reaches far beyond the ward. In 2019, he co-founded the Integrated Filipino Canadian Nurses Association, which has since helped hundreds of internationally educated nurses navigate Canada’s healthcare licensing system — a contribution that has taken on added weight during the country’s sustained nursing shortage. He also serves on the board of the Peace Officers Living in Canada Integrated Association, leading community clean-ups, food drives, blood donation campaigns, and medical support initiatives, with outreach extending to surgical missions and educational programs for underserved youth in the Philippines.
The honors have followed. Gaqui holds the King Charles III Coronation Medal, the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Award, the Toronto Star Florence Nightingale Award, the Hospital News Nursing Hero Award, and the Medal of Excellence from the Senator Tobias Enverga Jr. Foundation. On April 23, 2026, he received the Internationally Educated Nurse of the Year 2026 Award at the 17th National Conference of the Partnership in Integration and Education of Internationally Educated Nurses, held at The Westin Nova Scotian in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
The 2026 Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Awards, now in their 18th year and presented by Western Union, recognize immigrants whose contributions have shaped Canada’s economy, communities, and public institutions. Winners will be announced in the August issue of Canadian Immigrant magazine. The Filipino community has until June 12 to make sure one of its own is among them. Vote at https://top25canadianimmigrantawards.ca/.
