When it comes to nursing in aged care, there's a pretty clear career path at Uniting AgeWell – just ask Janine Davis.
She’s gone from being a personal care worker at Uniting AgeWell Andrew Kerr Care Community to studying to become an enrolled nurse, and has recently been promoted to team leader in charge of a 30-bed unit.
Janine leads a team of four direct care workers and says aged care is the sector to be in when it comes to a hugely rewarding whole-of-person care.
“Nursing in an acute setting means you treat the patient and then send them home. Here, we work in our residents’ home, and we get to care for them each and every day for the rest of their lives.”
Janine says this allows nurses to get to know the residents and their families – which she says is hugely rewarding.
Her journey into aged care, like many others, happened quite by chance. For many years, Janine worked with her husband running their fruit and vegetable stand at the Dandenong Market. “I used to love serving older people,” Janine explains. “I realised from the get-go that I had a huge affinity with them.”
So she did her Cert III in Aged Care and Disability and 14 years ago joined Andrew Kerr Care as a direct care worker. Six years ago she did her Diploma in Nursing to become an enrolled nurse – and the rest is history. “I love being able to make a difference to older people’s lives,” Janine says.
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