When Alicia Walker and Nicole Aue enrolled on a free healthcare programme at Training For You, it was the beginning of a brave new journey for both.
The young women had previously enjoyed accomplished careers in quite different fields. Nicole was a qualified hairdresser, having gained an Apprentice of the Year award and other industry accolades before becoming a full-time Mum. She says, “I felt personally that I had reached my peak with hairdressing. I had achieved my goals and done what I wanted to do with it.” Alicia had worked as a Supply Quartermaster and Ammo Technician with New Zealand Army, and juggled motherhood with online study in introductory healthcare, psychology and digital photography. She says, “My plan was eventually to go into Nursing. But my main focus was raising my children.”
Alicia decided to join the Healthcare, Level 2 programme at Training For You when she was working as a cleaner at Whanganui Hospital, wanting to give back to the healthcare sector, “I decided to give it a go because it was free and accessible, especially with my children being school aged. I signed up and walked in, and it was the greatest decision I’ve made.” Nicole took a big leap to fulfill a lifelong interest in healthcare, “I was nervous, jumping away from hairdressing which was something that I was already comfortable in, and good at, and confident with. But it worked out really well.”
The 13-week Healthcare programme at Training For You provides essential knowledge and practical skills needed to gain entry-level work, in a health or wellbeing-related service. With a mix of classroom learning and practical training, students gain vital experience through work placements. Learners gain the foundation skills needed to become Health Care Assistants (HCA), or Caregivers in rest homes, hospitals or in the community. Graduates of the programme are awarded the New Zealand Certificate in Health and Wellbeing, Level 2. For Alicia, the course was a great learning experience and gave her the confidence to try new things, “Coming to the course made me excited about learning again. The tutor’s approach was very kind and gentle. She guided you in a smooth way. You are taught in a way that is easy to understand, and not fully jam-packed into a lot of words where you lose yourself.” Nicole agrees, “I think that was the most important thing for me, having not been in a classroom for so long.”
Through work experience, they were each offered employment even before they had finished the course. Both say they wouldn’t have had the confidence or capability to do HCA work without first having gone to Training For You. Nicole explains, “You’re working with vulnerable people. You need to have your wits about you, and know your safety precautions, and have that basic training. I am so glad that I did the Training For You course, because it kept me safe, and it kept the clients safe.” Alicia says the course opened up many doors for her, “Due to the training I had from Training For You, even though I had no prior experience working in a hospital, they still wanted me. And now I’ve had experience working with the ATR, Medical and Surgical departments. I got to experience dealing with patients who have had surgery, those who have more higher needs. I’ve learned so many new techniques. And the techniques that I learned at placement, I’m able to show others.” At the hospital, Alicia has been inspired by the Registered Nurses she has met that began their study pathways with the Healthcare programme at Training For You.
After completing their programme, Alicia and Nicole enrolled in the New Zealand Diploma in Enrolled Nursing, Level 5 with UCOL Whanganui. Nicole reflects, “The Healthcare programme at Training For You was such a great stepping-stone before doing this. I had no idea at the time that I signed up with Training For You, that I would have carried on and ended up here. I know that Training For You gave me the confidence to do this.”
Alicia says the Level 2 course was a good place to get motivated to learn, and go further, “It gives you the drive. It helps to get that motor kicking, especially for those who haven’t gone into tertiary study since leaving school.” Now, they are able to explore all sorts of options in the healthcare field. Nicole observes, “It’s an evolving journey. We’ve found that there are so many different avenues we can go down.” They credit Training For You with encouraging them to take those braver steps, “I remember at Training For You, one piece of advice that I still carry with me is, ‘Just let your first day be your first day.’ That changed my whole mindset of going into anything new, whether that be the first day of class, or the first day of clinical placement.”
Following completion of the diploma, they will consider continuing their studies on, to the Bachelor of Nursing, Level 7. Nicole would like to become a paramedic, “I’ve still got a long journey but I’m really excited about continuing. I want to be with St Johns, on the ambulances.” She will wait for her children to be older but in time would like to train as an Emergency Medical Technician. Alicia is also keen to go further, “I do want to do more. I want to be more hands-on with people, helping more with their holistic needs as individuals.”
Alicia and Nicole are enthusiastic advocates for the Training For You programme. Nicole comments, “Thirteen weeks and no financial commitment, it is such a huge opportunity to take advantage of. We weren’t sure about our academic abilities and how far we could go, having not been in education for ages. For Training For You to offer a short course, with no fees, Monday-Thursday, school hours. What did we have to lose?”
Alicia concurs, “There was no risk. It gave me that ‘bite’ into something I wanted to do, and it gave me the drive to continue on. And I got to make a good friend, so that’s a bonus. I highly recommend this course. You won’t regret it. I think if you have felt in the past that working in healthcare is out of your reach, then this is for you. Not only do you get a certificate in healthcare, you gain so much more. It gave me experience to be able to work in a healthcare environment and confidence to strive for what I thought I could never reach.”
Nicole adds, “Just do it. Just take the leap. There are a hundred ways to talk yourself out of it. But it takes just one second to be brave. Before you know it, it’s finished and you’re walking away with a qualification.”
