A former Emergency Department (ED) nurse has hung up her scrubs in favour of the NSW TAFE curriculum, determined to help guide new nurses into their dream job.
Joanne Eveleigh’s mid-career change from nursing to education was spurred on after recognising the importance of well-trained healthcare workers that feel supported enough to stay in these vital roles. After returning to study education at TAFE NSW Grafton the former nurse plans to work at Universities and TAFE NSW.
Ms Eveleigh knows how important staff retention is in the healthcare industry – and access to quality training is a crucial part of this process.
“Working through the pandemic and with changes in the workforce, I could see the young people coming into the industry were facing some really difficult challenges […] I have always got so much out of sharing my knowledge and experience with others, so training to become a teacher was a natural progression for me,” she said.
All of Ms Eveleigh’s hard work has paid off, having recently been recognised at the TAFE NSW Excellence Awards as Technology and Business Services Student of the Year for the North region.
“It was a challenge and I had to overcome some obstacles but the path to becoming an educator needs to be comprehensive, to ensure people are ready to take on this responsibility,” she explained.
“There is so much to learn when you are starting out in healthcare, I’ve been there and I’ve seen how important the education process is, in cultivating young workers. It is a privilege to now be a part of that.”
Ms Eveleigh’s TAFE NSW Teacher Jennifer Agustin said she had an impact on the class and was pivotal in forging lifelong connections.
Well done
Nothing has held you back
Or will hold u back you have a great gift