registered nurse

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     SHIKHA MONDAL

“From my heart, I care for the patients; I feel a deep need to help them.”

I work as a registered nurse at Epworth Hospital in Melbourne.

When I finished year twelve in Bangladesh, my family insisted that I go into nursing. It wasn’t my first choice at all. I wanted to be a university lecturer, an academic. In my country, if you’re a good student, you study engineering, or medicine. Usually nursing is for those who are not the best students, or students from poor socio-economic background in Bangladesh.

But my parents sent me to study nursing because they thought that as a nurse, I’d be guaranteed at least a government job, and so I’d always be able to work and survive. I applied for the biggest medical college in Bangladesh. I sat my entrance exam very successfully, and got a chance to study nursing with scholarship. Continue reading →

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     EDGAR TAN

“Sometimes you are the only person with them in their dying moments.”

I am a registered nurse specializing in aged care.

I was always interested in nursing and all things medical, so straight after high school I went to do a nursing course at the Institute of Technical Education of Singapore. Coming from an Asian background where nursing as a career can be frowned upon, especially for males, I was lucky to have a pretty supportive family.

I did a two-year certificate to become an enrolled nurse. Thereafter, I did around four months work in a public hospital before it was time for me to do the mandatory two year military service. Continue reading →

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      REBECCA LANIGAN

“I think as nurses, often we focus primarily on our jobs and patients, but it’s also important to spend time on ourselves, our self-development and career satisfaction.”

I am a Registered Nurse, working in a Level 1 Emergency and Trauma centre in Melbourne.

Prior to doing my VCE in Mildura, I went on a cultural exchange trip to Indonesia. I lived with a host family in Yogyakarta, going to school and sharing their lifestyle. The second time I visited, I actually ended up being a patient in their healthcare system. That was the first time I was in a hospital – home or overseas.

When comparing the lifestyle I experienced there to my own, I was especially struck by the difference in healthcare – not just the resources, but even in the basic access people have to knowledge and health education. Continue reading →

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     RACHEL SMITH

“If you had told me 5 years ago I’d be a nurse, I would have said “Not a chance”.

I am a paediatric oncology nurse.

I grew up in the UK and moved to Australia in 2009, when I was 16. I did an international Baccalaureate in high school, specifically focusing on biology subjects. I was always interested in sciences and after school I got into a biomedical degree at Deakin, with the intention of going into veterinary medicine.

On graduation, I started a short internship at Southpaws Specialist Veterinary Clinic. I was allowed to shadow in surgeries, did admissions, pre – and postoperative care. As a result, I was offered a job there as a casual vet nurse, which I did for about 6 months. It was tough and long hours, but I loved it. Continue reading →

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     SHERIDAN BANNER

“I had a woman who thanked me for three days straight for an enema I gave her to relieve constipation.”

I am a registered nurse working at Southwest Healthcare in Warrnambool.

From an early age, I loved babies, obsessing over how adorable and lovable they were. Perhaps as the youngest child, I felt I missed out on having a baby sibling to care for.

My interest in nursing developed when I went to boarding school as a teenager. The school nurse there was a wonderfully warm lady, a mother figure to all the girls. She inspired me in my later school years to take on that caring role, taking the younger girls under my wing. Continue reading →