The opportunities at Uniting AgeWell are enormous. Just ask Novie Taguicana.
She joined the organisation three years ago as a Food Services Assistant at Preston Community and after a few months thought, “this is great, but I need to be challenged more.” So she studied while working and became a Personal Care Worker at Hawthorn Community. Once again she realised she needed to reach her full potential, so she’s now an Enrolled Nurse due to start studying a Bachelor of Nursing part-time through RMIT while continuing to work at the facility.
“Novie’s got a big heart, has a great work ethic and is very driven,” says Hawthorn Community Residential Services Manager Sudha Maridu. “We’re here to support her to be the best version of herself that she can be.”
And Novie plans on doing just that. One of the main reasons she joined aged care, apart from the fact that she enjoys spending time with older people, is because of the career opportunities and security it affords.
The Philippine-born Novie arrived in Australia as an international student in 2019 after having worked in real estate in her homeland. She studied a Diploma of Conveyancing before changing gear and moving into aged care.
It is a choice she has never regretted. “Making a house sale is one thing, but that feeling of being able to make a difference to the life of an older person … that’s special! It leaves me feeling fulfilled.”
She’s also keen to do the annual Professional Development Courses that Uniting AgeWell runs for nurses to keep them on top of their game when it comes to best nursing practices, regulations and everything else in between. Novie is also keen to learn as much as she can about dementia to help older people with the disease make the most of their lives.
Novie also appreciates Uniting AgeWell’s five core values – including inclusion – which underpin everything that the not-for-profit organisation does. “They make me feel valued,” she says simply.
Learn more about nursing careers at Uniting AgeWell