Alice Carolyn Barker

At the age 21, I decided that I wanted to branch out some more and move to a new town. I have always loved Wellington and I was fortunate to get a job as a Healthcare Assistant at Bowen Hospital. Being a private hospital, meant that the role of Healthcare Assistant was very different to what I knew from working in the public sector. Our main daily tasks were to greet patients at the reception of the hospital and direct them to where they needed to go. We would also help the inpatients on the 21-bed ward with things such as toileting, showering, or general mobilising. I felt quite comfortable with these tasks from my previous experience at the Rotorua Hospital. Other daily tasks as a Healthcare Assistant included making beds, taking patients to and from x-rays, serving meals and topping up stock. When helping patients, I was always aware of how I presented myself. I was always friendly, calm and open minded when approaching different people. It is very important to me that patients are comfortable to speak up and I make sure that I am not being over bearing. It was a fairly small hospital, therefore I was working closely with a very tight knit community of healthcare workers and gained confidence from interacting and supporting others with different tasks.

When I was 20, I decided to branch out from the role of Cafe Assistant and try something else. I have always enjoyed helping others in need, and figured what better way to do that than work as a Healthcare Assistant? I started working in the Surgical Ward of the Rotorua Hospital doing full time night shift work. It was a big change and I am so glad I made it. I learnt so much during my time in the Surgical Ward. I helped the nurses with many tasks such as showering patients, doing bed washes, brief changes, emptying catheters and stoma bags. I was also taught to lift patients using appropriate equipment such as hoists, slings, etc. I was also very vigilant at reducing the risk of infections between patients by adhering to rules such as wearing PPE, donning and doffing correctly, and washing and sanitising hands regularly. I really enjoyed working alongside nurses to assist them with tasks such as wound cares and dressing changes. I also learnt tactics with regard to looking after mentally ill patients such as those with Dementia or Alzheimer's Disease. As a Healthcare Assistant I would do many tasks throughout a shift such as answer call bells, make beverages for patients and family, get heat packs for patients, adjust pillows for comfort, assist patients to the toilet or shower etc. During my time at the Rotorua Hospital I learnt many valuable tools to better understand how to help others and I have grown greatly through my experiences there.

From the age of 15 I started working casually at the Okere Falls Store. It was a local cafe that I was very familiar with and I learnt a lot there. I started off washing dishes, clearing tables etc, then advanced to working in the kitchen, serving customers and handling money. I learnt how to interact with many different people and I enjoyed providing a prompt and friendly service to all customers. Over time my skills expanded to being able to assist in the kitchen doing meal prep, assisting baristas with making coffee and serving alcohol in the bar. Being able to work throughout the cafe meant that I was interacting with coworkers from many different ages, cultures and backgrounds. I quickly learnt how to adapt to the day-today changes this would bring to the job. I quickly built up a rapport with many of the regular customers which helped to establish a strong work ethic to my job. I did many hands on jobs such as washing dishes, clearing tables, stocking shelves, mopping floors and sanitising surfaces. After working at the cafe for about a year, I was entrusted to train new workers and show them the basic tasks of being a cafe assistant.