You have been such a key member of the Medcall team over the years and had such an influence on so many aspects of the company. How has Medcall shaped you?

• When I started with Medcall I was only 19 and it was my very first full time corporate position after finishing high school. I was new to the corporate sector and had very little experience working in an office environment. Throughout the 7 years I have been with Medcall I have had multiple opportunities offered to me by my managers who quickly identified my potential to perform in multiple roles and allowed me to build my skills and experience to what it is today. I’ve learnt that I am very versatile as I have juggled a number of roles and responsibilities over the years which taught me to be open to change and back myself, and that is a skill I will take with me into every future position. When I first started out in this business I was a shy young girl and didn’t yet have the skills or experience to know how to share the workload, in other words I didn’t know when to say no. Now, leaving Medcall to take the next step in my professional career I am confident in my abilities, I know my worth, my strengths, and my weaknesses and although it is hard to fathom leaving this amazing team I feel ready, armed with the knowledge I have learnt during my time here that I am now a very capable, skilled and valued member of any team I get to be a part of.

What attracted you to this industry all those years ago?

• I was originally enrolled to study Nursing, when the Bureau Consultant role came up, it really appealed to me for a couple of reasons; Firstly I learned about the role through my good friend Jessie Shaw who had worked for Medcall for a couple of years already and had mentioned how it was a great company to work for, she explained the role and suggested I apply as she thought my personality would be well suited to the role and the customers Medcall dealt with on a day to day basis, as well is it giving us the opportunity to be able work together which I thought would be amazing and doesn’t happen very often; Secondly the position was based in the sector that I was interested in being a part of and I could offer me knowledge and experience in healthcare. There was always the possibility I could study Nursing in future but I enjoyed working for Medcall so much so that I stayed right up until now.

What are you most proud of during your time with Medcall?

I can think of two achievements I am extremely proud to have driven during my time with Medcall; the first achievement was leading my team to achieve the biggest week in the company’s history which earned us the highest revenue we’ve ever had on the books. We managed to fill 1000 temp shifts in 1 week. I had sourced feedback from my team and put new processes and rosters in place which allowed the team to better manage their workloads leading to them working more efficiently and filling shifts more quickly; and the second was that Medcall decided to create our own custom-made in-house system to improve efficiency and due to my extensive systems knowledge I was offered the opportunity to lead this project from inception, to design and development. I am sad to leave before seeing the positive changes it will make to the team.

Which elements of your various roles have given you the most satisfaction?

• I consider myself a perfectionist with exceptional attention to detail, and have really enjoyed streamlining processes. Some of the systems we use can be a little tricky to navigate so I have created manuals and how to guides to assist and direct staff throughout the entire business no matter where in the country they are based, solidifying me as the go to person for a lot of people with my ability to aide and support them. I also really enjoy the organising and event planning side of my role like celebrating staff birthdays, decorating cards, organising cakes, morning teas, shared lunches, Christmas parties, presents and celebrating staff milestones both professional and personal. I get real satisfaction from making others happy.

Covid-19 has obviously presented the aged care industry with many new challenges over this past year – tell us a bit about what managing the Bureau was like for you during that time.

One of the biggest challenges has been how Covid impacted our processes where each alert level had its own protocols and how it affected our staff and clients. In terms of staff, if Medcall were their secondary employer we had to place them on hold, take them out of shifts, and find replacements. At level 3 staff could only work at one facility, whereas at level 2 staff could go to another facility with a 48 hour stand down in between. We had to keep track of all these new processes and have to ability to quickly adapt as alert levels were announced while also ensuring our clients had the appropriate cover. Covid also took a toll on the wellbeing of staff, not knowing if they would get enough hours, sickness, isolation, it was our responsibility to reassure and support them through such a scary and uncertain time.

What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received?

•  When spelling the word "Necessary" think - one coffee and two sugars ( One C and two S's) 

What’s next for you?

• After a lot of thought about my future, my professional career, and what aspects of my role I enjoy the most, I was approached by a recruiter for an exciting new role with Fisher & Paykel Appliances. The newly created role of Retail Experience Coordinator which I was successful in being offered, and although I am sad and nervous to leave my work home base of almost 7 years I am very excited to begin this new chapter as I get to utilise my organisation and coordination skills daily which are the two aspects of my roles with Medcall I have enjoyed the most. I am an organiser through and through and I am at my best when I am looking at ways to streamline and simplify a process or coordinate/liaise a team project. I am so thankful to Medcall for believing in my young and inexperienced self, for recognising my ability and assisting me in building the skillset that eventually got me this exciting now role and for providing a working environment like no other. I will sincerely miss you all!