Amy Lebedew started her career with Uniting in 2014 as a Care Service Employee. In 2019 she started her nursing degree with the support of her managers and is now working as a registered nurse.
Amy Lebedew started her career with Uniting in 2014 as a Care Service Employee at Uniting Irwin Hall, a residential aged care service in Newcastle.
Amy says, “From the day I started, I was really interested in nursing. The registered nurses I worked with were really helpful and would take the time to explain what their work involves and I would often shadow them as they cared for our residents.”
The first step that Amy took to develop her skills towards becoming a nurse was to undertake the assisting in medication courses through U learn.
Amy says, “The medication course was really good skills development and helped me understand more about what being a nurse involves.”
In 2019, Amy started studying her nursing degree with the University of Newcastle.
“I’m really grateful to the managers I have had at Irwin Hall as they have all been hugely supportive of my studies. They supported me to work flexibly which helped me balance studies and nursing placements with work.”
Amy completed her degree in 2021 and is now working as a registered nurse at Irwin Hall and is also part of the Uniting Registered Nurses Graduate program.
The program has been developed in partnership with the University of Wollongong and guides graduate nurses in their first year of clinical practice using the Gerontological Nurse Competencies
The 8-month program supports newly graduated Registered Nurses through mentorship, professional development and specialist education to enhance the care they provide to our residents and clients.
Amy offers this advice to anyone who is considering becoming a nurse, “It is really hard balancing studying with working, but it has been so worth it for me. Working as a nurse is interesting, challenging and really rewarding.”
