What happens inside Barwon Health?

By Jess Breckon

I was lucky enough to spend a week at Barwon Health on Work Experience with a difference.

Places were tight with only 32 Year 10 students from across Geelong being selected for the special program.

We got to find out about a whole lot of things and have a really different learning experience.

We were introduced to a range of employees who have different jobs at Barwon Health including: nursing, surgeons, nutritionists, social workers, midwifery, pharmacists, exercise physiologists and podiatrists.

I really enjoyed meeting the nurses because their careers sounded really interesting and nursing is a field I would really love to go into.

It was surprising to learn about the schedules of the aged care patients and how they have a set routine every week.

I really enjoyed learning about midwifery because how they spoke about their career was interesting and how developed a close relationship with the mother.

I got to try out being a midwife while holding the baby when the head and the body is pushed through the vagina.

We spent time working with the aged care patients, playing darts with them and learning about their being in the past and present.

The most challenging thing about the week was doing the surgeon activities because I have no patience to operate on a person and I really could not complete those activities.

What I really enjoyed about the week was meeting all different people from different professions and hearing about their life and their stories and how they got to where they are today.

I think the qualities you need to work in the Health sector are great communication skills, patience, knowledge in the health care field and the ability to respond to the patients correctly.

One thing I won’t forget about this week is all the awesome people that I met and how many connections I made throughout this week.

Now I think that in the future I will pursue a career in nursing and I am considering midwifery as my pathway.

I recommend this program to next year’s Year 10 students. Put up your hand, give it a go. It’s good to put yourself forward and good for your future!

Acknowledgement: The program was brought to schools in the Geelong Region by Barwon Health and the Geelong Region Local Learning & Employment Network (LLEN). The ‘Careers in Community Services & Health Program’ is funded by Skilling the Bay.