A fellowship 12 years in the making

17 Oct 2022

Soumaia is one of four inaugural St John of God Health Care Clinical and Research Fellowship candidates who will be supported to study a Master of Philosophy, part-time, over a three-year period at the University of Notre Dame Australia, while remaining on full pay and receiving necessary leave and support to complete her studies.

Soumaia’s research will focus on identifying the challenges and barriers facing health professionals performing routine delirium assessments.

“My current role in quality and risk is looking at compliance, quality and standards and using auditing to see where we align and where we fall short,” Soumaia said.

“I had just finished a scoping audit in preparation for [the hospital’s] accreditation next year when I found out about this fellowship. As I’m doing this audit, I’m thinking ‘why do we keep coming up short in this particular area, no matter what we do? Where is the gap?’.

“I thought, what better way to explore this topic than a Masters degree and what an amazing opportunity to have the support of St John of God Health Care to say ‘we’ll back you to study’ – you can’t get anything better than that.”

Soumaia is currently working at St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospital but started with our organisation in 2010 through the registered nurse graduate program at St John of God Murdoch Hospital.

Soumaia said she was excited to undertake the research and see the future opportunities it would afford her.

“The Fellowship is going to open up a lot of employability skills and options for my future,” she said.

“I know I’ll be able to go back to the clinical floor if I want to and be a better nurse than I’ve ever been, or I can move into teaching and help the next generation through their journey.” 

Soumaia said going back to study at the University of Notre Dame Australia was giving her a sense of déjà vu.

“I did my initial registered nursing studies at Notre Dame, so it’s crazy coming back full circle,” she said.

“My graduate program at Murdoch was one of the best experiences – I did two rotations and found my second rotation on the general surgical and colorectal ward to be my favourite. 

“I loved the team, my managers and the learning experiences. I ended up staying on that ward for eight years, before moving to the geriatric medical ward to fill the case management coordinator role. From there I transferred to Midland to work in quality and risk.”

Soumaia added there was a good reason she had stayed with St John of God Health Care for her entire career to date.

“Since the beginning, St John of God Health Care has done so well with professional development for caregivers, which was important to me,” she said.

“Besides the growth and learning opportunities and there being a career path, St John of God Health Care do such a great job of upholding its Mission and Values.

“I find it reassuring that the things the organisation stands for aligns with my own personal faith and values. 

“Regardless of the hospital or ward, I’ve always felt like I’m among family – we are all working towards same goal, and everyone is passionate about what they’re doing.

“At the end of the day, the fellowship is designed to help us take steps towards better patient care and hopefully other caregivers will see what we are doing and want to do the same thing.”

St John of God Health Care Group Allied Health and Rehabilitation Research Lead Dr Sangeeta Rathi congratulated Soumaia as one of the well-deserving candidates of the Fellowship.

“With Soumaia’s background in quality and risk, she understands how to develop solutions for gaps and the impact of this on patient care and safety,” Sangeeta said.

“I am excited to see how her research changes the outcomes for delirium patients and how it helps St John of God Health Care achieve its focus on clinical excellence and our strategic intent of becoming the best performing health care provider by 2025.”