Jessica in it for the long haul

As the St John of God Murdoch Community Hospice Nurse Manager, Jessica says the numerous career development opportunities over the past 11 years are what led her to where she is today.

2 Nov 2022

Why did you join us?

When I was a student nurse, I was fortunate enough to be partnered with St John of God Murdoch Hospital to do most of my practical placements. In doing that, I really started to become familiar with the hospital and I was able to feel part of the team before I was even brought on as a real nurse.

What do you enjoy most about working with us?

Working for St John of God Murdoch Hospital, we are really lucky that we have many opportunities for professional development.

We have lots of really fun days, we have special coffee days, we have eighties parties. We always have a brilliant work ball and Christmas parties every year - the list goes on.

We have a special new wellbeing dog, named Sunny, who is just beautiful. Besides that, you just get the feel that everybody who works here at the hospital and hospice really cares for the patients and they care for the families - it's just a great bunch of colleagues.

What opportunities have you received while working with us?

I have been really fortunate while working here. I came here as a Graduate Registered Nurse and I was able to begin coordinating shifts and then gained a position as Clinical Nurse. From there, I was able to work as Learning and Development Nurse and also act in various roles such as Clinical Nurse Specialist and Nurse Manager.

That is really what's led me to where I am today being the Clinical Nurse Manager at the hospice.

Alongside that, there's been various training opportunities. The one that I got the most out of was our ‘Ready to Thrive’ program, where we are trained up as clinical nurses in leadership and management skills.

What do you love about living in Perth?

I absolutely love living here in WA, I think we've got the best state in Australia. We're fortunate enough to have coastline that goes all the way up to the red dirt and the beautiful pristine white beaches and then all the way down to our lovely forests and the country land, down south.

There's so many opportunities to go on holidays, you can go north and get warm, or you can go south and cuddle up by a warm fire. It's really great.

What do you want other people to know about working with St John of God Health Care?

Working for St John of God Health Care, I really feel that everybody is treated as an individual. We're all given equal opportunities for amazing professional development. Besides that, we always have a lot of fun.

How do you socialise with your team outside of work?

Outside of work, my team and I generally go out for breakfasts, or we might go out to a comedy show. We always have a couple of tables at the work ball and we generally have a really fun Christmas party for ourselves and our ward at the end of the year.

What does St John of God Health Care do to make you feel cared about in the workplace?

St John of God Health Care really cares for its employees. We’re given lots of special days throughout the year to celebrate our nurses’ day as well as other caregiver days. We're given amazing Christmas parties and balls.

We have a special wellbeing dog that's around now and we have a great wellness program that's available to really help us with our self-care.

Find out more about joining our team.