Blog

What to Wear

Not all Sunshine Coast aged care facilities require their workers to wear uniforms. In fact, many prefer you to wear casual clothing to help create a more homely environment for their residents.

Remember, you are working in their home – they’re not living in your workplace – so be respectful with how you dress.  Closed in shoes, sleeved shirts and comfortable skirts or pants are essential.  You will be on your feet most of the day, so it’s worthwhile investing in a good pair of supportive shoes – runners are usually fine. It’s always good to have some pockets in your pants for handover sheets, notepad, pens and anything else you might need whilst working in the facilities.

Some workers find nurses’ pouches really helpful and you can order them online for anywhere between $7- $35.   They can be very handy for keeping things like an extra set of gloves, pens, tape and whatever else you might need.

Ladies, before you go off to work bend over in front of the mirror and check the cleavage.  You will be bending over a lot helping with personal cares of older people, so remember; our role is to provide care not raise blood pressure!

It’s very important to wear your ID badge every day.  If you are wearing your ID around your neck on a lanyard (string necklace) make sure it has a weak link in case it gets caught or pulled.

Keep Busy

Show initiative and identify jobs that you can do without direct supervision, for example; emptying linen skips and re stocking linen in bathrooms.

Think about the areas of personal care you learned about and identify tasks that you need to practice on.  Write yourself a list to show your buddies.  This will help them keep you busy in skills you need to develop. Practice areas you feel less confident in over and over again.

Ask questions – you’ll soon sort out who is great at sharing their knowledge with you.

Ask your buddy for a duties list at the start of your shift.  They list tasks that don’t require you to be directly supervised, so you can be a real help by doing them.

Always remember to ask if vocational placement is organised for you.  Some facilities on the Sunshine Coast refuse to take students who have completed online Aged Care Certificate 3 courses making it very difficult to get your qualification. Enrol in our Sunshine Coast Aged Care Certificate 3 course today.