Aged care down south – Interview with Vanessa Harries, Diploma of Business graduate

By Carol Kitching

What job do you do and what's the name of your organisation?

I'm the coordinator for the Commonwealth Community Aged Care Program at Bay & Basin Community Resources Inc at Sanctuary Point on the south coast of NSW which is nearly three hours drive from Sydney. We look after people who are socially and geographically isolated. The community comprises different satellite villages so it's a regional community. Nowra is our district centre.

I case manage 22 clients. The program is set up to support elderly people to stay at home independently instead of moving into aged care. It's a flexible program similar to home care but has more features. The program can help people with domestic assistance, personal care, meal preparation, transport to and from appointments, assistance with shopping, social outings.

Our not-for-profit organisation provides a whole range of community services from youth services through to aged, so we're like a one-stop shop within the area. The clients I have at the moment are in the Bay and Basin area but our service specifications also cover the Shoalhaven and our other services cover north Nowra, Berry, down to Ulladulla and further south.

Why did you choose to do the Diploma of Business?

I was a program support worker and moved into a coordinator's position and felt that this course would be beneficial to the type of work I am doing. Also, I like to do study just for my own benefit.

What did you find valuable in the course?

The support from the tutors was very beneficial. Since it's a distance education course, it was sometimes difficult to just understand the questions. It was no problem to correspond with the tutors at the School. They get back to you promptly and you didn't feel apprehensive about ringing and asking questions because I suppose that's one of the disadvantages of not studying face-to-face. Sometimes it's difficult to interpret the things you are reading and the questions that you're answering. It's handy to have the tutors validate the way you are thinking and if you are on the right track.

What is the most important thing you will take away from the course?

The qualification – having that on my resume, as well as the experience of distance learning because I haven't had that experience before. Also, I won't be apprehensive about doing distance learning in the future.

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