Twenty years of cleaning, two weeks to a job offer

Lurline Jenkins had spent the better part of twenty years cleaning. The work was steady, but it wasn't where she wanted the next twenty years to go. A Facebook post changed the direction.

The post was about Caring in the Region, a supported training program for people considering care work, run with Far North Community College and backed by the Queensland Government's Skilling Queenslanders for Work initiative. Lurline made the call.

"I was overwhelmed at first," she says. "I asked myself a few times whether I was doing the right thing."

The doubt didn't survive the classroom. Training ran in a small group with hands-on practice from the start, and the course built toward the placement, with a real provider and real clients.

"There is so much to remember when you're looking after the elderly. In our placements we dealt with real patients."

Two weeks into her placement, Lurline had a job offer. She completed her Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing, Home and Community) and now works as an Assistant in Nursing. The career started with one Facebook post and a phone call.

Thinking about care work? The current qualification is the CHC33021 Certificate III in Individual Support, with 120 placement hours included. It is subsidised under Career Start for eligible Queenslanders, and fee-free as a traineeship for eligible trainees. Call 07 4098 1228 to talk it through.