Catholic Community Services, a division of Catholic Healthcare, is seeking a Part Time Coordinator to work in Bathurst.

The successful applicant will be responsible for the case management of frail aged clients under the community aged care packages.

The successful applicant will have relevant qualifications in health or social welfare, relevant experience and sound knowledge of the health and community services available in the local area.

Closing date: 4 May 2012

Find out more about this coordinator job with Catholic Healthcare or search for more jobs in the community aged care sector.

Garden Court in Glen Innes has two positions available in the disabilities team, a Generalist Support Worker and a Generalist Support Worker Assistant.

The disabilities team is very motivated and enthusiastic and is seeking new team members who will add a spark to the lives of people with a disability. They are looking for motivated and energetic people who are cheerful, compassionate and able to support clients with a disability and assist them with life skills and physical activities.

Employment screening and Working with Children Checks apply.

Glen Innes Severn Council is an EEO employer. Women, Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders, people with a disability, and members of racial, ethnic and ethno-religious minority groups are encouraged to apply.

Closing date: 12 December 2011

Find out more about these roles as Support Workers at Garden Court or search for jobs in community care.

Lifestyle Solutions in Newcastle are seeking a  Coordinator for Person, Place and Planning (Team Leader).

Are you passionate about genuine inclusion for people with support needs? Join Lifestyle Solutions and become part of a team committed to making a difference to people's lives within our community.

Lifestyle Solutions are seeking an energetic, resourceful and committed person, for an immediate start with Glendale (Newcastle) Out of Home Care Services.

You will be experienced in working with young people with a disability and/or challenging behaviours with high and complex needs in residential care settings. You will be responsible for leading a team that provides care to young people and adults, in a personalised environment, as part of a multi-disciplinary team. Knowledge of Out of Home Care programs would be highly regarded.

Salary is paid in accordance with the NSW SACS Award Grade 4, with salary packaging available for all permanent staff.

Lifestyle Solutions is an EEO employer and welcomes applications from people from ATSI and CALD backgrounds.

All applicants are required to undergo employment screening through probity checks prior to commencing.

Closing date: 16 May 2011

Read more about the Coordinator position at Lifestyle Solutions and apply online, or learn more about frontline support roles in the disability and community care sector.

Up to 5600 jobs are anticipated to be available between now and 2015 in the disability and community care sector of northern New South Wales.

The sector is expected to boom in the next five years with employers looking to recruit 40,000 people; it is estimated that the number of people needing to access these services in New South Wales will rise to 350 000.

“There are several misconceptions about what it is like to work in this sector, yet most people simply aren’t aware of the benefits including: job security, flexible hours, varied and creative work, and on-the-job training,” says Patrick Maher, Chief Operating Officer of National Disability Services NSW.

To hear more about what working in the disability and community care sector is really like, read True Stories on carecareers.

Alstonville resident Sarah Jurd started working in the disability and community care sector 13 years ago and has held a variety of roles in that time: respite carer, teacher’s aide, support worker in vacation care, and most recently as a speech therapist with Cerebral Palsy Alliance.

“My parents were respite carers so I got involved at a young age because of them. We had a little girl with disabilities who came and lived with us for a while, and I learnt to help her and found that I enjoyed it,” says Jurd.

On the growth in the sector she says, “I have definitely seen an increase in the demand for our services in the last few years.

“There are a lot of children that need a lot of support, and it seems like there are not enough resources to meet that need, even now”.

For those who are considering a career in the sector Jurd says, ”It’s important to remember that clients are people who would like to be independent and just need some support to achieve that.”
 
“One of the benefits of working in the disability sector is that I work as part of a bigger a team no matter what area I’ve worked in; as a speech therapist I work closely with both occupational therapists and physiotherapists to find solutions to problems.

“I love working with the kids and their families; no child is ever the same and each client presents a new challenge for the team,” says Jurd.

“The work is also personally rewarding; I started out working with one family as their Respite Carer about 12 years ago, to support them and their children who have a disability. The family is as much a part of my life now as my own family is, and spending time with the children over the years has been great fun”.

More than 100 positions based in Lismore and the surrounding areas have been advertised through carecareers since its launch 12 months ago. Search for jobs now.

carecareers was developed by NDS to help meet the demand for new workers in the disability and community care sector. Head to carecareers and search for jobs now, or contact our Careers Centre online or by calling the help-line for job seekers on 1300 637 637.

When employed in an industry that involves working with people and supporting people, we often need to bring little pieces of our own lives into the workplace. This is what helps us connect with the people we are supporting, their families and other colleagues.

Let me explain.

We support people better when we know who they are, what their likes and dislikes are, who their friends and families are, and what their dreams and aspirations for the future entail. It is not fair for a Support Worker to expect someone they are supporting to share all or even some of this information with them, if that support worker is not willing to share pieces of their own life journey in return. This is how relationships work, and although a support working role is a paid role, it is still a relationship which is built on a level of trust and understanding of both parties.

Relationships are part of almost every workplace, but it is the opportunities we have as Support Workers to really get to know someone that often draws people to the caring or human services sector. This also means that people employed in this sector need to ensure they have their own support networks around them. We become ineffective as workers when we don’t have avenues to seek out support for ourselves and replenish our caring, compassionate and empathetic thresholds. We risk becoming callous in the way we interact with and relate to the people we are supporting. This is why it is so important to have a sense of community and support between staff in the disability and community care sector.

Leaders within the sector need to be urging their teams to rely on, support, encourage and challenge one another. It is these intentional actions of a group of people that fosters a sense of community and allows it to grow. It is this same sense of community that creates an environment of appreciation and acceptance, an opportunity for people to lean on each other when they need support in their roles and even in life outside the workplace.

Current ways of thinking and practice are encouraging us to use person-centred approaches to supporting people. This same approach needs to be extended to our teams, our valued employees. Having a team that feel comfortable and safe in talking through challenges, sharing ideas and celebrating successes will inevitably lead to better support and satisfaction in the workplace. We have so many diverse people working in our sector, who impart a rich level of skill and knowledge. It is our role as leaders to ensure they feel supported in their roles, and continue their career in the caring or human services sector.