Spotlight on Karen Allan - How Coming ‘Home’ Brought a Fresh Challenge to This Mum of Eight 👩🏼⚕️🚸
When Karen and her family moved from Canberra to Quirindi in 2008, they were looking for a quieter, more affordable place to raise their children. Her husband grew up in Quirindi, and they saw it as the perfect community to call home. Fast forward to today, and Karen has not only established deep roots in the community but has also achieved a significant milestone—completing her Enrolled Nurse qualification.
For 25 years, Karen focused on raising her eight children and now enjoys spending time with her three grandsons—the youngest born just this March. Life was, and still is, a whirlwind of activity. But in 2020, she decided to take on a new challenge, joining Quirindi Care Services (QCS). Since then, she has completed a Certificate IV in Ageing and Support and a Certificate IV in Leisure Health and Lifestyle before deciding to pursue nursing.
“I decided to do my enrolled nursing to gain greater clinical skills and knowledge, and hopefully that improves the care I provide to our residents,” she shared.
Balancing work, study, and clinical placements wasn’t easy. Staying organised and focused was key, along with the support of her husband and kids. “I had to miss some family things here and there, and the house was a mess, but we muddled through,” she admitted. The QCS management helped by adjusting rosters to allow time for study blocks and placements. Colleagues regularly checked in, and the RNs were available for Karen to clarify course content. It really was a collaborative effort between her family and her work family at Eloura!
One resident in particular became Karen’s biggest supporter. “They would ask for updates when I returned from study blocks and clinical placements and even counted down the last few weeks of the course with me,” she recalled fondly.
As part of her training, Karen completed two clinical placements at Nioka, the palliative care ward at Tamworth Hospital.
“The staff at Nioka are truly amazing people, and gaining more knowledge in this area of nursing is something I’m really interested in,” she said.
Karen’s involvement at QCS goes beyond daily care. She has been actively engaged in the WHS, Clinical Governance, Medication Advisory, and Quality Governance committees, helping to improve processes and standards within the organisation.
With her registration now complete, Karen is looking forward to stepping into her new role as an enrolled nurse. She also plans to complete a graduate program through Ageing Australia to further develop her aged care-specific nursing skills and is keen to undertake further studies in Dementia Care and Palliative Care.
Karen’s dedication and commitment have made a lasting impact at QCS. Her hard work and perseverance are truly valued, and the team is incredibly proud to have her on board. We look forward to seeing all that she accomplishes next.
Congratulations, Karen!