workforce
Pay it forward
LASA mentoring program creating future aged care leaders .
By Conor Burke
There was a mentor , when I first
graduated from my occupational therapy degree , he was a CEO , and we still keep in regular contact . He just took me under his wing , helped me articulate what my fears were , and just helped me see that he believed in me , and kept telling me that I was a leader ,” said Samantha Bowen .
“ And as I heard those words , initially it was really difficult to start thinking of myself as a leader , and that I could make a difference . But his continuing encouragement allowed me to say , ‘ This is a difficult situation , and it ’ s okay ’. I have to keep asking questions and keep reading and keep reaching out to my networks to get the support that I need to excel . And , he was just pivotal in that .”
Bowen is the principal advisor to the mentoring program from Leading Aged Services Australia ( LASA ) and she knows first-hand how important it can be to find the right guidance as you navigate a career in aged care .
The five-month program , now into its second year , matches emerging leaders in the sector with mentors for one on one guidance and provides online coaching for professional development .
“ Leadership , collaboration and ensuring age services shares positive experiences and lessons learned is critical for making
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Australia the best place to age ,” said LASA chief executive Sean Rooney .
Anyone with experience managing people in an aged care role can apply and the mentors / mentees are matched based on what the mentee is looking to gain from the relationship .
“ We look at their goals , their professional milestones and a few other factors , and then we match them with the mentor who has the skills and experiences to really support the mentee and their goal ,” Bowen said .
For Bowen , mentoring is a two-way street and mentors can relearn lost skills through passing them onto the next generation of leaders , all making for a stronger workforce .
“ When you enter into those mentoring partnerships , the mentor can be giving advice and sharing experiences that they haven ’ t thought about in such a deep way , or had not drawn upon recently . They might think ‘ Oh , maybe I ’ m not applying this , even though I ’ m telling someone to do daily journaling , and I ’ m not actually doing that myself , and I know it really helps me . And this should be part of my self-care routine , because right now I ’ m stressed as well ,’” she said .
“ We also know that mentoring partnerships , in any industry , allows the transfer of knowledge between not only different departments , but also upskills the industry . It allows the people who are receiving the mentoring to identify that they are worthy of the time and attention . There are people that they can reach out to support , and they have such a vast network ahead of them and beside them right now that they can help them in whatever they seek support with .
“ The LASA Mentoring Program is really embracing that philosophy and ensuring that we not only talk about success and mentoring , but we also cover how you can overcome failure and what you can learn from that as well .”
LASA estimates that an aged care organisation could save between $ 7,000 to $ 20,000 per re-engaged staff member through staff retention from completing the course and see an increase in employee engagement and satisfaction .
All of last year ’ s mentors had previous mentoring experience and 100 per cent of participants agreed or strongly agreed that their expectations of the LASA Mentoring Program were met ( 60 per cent strongly agreed ). Importantly , 100 per cent of last year ’ s mentees felt supported to achieve their goals .
For Rooney , the program is also about creating long lasting relationships which will benefit the aged care workforce .
“ It is also heartening to see that 60 per cent of the original participants have continued with their mentoring partnerships , following the 20-week course ,” he said .
“ The LASA Mentoring Program is growing and will continue to provide the most comprehensive age services knowhow for Mentees and understanding for Mentors .” ■