Our Emerging Nurse Leader (ENL) Program provides early-career nurses with opportunities for development, engagement and growth. In today’s edition of our NurseClick series profiling the experiences of our 2020 Cohort, we look at the plethora of opportunities made available to the participants of the program! Alongside each profile is a creative picture which symbolises what being part of the program meant to the participants.
In-case you missed them, be sure to read articles one and two in the profiling series on our NurseClick blog.
Erin Mercieca MACN
“I am most proud of taking on opportunities that were out of my comfort zone. This includes writing conference abstracts and preparing conference presentations, which I may not have had the confidence to do without the support of the ENL program.”
Tammie Breneger MACN
“Due to COVID-19 I have been left feeling professionally unfulfilled and unchallenged. The energy that I draw from the College as a whole and especially from my ENL cohort, imbues me with passion and drive to best the very best version of myself each and every day. Whilst I can get caught up in the negativities, I was given a timely reminder that just because the opportunities that I was been offered (Chair, Nursing & Midwifery floor Australian Health Care Week and speaker, ACN SA and SH Taskforce) have been put on hold doesn’t mean they have been erased altogether, and that the offers themselves are significant recognition of my contributions to the profession. I look forward to 2021 being a year of new challenges and positive experiences.”
Loretta Woodford MACN
“Oh, what a positive year and an abundance of achievements for me. What a difference it has made to my career and my life. I am now a part of the Leadership COI and will be participating in Mentorship webinars in the near future. I love promoting what ACN has to offer.”
Calida Neal MACN
“Participation in the ENL program was a fantastic opportunity to boost my confidence as I make the transition from a student RN to a new graduate. The opportunity to connect with other inspiring students and wonderful mentors helped me to affirm that, as a mature-aged student, I have a wealth of life-experiences that will be of benefit to myself and others as I embark on this exciting new career.”
Brian Cheung MACN
“This year, I am thankful to the support from the ACN for many opportunities. However, the proudest moment from the ENL program was that it has empowered me to take the initiative to put into place programs that will support future undergraduate students in the form of a mentoring program that will ease their transition into the workforce.”
Gabrielle Cameron MACN
“Participating in the ENL program has reiterated the need for balance. During this time of COVID, our professional and personal lives have been thrown into a bit of chaos; adaptation and balance has been the key to working our way through these times. On top of the ENL program and working full time with COVID changes, I have also under taken full time study and had a big event in my personal life, so balancing all of this has been a steep learning curve for me. There were two highlights for me during the ENL program. One was attending an ACN event in March, before travel restrictions were implemented in WA, where I happily reconnected with my grad program mentor. The other was hosting a morning tea for my colleagues for IND which enabled the team to take time away from our clinical role and reconnect over some good food. The ENL journey was difficult for me due to my remote location and COVID restrictions, but despite that I enjoyed all activities I was able to participate in and will be able to continue to build on networking with my ACN peers in the future.”
Emma Reardon MACN
“At the beginning of my ENL journey I had a well mapped out plan of what I was going to do and achieve. When the pandemic broke out nearly all of the tasks I planned were cancelled or no longer feasible. I had to quickly adapt and innovate new methods for achieving the goals I set for myself. My proudest achievement is an article I wrote for ACN Nurse Click about student clinical Placement. It was a pleasure to write and I was so excited to see the positive responses from peers, educators and career nurses.”
Luke Yokota MACN
“The ENL program has afforded me an insight into how a national campaign can continue to operate despite intense adversities when facing a global pandemic. It has been an invaluable experience and learning curve. I cherish the relationships I’ve made and how we can progress the nursing profession together.”
Enya Chong MACN
“As a 2020 ENL, the main thing that I was most proud of was having the honour of mentoring two final year nursing students in order to maximise their potential in successfully attaining graduate nursing positions. I have been able to work with them to establish a lasting professional relationship and look forward to seeing their career pathway progression five years from now.”
Lavanya Naidoo MACN
“The ENL Program pushed me out of my comfort zone and challenged my views on leadership. I have expanded my skills and knowledge which has led to me growing both professionally and personally. I am grateful for the mentoring opportunities this program has led to and thrilled I am able to continue mentoring new graduates through their first year in the nursing profession. A huge thank you to my mentor and Stef for their support throughout this program, especially given these unusual circumstances.”
Joshua Thomson MACN
“The ENL Program has provided me with an opportunity to build my nursing career with a strong foundation. Throughout the past twelve months I have had amazing opportunities to meet some of the best that our profession has to offer. I am so grateful for every person that calls ACN their tribe.”
Would you like to learn more about the ENL program? Head to our website to find out more and to register your interest for future intakes.
