Leanne fulfills passion for health care with Fee Free TAFE

After 30 years of experience in office administration, Leanne Simpson wanted a change and decided to pursue her childhood passion of working in health care.

Free TAFE gave Leanne the opportunity – and the means – to take a leap, starting with a qualification in aged care, which led to her current job in residential aged care.

“It’s changed me as a person. Free TAFE has given me the opportunity to push myself and to realise I got skills I didn’t think I had. The learning capability. Being able to learn again and know that I can do it,” Leanne said.

Her love for supporting others has continued to flourish, with the 59-year-old now enrolled in the Free TAFE Diploma of Nursing (HLT54121) at Kangan Institute to expand her career options.

“There’s a couple of areas I would like to try and get into. I’m hoping I could get to do a grad year through one of the hospitals. I also had a day in a day surgery unit which I really enjoyed; that’s one aspect I wouldn’t mind,” Leanne said.

“I enjoy, like with my aged care work, just being there for people when they need somebody. Whether it’s just a hold hand, a nice smile through to helping them get better.”

The option to study part-time enabled Leanne to find the perfect balance between work and studies, with the aspiring nurse citing teachers as the best part of her journey at Kangan Institute.

“You cannot fault the teachers. Claire was huge in getting my brain kickstarted and Katie and Emily are just brilliant teachers. If you could have every single teacher with their enthusiasm and teaching capacity, it would just be wonderful,” she said.