Sisters Kealy and Aish Tupper are set to become even closer as they start their graduate nursing program together in Bendigo this year.
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The siblings will be two of more than 130 others taking part in Bendigo Health's Graduate Nursing and Midwifery Program, designed to facilitate the transition from undergraduate student to professional clinician in a supported environment.
After seven years in the beauty industry, Kealy decided she wanted a career change and looked to her sister for inspiration.
"It's crazy because we've been down such different paths and now we've come together to do nursing now," she said.
"I left high school quite a few years now and actually went into beauty therapy first, but decided I wanted a change and do something a bit more challenging.
Kealy said she planned to spend time learning the inner-workings of the surgical ward during her time at Bendigo Health
After a slight change in career paths herself, Aish hoped to be working in a number of places around the hospital including the rehabilitation ward and emergency.
But she doesn't plan on losing touch with her sister.
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"I came out of year 12 and began studying biomedical science at university," Aish said,
"I soon found it wasn't for me, I'm a very hands-on type of person so I decided to transfer into nursing.
"From there I just loved it. It was obviously a little bit difficult during COVID-19 times and not being able to interact with other students, but that's where I really relied on Kealy because we were able to talk and help each other out."
Aish said that connection during their study years would also translate during their working lives.
"It's nice having someone so close to work with and have the ability to bounce things off," she said.
"Especially in a graduate year where it can come as a bit of a shock when you're on your own doing nursing for the first time so it's nice that we'll be able to share stories and debrief if we need to."
Chief nursing and midwifery officer Carol-Anne Lever said it was exciting having this year's graduates start at the hospital.
"It's like welcoming new people into your family so we've very keen to have everyone on board," she said.
"We've had an increased intake compared to previous years and it's really going to make a difference to our workforce and fill some of the gaps we've currently got."
Ms Lever said the program was designed to give the nurses a taste of different specialties such as aged care, cancer services, paediatrics and more.
"Basically throughout the 12-month program, the nurses are able to rotate through the different areas we have at Bendigo Health and after that they are able to decide where they want to stay after that," she said.
"They're supported in their placements through support teams, nurse educators and they're able to experience work on the floor in that environment.
"Even though COVID-19 has had an impact on the way we work in hospitals, I think it makes our new nurses more adaptable and ready for whatever happens in the setting.
"We feel we're able to give our nurses experiences they may not get in other hospitals and we're proud to be able to do that."
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