Nursing within residential aged care

Nurses are an essential part of our care home teams. We chatted with Alberto who has been at Opal for almost five years now and loves his job. He started as an Assistant in Nursing, then continued to train and work as a Registered Nurse before progressing his career as a Clinical Educator.

Alberto believes the difference between working in acute care and residential aged care is all about the relationships he creates within his home. The goal of a nurse in acute care is to stabilise their patients, whereas the role and purpose for a nurse within aged care is to enable residents to live with meaning and have the best possible quality of life.

Alberto continues to develop his skills within Opal and the aged care environment. It is not just about critical thinking skills but also importantly his leadership skills.  It involves deeply getting to know each resident, understanding their individual needs and communicating effectively with them and their families.

Alberto believes passionately in teaching a new generation of nurses, to show them the opportunities available to them within aged care and to help them learn the many stories behind the people for which they care.