Following in her grandma’s footsteps

Nurse graduate Courtney Hayes

For nurse graduate Courtney Hayes, it was an easy decision to become a nurse.

My grandmother was a nurse and I have always been a people person,” she said. “I have always wanted to help others.”

Courtney, who lives at Buderim, is one of 46 nursing graduates who will start at either the Kilcoy or Caboolture Hospitals in the coming months.

Caboolture Hospital Nurse Educator Sharon Ragau said it was an exciting time for the nurses and our two hospitals.

“The 2016 intake is the largest intake of graduate nurses that our hospitals have experienced,” Sharon said.

“Twenty-four nurses started at the end of February, with a further 22 nurses coming on board in the next three months,” she said.

“The graduates will work in the areas they prefer, whether that’s at Kilcoy Hospital, or a medical ward, surgery, Emergency Department or paediatric ward at Caboolture Hospital.”

For Courtney, who studied at Sunshine Coast University, the decision to work at Kilcoy Hospital was easy as she has friends who live locally.

The 12 month placement at Kilcoy will help solidify Courtney’s knowledge and skill as a Registered Nurse.

Sharon said the nursing graduate program was highly successful with 75 to 80 per cent of graduates continuing with Caboolture Hospital after they completed their Graduate Nurse Program.

Of the 24 graduates who started in February, the majority lives across the Sunshine Coast, Moreton Bay and Scenic Rim areas. The nursing graduates come from a diverse number of universities including Central Queensland University, Queensland University of Technology and the University of Southern Queensland.