In Home Care, Occupational Therapy, Recruitment, Residential Aged Care

Why Occupation Therapist Teri Chose The Graduate Program At Empower

Posted on July 9, 2021November 27, 2023 by Nicole Cook

09
Jul

As a recently qualified Occupational Therapist deciding on where to apply for a job, I was looking for opportunities to learn and improve my skills. Empower Healthcare offered me a comprehensive New Grad program and extensive professional development opportunities that have given me the best start to my career.

I am being supported with

In person and online training.
Practical learning opportunities.
Professional Development time allocated within work hours.
Generous funding for external courses.
Formal and informal mentorship with experienced colleagues.
Working within supportive multi-disciplinary teams.

I have been able to work in Home Care and Residential Aged Care environments and split my time in a way that suits my life and interests, while experiencing professional autonomy within supportive teams.

Empower Healthcare is enabling me to find myself as a clinician, it can do the same for you.

What is Occupational Therapy?

The World Federation of Occupational Therapy defines Occupational Therapy as below.

“Occupational Therapy is a client-centered health profession concerned with promoting health and wellbeing through occupation… to enable people to participate in activities of daily life… by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement.” WFOT, 2012.

While many other people in the health industry are involved in the diagnosis of diseases, the occupational therapist’s role is about collaboratively setting and achieving meaningful goals.

About Empower

We Change Lives

At Empower Healthcare, we deliver life changing allied health services. Our whole team is dedicated to building and delivering exceptional services for clients, loved ones, referrers and partner organisations.

Our therapists genuinely care about the people we work with and take the time to build strong relationships that holistically improve social, physical and mental well-being.

We are a successful privately owned and operated organisation that continues to experience significant growth, driven by our fantastic services and family of professionals.

Empower healthcare is changing lives – yours could be next.

Join us to open the door to what is possible.

At Empower Healthcare we believe that our strength lies in our people. By building strong teams and supporting the professional development of our clinicians, we have established ourselves as a national Allied Health provider that raises the standards of clinical practice in Home Care, NDIS and residential aged care.

Every day we deliver high quality, innovative allied health solutions across Australia. We have opportunities for clinicians looking to develop at all career stages, from newly graduated to well established therapists wanting to lead in:

Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy
Nursing
Podiatry
Dietetics
Osteopathy
Massage Therapy

Fastrack Your Career

Discover the possibilities with mentoring, career planning, on-line and in-person learning modules, extensive New Graduate program and external professional development. We look within for promotion to leadership roles and develop our own people to grow our business.

Work, Your Way

Create true balance with work hours that work for you, flexible leave arrangements and low stress environments.

Be Valued

We offer competitive salary packages that grow as you do and acknowledge your unique strengths and contributions.

Join the Team

Experience the satisfaction that comes from being a part of multidisciplinary teams, focused on delivering the best outcomes for the people we care for, while learning from each other.

If you’re interested to see how we can help open the door for your next career move, click on the link to learn more.

View current job opportunities

…

Continue reading →

In Home Care, Occupational Therapy, Recruitment, Residential Aged Care

Amanda’s Enjoys Career Progression As An Occupational Therapist At Empower

Posted on July 8, 2021November 27, 2023 by Nicole Cook

08
Jul

Empower has amazing occupational therapists and Amanda Chan reflects on her career progression and journey at Empower.

When I joined Empower Healthcare four years ago as a newly graduated Occupational Therapist, I was looking for positions close to home and support to develop as a clinician. Today, I am a Team Leader supporting other clinicians to grow and thrive, just like I did.

Empower has encouraged my professional development and given me leadership and managerial opportunities, while supporting me to return to work after maternity leave, twice!

I love being able to balance work and home life with

Flexible, family friendly work hours.
Leadership opportunities and career progression.
Varied opportunities within Home Care, NDIS and Residential Aged Care.
The ability to work from home when possible.
Internal and External professional development in my areas of interest.

I love the clients and residents I work with and being part of the team that makes the environments I work in healthy and happy for everyone.

What is Occupational Therapy?

Working as an Occupational Therapist, I often get this question, “What is occupational therapy?”. The World Federation of Occupational Therapy defines Occupational Therapy as below.

“Occupational Therapy is a client-centered health profession concerned with promoting health and wellbeing through occupation… to enable people to participate in activities of daily life… by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement.” WFOT, 2012.

While many other people in the health industry are involved in the diagnosis of diseases, the occupational therapist’s role is about collaboratively setting and achieving meaningful goals.

Amanda explains, “Whether it be helping a person with selecting a chair that can help them stand because they have difficulty standing from their couch or introducing a person to a bath lifter to help them enjoy a bath again, I always feel a sense of satisfaction when seeing the joy on people’s faces as they successfully engage in these simple yet meaningful activities again.

About Empower

We Change Lives

Our therapists genuinely care about the people we work with and take the time to build strong relationships that holistically improve social, physical and mental well-being.

We are a successful privately owned and operated organisation that continues to experience significant growth, driven by our fantastic services and family of professionals.

Empower healthcare is changing lives – yours could be next.

Join us to open the door to what is possible.

Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy
Nursing
Podiatry
Dietetics
Osteopathy
Massage Therapy

Fastrack Your Career

Work, Your Way

Create true balance with work hours that work for you, flexible leave arrangements and low stress environments.

Be Valued

We offer competitive salary packages that grow as you do and acknowledge your unique strengths and contributions.

Join the Team

Experience the satisfaction that comes from being a part of multidisciplinary teams, focused on delivering the best outcomes for the people we care for, while learning from each other.

If you’re interested to see how we can help open the door for your next career move, click on the link to learn more.

View current job opportunities…

Continue reading →

Professional Development, Recruitment

Why James Enjoys Working At Empower Healthcare

Posted on June 23, 2021July 9, 2021 by Nicole Cook

23
Jun

When I joined Empower Healthcare after 9 years in private practice, I didn’t know how much working in home care would change my life. The freedom of being on the road, working in different environments and having a varied case load was a welcome change from spending 6 days a week inside at the same 4 walls.

I have the opportunity to perform real rehabilitation with real outcomes that really make a difference from helping someone learn to stand up and walk after years of being in a wheelchair to helping a father reach his goal of walking his daughter down the aisle, and surpass it, by dancing at the reception at her wedding.

For me, achieving work life balance is vital and Empower Healthcare helps me to do that by:

Guaranteeing steady income, independent of case load.
Ensuring great working hours and flexible leave arrangements.
Not expecting overtime and weekend work.
Allowing me to work independently but supporting me when I need it.

Working within a supportive team that prioritises my professional development and respects my professional autonomy and personal goals means that I enjoy going to work every day and building a career that allows me to live life, my way.

Empower healthcare is changing lives- yours could be next.

Join us to open the door to what is possible.

Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy
Nursing
Podiatry
Dietetics
Osteopathy
Massage Therapy

Fastrack Your Career

Work, Your Way

Create true balance with work hours that work for you, flexible leave arrangements and low stress environments.

Be Valued

We offer competitive salary packages that grow as you do and acknowledge your unique strengths and contributions.

Join the Team

Experience the satisfaction that comes from being a part of multidisciplinary teams, focused on delivering the best outcomes for the people we care for, while learning from each other.

If you’re interested to see how we can help open the door for your next career move, click on the link to learn more.

View current job opportunities

…

Continue reading →

Graduate Program, Professional Development, Recruitment

Jovita Shares her Reflection on Empower’s Graduate Program

Posted on June 21, 2021November 27, 2023 by Nicole Cook

21
Jun

In February 2021, I started my career as a graduate occupational therapist at Empower Healthcare. As you can imagine, Home Care clients have found dealing with the pandemic very challenging, especially those who live alone. I had a client who had been discharged from the hospital and her daughter was very distressed as she could not visit her during lockdown. Initially, the client was guarded and anxious. By actively listening to their story and concerns, I was able to identify the fall risks and provide suitable options and recommendations that were received with relief and happiness in reducing their fears around falling, while increasing quality of life.

I realise that my role as an occupational therapist can be more important and influential than I once thought. It is very rewarding when clients thank me with a big sincere smile! I now know that being an occupational therapist is one of the best decisions I have made.

Empower’s Graduate Program

The foundations for a bright career!

How does our program work?

Empower Healthcare’s comprehensive graduate program offers personal development and mentoring, to successfully transition you from a student into talented clinician. Here’s how it works:

12 month structured program
Individual development plan & goal setting
Weekly 1:1 mentoring
Monthly online professional development courses
Monthly clinical development workshops
Quarterly company-wide professional development & social events
Quarterly progress report
$1,500 yearly professional development allowance
Grad year completion bonus

Highlights:

$1500 PD fund

We provide all graduates with a $1500 professional development fund, which can be used to attend events of your choosing, to help you further your skills and development.

Mentoring and quarterly progress reports

Our grads have access to weekly 1:1 mentoring. Every three months, you and your mentor will discuss your progress in working towards your development plan and goals.

Company-wide professional development and social events

Every three months we have an Empower family reunion, which involves an evening of professional development and social activities to bring our team closer together.

Learn about our graduate program in more detail.

Click Here for our grad flyer

We accept graduates all-year round. Call 03 9068 3739 to talk to a member from People and Culture about our national grad opportunities.…

Continue reading →

Occupational Therapy, Professional Development, Recruitment, Uncategorized

A Day in the Life of a Home Care Occupational Therapist

Posted on June 17, 2021November 27, 2023 by Nicole Cook

17
Jun

Ever wondered what a day in the life of a home care occupational therapist is like? We go behind the scenes with occupational therapist Catrina Mastroianni, to explore what a typical day looks like and answer a few questions that you may have about becoming one.

Mornings:

My alarm goes off at 6am, giving me usually 2 hours before starting to work, to be able to get some morning exercise in. I either spend my mornings before working going to the gym or walking my dog. I then begin to get ready for work, having a coffee and looking over my schedule and tasks for the day. This usually means, looking at my appointment times, where I’ll be going, and who I will be seeing. I also check over the referral notes to find out more about my clients and the reason I am going to see them. Usually, my first appointment is at 8:30 or 9am, however if it is a later start, I will usually spend my time completing some admin tasks in the comfort of my own home office.

Travel:

Empower ensures that my clients are as close as possible to my own suburb, being anywhere from a 5-minute to a 30-minute drive. However, longer drives also allow me to have some relaxing time in the car, listen to my favourite artists new album or even listen to a podcast.

Client Appointments:

As an occupational therapist, I have a range of different types of client appointments, ranging from initial appointments to follow ups, equipment trials or builder consults. My client load for the day, will usually vary depending on what type of appointments I have throughout the day. Empower has a range of diverse clients, from NDIS funded to HCP funded, allowing clinicians to have multiple learning opportunities with a range of different clientele with different conditions, needs and goals.

The reason I enjoy community / home care OT is because the home and community are two important environments for an individual. It is always interesting to see how individuals are within their home environment and I enjoy the problem-solving involved in making them safer at home. This often means liaising with equipment providers and builders to find adaptive technology or performing home modifications for the client.

For Example, 78-year-old Ellen with a level 4 HCP, has had multiple falls in her bathroom due to not having enough space to use her 4WF. This often means Ellen has to leave her 4WF outside the bathroom and navigate through the bathroom by holding onto different items. This makes Ellen a falls risk in the bathroom, especially with the slippery tiles. Ellen’s goal is to be able to shower and go to the toilet independently minimising the falls risk. Ellen’s old-style bathroom had minimal room between the shower, toilet and bathtub making it difficult to navigate, which makes Ellen feel extremely anxious about falling on the slippery tiles. A joint builder consult was completed with a friendly building team, who were able to come and assist with a plan for Ellen’s new bathroom. The new plan allowed Ellen to have more space to be able to use her 4WF within the area and also reduced the slipperiness of the tiles. This meant Ellen’s goal was achieved, leaving her overjoyed that she could perform important ALDs independently and bring her 4WF into the bathroom to increase her safety.

Team Meeting:

Every afternoon, the new graduates have a daily debrief that allows us to discuss the day that we had and discuss any questions that had come up throughout the day. While we do chat regularly throughout the day on a team’s chat, it is also nice to attend the meeting while doing our works, to be able to have that office like support and social interaction when working from home. It is also a great way to get to know the other new graduates and learn from some of their experiences.

Empower’s Graduate Program

The foundations for a bright career!

How does our program work?

Empower Healthcare’s comprehensive graduate program offers personal development and mentoring, to successfully transition you from a student into talented clinician. Here’s how it works:

12 month structured program
Individual development plan & goal setting
Weekly 1:1 mentoring
Monthly online professional development courses
Monthly clinical development workshops
Quarterly company-wide professional development & social events
Quarterly progress report
$1,500 yearly professional development allowance
Grad year completion bonus

Highlights:

$1500 PD fund

We provide all graduates with a $1500 professional development fund, which can be used to attend events of your choosing, to help you further your skills and development.

Mentoring and quarterly progress reports

Our grads have access to weekly 1:1 mentoring. Every three months, you and your mentor will discuss your progress in working towards your development plan and goals.

Company-wide professional development and social events

Every three months we have an Empower family reunion, which involves an evening of professional development and social activities to bring our team closer together.

Learn about our graduate program in more detail.

Click Here for our grad flyer

We accept graduates all-year round. Call 03 9068 3739 to talk to a member from People and Culture about our national grad opportunities.…

Continue reading →

Professional Development, Recruitment

Why Briony Enjoys Working for Empower Healthcare

Posted on June 17, 2021November 22, 2023 by Nicole Cook

17
Jun

Briony is a valued member of our Physiotherapy Team and reflects on why she enjoys working for Empower Healthcare.

As a busy working mom and physiotherapist, I’m always looking for ways to grow and develop professionally while maintaining a balanced work and home life. When I joined Empower Healthcare 3 years ago, my focus was on transitioning back onto the workforce, I have been supported along the way with:

Flexible leave arrangements
Family friendly work hours
Supportive colleagues and managers

Empower has offered me opportunities to develop my clinical and leadership skills with generous external professional development funding, extensive in-service training and opportunities in leadership within my first year of employment. When a marketing role became available, I was afforded the opportunity to learn an entirely new skill set and split my work hours between clinical practice and marketing.

With opportunities in NDIS, Home Care and Residential Aged Care alongside career progression support in personal areas of interest, including leadership and management roles, Empower has broadened my horizons. Working in environments that foster great working relationships and support excellence in clinical practice provides me with personal and professional fulfillment and has allowed me to thrive and grow every day.

Empower healthcare is changing lives- yours could be next.

Join us to open the door to what is possible.

Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy
Nursing
Podiatry
Dietetics
Osteopathy
Massage Therapy

Fastrack Your Career

Work, Your Way

Create true balance with work hours that work for you, flexible leave arrangements and low stress environments.

Be Valued

We offer competitive salary packages that grow as you do and acknowledge your unique strengths and contributions.

Join the Team

Experience the satisfaction that comes from being a part of multidisciplinary teams, focused on delivering the best outcomes for the people we care for, while learning from each other.

If you’re interested to see how we can help open the door for your next career move, click on the link to learn more.

Learn more

…

Continue reading →

Professional Development, Recruitment

Why Hongyi Enjoys Working for Empower Healthcare

Posted on June 17, 2021November 22, 2023 by Nicole Cook

17
Jun

Hongyi is a valued member of our Occupational Therapy Team and reflects on why he enjoys working for Empower Healthcare.

I have always been passionate about building strong, positive relationships with clients and helping them to live independent and happy lives. For me to do that requires constantly expanding my knowledge and experience. Empower Healthcare has helped me grow every step of the way with:

A culture of teamwork
Emphasis of professional development
Mentorship and support
A multidisciplinary approach to client care
Career goal setting

For me, work/life balance is vital. My job allows me to do what I love while having time to exercise, relax and continue to develop other parts of my life. When an opportunity for further study arose, my managers supported me in reducing my work hours to allow me time to study and attend uni.

Having the freedom to reach my personal and professional goals means that I enjoy coming to work every day!

Empower healthcare is changing lives- yours could be next.

Join us to open the door to what is possible.

Occupational Therapy
Physiotherapy
Nursing
Podiatry
Dietetics
Osteopathy
Massage Therapy

Fastrack Your Career

Work, Your Way

Create true balance with work hours that work for you, flexible leave arrangements and low stress environments.

Be Valued

We offer competitive salary packages that grow as you do and acknowledge your unique strengths and contributions.

Join the Team

Experience the satisfaction that comes from being a part of multidisciplinary teams, focused on delivering the best outcomes for the people we care for, while learning from each other.

If you’re interested to see how we can help open the door for your next career move, click on the link to learn more.

Learn more

…

Continue reading →

Graduate Program, Occupational Therapy, Professional Development, Recruitment, Uncategorized

Emma, Occupational Therapist Reflects on Empower’s Graduate Program

Posted on June 7, 2021November 27, 2023 by Nicole Cook

07
Jun

“I knew that Occupational Therapy was a broad field, however I didn’t realise how diverse it can be until working in the community. I feel privileged that I am able to help client’s remain safe and independent, and reach their goals through the interventions and recommendations I give.” Emma Austin, 2021 OT Graduate.

I started with Empower Healthcare in January 2021 as a part of their Graduate Program. I was worried having just graduated from university that I would be thrown into the deep end. However, since I have joined Empower, I have never felt more supported throughout my entire journey.

A moment that has stood out to me was during one of the shadowing sessions with my mentor. We completed a joint session with the client’s family and carers to teach them how to correctly and safely complete hoist transfers. It was a great session, and throughout we were all having fun and laughing. The client had a smile on his face the entire time. My mentor was very happy at the end of the session, as in previous meetings, the client was always quiet and appeared sad. It was a great feeling to know that we were able to make the client smile.

Empower’s Graduate Program

The foundations for a bright career!

How does our program work?

Empower Healthcare’s comprehensive graduate program offers personal development and mentoring, to successfully transition you from a student into talented clinician. Here’s how it works:

12 month structured program
Individual development plan & goal setting
Weekly 1:1 mentoring
Monthly online professional development courses
Monthly clinical development workshops
Quarterly company-wide professional development & social events
Quarterly progress report
$1,500 yearly professional development allowance
Grad year completion bonus

Highlights:

$1500 PD fund

We provide all graduates with a $1500 professional development fund, which can be used to attend events of your choosing, to help you further your skills and development.

Mentoring and quarterly progress reports

Our grads have access to weekly 1:1 mentoring. Every three months, you and your mentor will discuss your progress in working towards your development plan and goals.

Company-wide professional development and social events

Every three months we have an Empower family reunion, which involves an evening of professional development and social activities to bring our team closer together.

Learn about our graduate program in more detail.

Click Here for our grad flyer

We accept graduates all-year round. Call 03 9068 3739 to talk to a member from People and Culture about our national grad opportunities.

…

Continue reading →

Announcements, In Home Care, NDIS, Physiotherapy, Recruitment

InProfile with Douglas Jones, Senior Physiotherapist

Posted on June 2, 2021June 2, 2021 by Nicole Cook

02
Jun

Introducing Doug, our senior physiotherapist based in QLD. He has over 19 years of experience working across the public and private sectors, as well as specialised sectors such as defence and elite sport. He has significant experience working with the elderly and people with a disability throughout various stages of his career, including Queensland Health and various residential aged care facilities.

Having previously owned and operated a successful multi-disciplinary allied health private practice in Emerald, Central Queensland, Doug brings to Empower a strong understanding of commerce and holistic care that will greatly complement his QLD team.

Doug passionately stands by his ethos in “having fun and true engagement with each client and their families…because the better I know and understand the client, the better I can help them to achieve their goals.”

On a more personal note:

A devoted father to two boys, Lachlan (11 years) and Owen (9 years)
Loves playing football (soccer) for his club team and can talk about football for hours!
Enjoys travelling (Pre-COVID) and meeting people from different places
Curious in learning languages and having fun by surprising people by saying something in their mother-tongue when it is not expected. It’s his go-to icebreaker that makes everyone smile.

Doug delivers outstanding physiotherapy services to our clients because of HOW he brings together his skills and knowledge from previous training, work and life experiences, to connect with each person as human beings, to achieve meaningful goals.

Learn more about our mobile physiotherapy services

The Empower Difference

Changing Lives Through Exceptional Care

We pride ourselves in the delivery of innovative, high-quality, allied health solutions that constantly evolve to exceed the needs of your clients and their communities. Our service model integrates five service commitments that empower you to help your clients improve their sense of self-identity, quality of life, and ability to live safely in their environment.

Extensive service offerings
Care provided by highly skilled clinicians
A team approach to delivering continuity of care
User friendly referral process
Superior reports providing clarity on future care needs.

Click on your relevant health care industry sector below to learn more.

How To Get Clients Started With Our Home Care & NDIS Services

Simply click on the image below for our referral form.

…

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Professional Development, Recruitment

Rubie Shares her Reflection on Empower’s Graduate Program

Posted on May 17, 2021November 27, 2023 by Nicole Cook

17
May

When I first started at Empower, I shadowed my mentor and visited a client managing multiple sclerosis. By recommending a bed pole to assist with bed transfers, we changed their life, improved independence, and boosted self-confidence to live alone. It was this moment that reminded me of the reason why I chose to be an occupational therapist in the first place – to improve the quality of life and overall happiness for everyone.

As a graduate occupational therapist at Empower, we get to meet all types of people and by taking the time to get to know them as individuals, learning their daily routines and interests, as well as challenges in everyday activities, we gain experience and knowledge in providing individualised support and a solution for activities they have trouble participating in.

What I love most, is the opportunity to connect daily with fellow grads to share the experience of our work, as well as brainstorming solutions and ideas for challenging works that we have encountered.

I’d highly recommend Empower to new graduates because Empower is such a close-knit family and you get so many learning resources and support from your team leader, mentor and work colleague, which is exactly what a new graduate needs during the transition period from university to a clinical setting.

Empower’s Graduate Program

The foundations for a bright career!

How does our program work?

Empower Healthcare’s comprehensive graduate program offers personal development and mentoring, to successfully transition you from a student into talented clinician. Here’s how it works:

12 month structured program
Individual development plan & goal setting
Weekly 1:1 mentoring
Monthly online professional development courses
Monthly clinical development workshops
Quarterly company-wide professional development & social events
Quarterly progress report
$1,500 yearly professional development allowance
Grad year completion bonus

Highlights:

$1500 PD fund

We provide all graduates with a $1500 professional development fund, which can be used to attend events of your choosing, to help you further your skills and development.

Mentoring and quarterly progress reports

Our grads have access to weekly 1:1 mentoring. Every three months, you and your mentor will discuss your progress in working towards your development plan and goals.

Company-wide professional development and social events

Every three months we have an Empower family reunion, which involves an evening of professional development and social activities to bring our team closer together.

Learn about our graduate program in more detail.

Click Here for our grad flyer

We accept graduates all-year round. Call 03 9068 3739 to talk to a member from People and Culture about our national grad opportunities.…

Continue reading →