Making a career transition from corporate support to patient care

You could say that Ms Faridah Begum was always meant to be a nurse, despite starting her career as a corporate support officer in human resource administration over a decade ago. 

She first discovered a passion for caring for the ill during her secondary school years as a cadet with St John Ambulance Brigade (now known as St John Brigade), but it was only in 2004 when her father was diagnosed with cancer that Ms Faridah seriously considered the idea of entering the healthcare industry.

She recounted: “I witnessed the way the healthcare professionals cared for my dad, and was inspired by their commitment and resilience. When an opportunity to enroll in the Nitec in Nursing course at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) came along in 2008, I took it as a sign that it was my calling to become a nurse and give back to society.” 

Ms Faridah’s course was fully sponsored by one of the restructured hospitals and came with an allowance that enabled her to continue supporting herself during her studies.

After she graduated, Ms Faridah became an enrolled nurse at an obstetrics and gynaecology specialist clinic, where she worked for eight years. She is now a locum nurse at a nursing agency. 

Ms Faridah, who is in her 40s, recalled how her mother would help to cook meals and care for her son while she was in school, and how her husband would rush home from work in the evenings to help their son with his homework. On weekends, the couple would tackle the household chores together.

“Having left school over 12 years ago and returning as an adult learner was not easy. Time management was an issue because I wasn’t just a student; I had a family to care for as well. There were many instances when studying got tough, and during those days, my family was my biggest pillar of support and my motivators,” she said.

RESKILLING TO SEIZE NEW CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

Ms Faridah’s willingness to embrace continuous learning is in line with SkillsFuture Singapore’s (SSG) mission to cultivate a culture of lifelong learning in Singapore. 

The national skills authority aims to provide the local workforce with opportunities to upskill and reskill in order to develop their fullest potential. In addition to its current array of programmes and training resources, the Skills Demand for the Future Economy Report 2022 was recently published to give Singaporeans insights into how they can upskill to stay relevant or reskill to seize new opportunities in the growing green, digital and care economies. 

The report also includes a list of Critical Core Skills (CCS), which are in-demand soft skills that businesses have identified as important that individuals can reference to prioritise the skills they need to develop. According to the report, the three most important CCS are self-management, influence and creative thinking. 

The report also illustrates how mid-career workers like Ms Faridah often possess a wealth of skills that are transferable and valuable across industries, contributing greatly to their career versatility. For example, technical skills such as effective client communication and professional consultation are highly transferable to roles in the care economy. 

DRAWING ON HER OWN STRENGTHS

From her previous corporate background, Ms Faridah was able to gain crucial skills that stood her in good stead when she was growing in her new profession. 

As a corporate support officer, she had honed her project management abilities, her attention to detail, and her communication and interpersonal skills – all of which came in handy when she became a specialist nurse in a gynaecology clinic.

There, Ms Faridah’s workday involved juggling multiple tasks, including triaging patients, taking notes while a doctor is seeing a patient, preparing the paperwork, equipment and scheduling for procedures as well as conducting financial counselling.

She said: “Handling difficult clients in my previous career taught me to be a good listener, to be patient and to analyse a problem in a systematic way to find a solution. In nursing, I incorporate all these skills to assist the patients, care for them accordingly and lead them on the road to recovery.” 

More importantly, she has learnt to always be prepared for the unexpected: “I learnt how to handle emergency medical situations – such as urgent walk-in cases where patients experienced abnormal bleeding or could not feel foetal movement – in a calm and collected manner.” 

FINDING FULFILMENT AND GROWTH

Ms Faridah’s first role in nursing was the one that showed her just how fulfilling her chosen path could be.

“With obstetric patients who were first-time mums, it felt like I was on this new journey with them from the time they conceived until they delivered their babies. Throughout the 40 weeks of pregnancy, I would help alleviate their fears and anxiety every step of the way. It gave me a lot of job satisfaction to see a patient deliver a healthy baby,” she shared.

Looking to the future, Ms Faridah hopes to advance her career by upskilling herself with specialist knowledge in nursing geriatric patients and those with chronic diseases.

“With Singapore’s ageing society, many of our seniors have chronic diseases, and some of them live on their own and don’t know where to get help,” she explained. “I would love to help this group of patients.” 

Her advice for others about to embark on the same journey of reskilling? “Go with an open mind, never give up halfway, be prepared to face challenges and strive to the end – only then will success be yours. Also, age is only a number – it should never deter anyone from learning something new.” 

For insights to help you chart your own reskilling journey, read SkillsFuture Singapore’s Skills Demand for the Future Economy Report 2022.