Refugee to fashion designer
My background
I came to Australia as a refugee from Vietnam in 1981, aged 11 years. I completed some primary school and all my high school in Australia and then trained as a fashion designer/seamstress at Bentley TAFE.
I am good at fashion designing and worked for a clothing designer in Perth in their bridal shop, but was let go after two years because management could pay a new recruit less money. I also worked for another exclusive bridal couture for nearly 2 years. I worked very hard, and was underpaid and never got paid on time. The pay cheque often bounced so I left that place and lost all my entitlements.
After that I decided to open my own bridal shop and had it for 3 years. The rent doubled and it was hard to keep the shop going. Also I was having my first child so I moved back home and worked from home. I also worked from home making clothes on consignment.
I found all of this hard and was afraid of going back into the workforce.
From back injury to career change
My first visit to Ishar was after I injured my back at netball. I came to see the doctor and take part in the exercise program.
From there I learned about other Ishar services like the computer course. Through Ishar I did the Wider Opportunities for Work (WOW) course at TAFE. Then I returned to TAFE to do a Cert 3 course in Community Services.
A big difference in my life
Ishar made a big difference to my life. Every staff member at Ishar has helped and I took up every opportunity that came along. I was helped in many ways with my studies and especially with language issues and with computer skills.
The Manager of Health Services recommended that I become a support worker with Ishar and that helped me rebuild my confidence. I was linked to an Ishar staff member who managed the perinatal program and she encouraged me to become a bi-cultural worker with the perinatal program.
I have learned a lot and am a much stronger person. I can now speak in front of people and have the confidence to manage a group of people.
This story is an example of how little things can make major changes in a person’s life and how setbacks can contribute to positive changes.
As the representative for Partners in Culturally Appropriate Care (PICAC) in Western Australia, Fortis provides a range of customised services to improve the capacity of aged care services and their personnel, respond to the unique needs of people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) backgrounds.
Fortis, as part of the national PICAC network, empowers workforces in the aged care sector to develop the capabilities to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate care.
We improve the capacity of aged care services to respond to the differing needs of older people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) communities through:
– Partnering with organisations to identify and address unique needs that will help deliver better practice in culturally appropriate care.
– Customised training to all levels of an organisation
– Quality resources and relevant research
An overview of the training services, partnering approach, events and the available resources follow.