By Brendan Rees
A new $10 million health training facility has opened its doors to students and jobseekers at Chisholm Institute’s Berwick campus.
Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney joined Member for Narre Warren North Luke Donellan and Member for Narre Warren South Gary Maas at the Kangan Drive site to open the new centre of excellence, which forms part of the Berwick Health and Education Precinct.
The facility features nurse training and simulation laboratories, learning areas and staff accommodation to help meet growing demand for skilled health workers in the south east.
The precinct will support free TAFE by delivering courses in nursing, mental health and allied health, as well as a training partnership with the Casey Hospital and St John of God Hospital, Specialist Centre.
Chisholm chief executive Dr Rick Ede said the aim was to create a learning facility that was “closely as possible resembled an active hospital environment.”
“The teaching is very active and very hands on. We’ve got these amazing robotic mannequins that act as a patient,” he said,
Ms Tierney said the facility would allow local nurses to “access training closer to home, helping to meet increasing demand for skilled health workers in the area.”
Student Marty Lasker of Pakenham who is studying a Certificate IV in Youth Work said the free TAFE course had given him the opportunity to turn his life around after a lifetime of drug addiction.
“If I can redirect their lives at an early stage before they get to the stage that I actually got to then it would change the whole aspect of their lives,” he said.
Max Grynenko, who is studying a Bachelor of Nursing at La Trobe University in conjunction with Chisholm, said he was excited to use the simulation facility.
“We’re expecting to have the full range of medical conditions that we can simulate in this environment. It’s pretty much close as you can get as the real world scenario,” he said.
Madeline Heaton, coordinator of health work placements at Chisholm said 300 students had already enrolled in courses.
“We’re hoping in the next 12 months our placements will really reap the benefits of this simulation,” she said.
St John of God Hospital Berwick chief executive Lisa Norman said the new facility was important in delivering hands-on learning and practical skills needed for work placements.
“When they come on placement to us we know they’ve actually seen what a ward is like and their skills are being assessed in the right way,” she said.
Nursing teacher June Lazaro said the state-of-art facilities were amazing in creating scenarios “as real life as possible.”
