Former flight attendant Victoria Congalton says retraining as a nurse in her 30s in the middle of a pandemic has been hugely rewarding. Photo: Te Whatu Ora / supplied
Victoria Congalton gave up a high-flying career to retrain as a nurse at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
After being made redundant by Air New Zealand during the level 4 restrictions in 2020, she decided the time was right to take the path not taken, and go nursing.
"I was 36 at the time, and I just thought 'Bugger it. Let's throw everything to the wind and go and study for three years and just go for it.'
"Three or four weeks later, my manager called me and asked if I wanted my job back, and I said, 'Sorry, it's too late. I've registered for nursing school.' I don't think she could understand why."
Nursing had always been on her to-do list - her mother, grandmother, aunt and cousins were all nurses.
However, after completing a degree in psychology and media studies, she embarked on a varied career, flying long-haul for four years for Qantas, teaching English in Vietnam and working in human resources for the consultancy KPMG in Australia and the United States, before returning to New Zealand in 2018 and starting a job with Air New Zealand.
Then Covid-19 hit and she suddenly found herself grounded.
"It felt like a sign from the universe. There's a need [for nurses] and if there was ever time for me to do it, it's now."
Studying and doing clinical placements when Covid was at its peak were challenging, she admitted.
"We were in PPE in hospitals and a lot of our classes were online or we were socially distanced and masked up."
Starting work at Hawke's Bay Regional Hospital's emergency department this year had more than fulfilled her expectations.
"It is everything and more than I dreamt of. I'm exhausted the whole time but I drive home and I feel that I've done something, I've helped someone.
"It's hard, it has its ups and downs, it's tough, you cry sometimes. But it's a real privilege to be with someone and look after someone, and their whānau and their family, in what is often a really scary time for people."
According to Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand, the nursing workforce was boosted by more than 1200 new nurses in the year to 30 June, both locally trained and from overseas.
However, its Health Workforce Plan released in July estimated the health system was still short about 4800 nurses.
Taking the pulse
- Overall, the nursing workforce increased from 31,126 at 30 June 2022 to 32,345 at 30 June 2023.
- In the year to 30 September, 12,719 new nurses joined the register, of whom 82 percent were overseas-trained. However, it was not possible to say how many of them will ever work in New Zealand.
- In the last five years, the number of nurses employed by Te Whatu Ora (formerly district health boards) has increased 22.7 percent.