Meet the Team: Q&A with Zoe Jordan

Next in our Meet the Team Q&A series, we are proud to introduce you to another member of our growing ND Care & Support Family. Zoe Jordan has recently joined us as the new Field Care Supervisor for Caerphilly and the Vale. Zoe originally joined us in April 2019 as a Community Care Support Worker, but she has progressed quickly from where she started just six months ago…

Do you have a background in care work? Can you tell us more about your career journey so far?

No, I actually don’t have a background in care work before working for ND Care & Support. I have previously worked in a private nursery as a Nursery Nurse for the last 4 and a half years, which I guess you could consider being a caring role. So, even though I had no relevant qualifications, I was able to join ND Care & Support and receive training to work as a Support Worker. I have progressed and reached my milestones with the fantastic support offered here.

What does a day in your role look like?

My role is field-based and also office-based. While in the field, I go out and complete spot checks, care plan reviews and inductions with staff and service users. Maintaining a high-quality service is one of my priorities. Meanwhile, when I am in the office, I complete any actions that arise as a result of any information or requests that I receive when I am out in the field. The two go hand in hand and there is a good balance of both, but I enjoy still being able to go out into the community and interacting with our service users.

What key skills are required to do your job?

1. Good communication
2. Caring nature
3. Empathy
4. Being organised
5. Being passionate

What do you enjoy most about your job and why?

The aspect I enjoy most about my role is going out and meeting all the different service users and their families in the community and knowing that I am helping them and having a positive impact on their lives. It is very fulfilling and makes me feel good about what I do.

What day-to-day challenges do you face in your role?

One of the main challenges I face is when I can see something that needs changing in a service user’s care plan. I may have reported it to all the relevant people, but having to cope with the time it takes to be put into place is one of the things that I find challenging. The new PASS System that we are bringing in should make all the difference to this!

What challenges does the wider care sector face? How do you feel you are making a difference to this?

I believe that too many people have the wrong perception of care work in general. When I have been asked what I do as a job and explained what the role entails, people are often shocked as most relate care work to just personal care. But it involves far more than that, so I feel I am making a difference by broadening peoples’ interpretation of the role of a Care Worker by sharing my insight, experience and knowledge.

What is your proudest moment in work or your greatest achievement in your career and why?

I am very proud of how far I have progressed in the space of six months. I started my career in the care sector in April 2019 working as a Support Worker with ND Care & Support. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found the role so rewarding, but I have always been ambitious and keen to progress. Successfully getting the position of Field Care Supervisor after just six months has made me feel really proud of myself and what I do.

What advice would you give to candidates who want to go into care work?

I would say that if you want to feel fulfilled in your job and know you’ve made a difference to someone’s life when they need it most, no matter how small that difference might seem, give caring a go. You will never look back as it is the most heart-warming career out there.

Tell us a fun fact about yourself

I once won a floss competition…

What is your favourite quote and why?

“To make a difference in someone’s life, you don’t have to be brilliant, rich, beautiful or perfect. You just have to care.”

This quote couldn’t be more true. Having a caring nature is a very special quality that I believe should be valued above riches and beauty!

We hope Zoe’s Q&A inspires you as much as it inspires us! Tune in soon to meet the next member of the ND Care & Support team…