When Chief Executive, Siva Sivarajah, enquired from Sarah Rexhepi, Quality Coordinator, how she was and if she was busy, she responded saying, “No, I never use the word busy because I don’t like it. We are all here to work – some days can be busy, but not every day, but that’s the first thing that comes out of everyone’s mouth regardless if they are busy or not.” Needless to say, he was impressed by her response. In today’s article, Sarah talks to us about her unique outlook on work, and why she loves her job so much. 

Firstly, what is your coffee order?

Soy mocha!

Can you tell us a bit about your Northern Health journey?

My journey started in 2005 – 2007. I used to work at Bundoora and then I left to become a flight attendant, but it became really hard with the kids and the shifts. A job opportunity came up here for a Cleaner/Team Leader and I became a supervisor and stayed for just under three years. Then I applied for Support Services – when I was successful it was like I won Tattslotto! It was something I really wanted to do! So I became a Quality Coordinator and Trainer.

It’s been a great journey but now I think I’ve found my home, because I’ve got great support here, great management and team in general – and I’m happy to come here every day. My colleagues and I have a good time, and we get a lot of things done – a lot of planning, and kicking a lot of goals.

What do you like most about your role and what do you find most challenging?

I like that I’m respected in my role and I like being part of a team. I’m involved in the team, which is something I’d never had the opportunity to do. I feel like my opinion is valued and it means something. Coming to work every day is really great because I enjoy it – it actually makes me happy coming to work every day because it’s a great group of people.

I get to walk around the hospital all day and meet new people and find out what’s happening, how we can improve and what we need to improve. I get my hands dirty, if we have to fix a machine or move beds – whatever it takes – I’m more than happy to help.

The most challenging part of my role is when people are negative – it’s hard to change attitudes from negative to positive. I think if everyone had a more positive attitude, we would work better. I always talk to people and say we’re lucky to work here, so we have to respect our job and represent the hospital. If we change negatives into positives, everything works.

What does a typical day look like for you?

I come in really early at around 6.15 am and read my emails quickly. Then we do a morning huddle with a few PSA’s and have a chat about what happened yesterday, what we will do today and any news – just a general conversation. After that, I walk around the hospital and go through the wards and see what the other staff are up to, see if anything’s wrong and how we can problem solve it on the spot. In the afternoon, I’ll do more auditing through the hospital. There’s a lot of meetings but it’s good because we try to kick goals with our meetings so we have a percentage of how well we’re doing.

How do you relax after a long shift?

I do have two teenagers, so…relaxing?

I think it’s getting a bit easier as they get older. I’ve gotten my son into Married at First Sight, so we sit together and watch it and I can get him off the Playstation a bit.

Other times, we go to the arcade, play basketball – I’ve got a 13-year old son and a 16-year old daughter – and we catch up with friends or family and just switch off.

What are some things people don’t know about you?

I’m always looking on holiday travel websites, always planning my next holiday. Also, I like to draw and I’m always creating – I used to paint in my younger days. I used to play a lot of sports and still occasionally play tennis.

How would you describe Northern Health in one sentence?

Challenging – the hospital is growing, so there’s a lot of challenges ahead but hopefully we can all make it a better place.