Meet Inyene, a dedicated healthcare professional based in Lagos, Nigeria. While Inyene hopes to one day become an Occupational Therapist, her ultimate goal is to be the best caregiver she can be, and to make a positive impact on as many lives as possible. And she’s using FuturU to help her get there!
In this interview, Inyene shares her career story so far, and explains how she’s using FuturU to build skills, knowledge and confidence, and provide the very best quality of care she can.
Can you start by telling me a little bit about yourself and what you do?
I’m currently based in Lagos, Nigeria, but previously worked in the UK as a Healthcare Support Worker. I support service users to continue to live as active and independent a lifestyle as possible in the comfort of their own homes.
I provide day-to-day support to individuals living with Parkinson’s Disease, Dementia and mental health conditions. This includes personal care, such as helping people to get dressed and with toileting, shopping, meal prep and feeding where required, as well as medication support and moving and handling. I offer emotional support and companionship too, ensuring individuals receive the respect, dignity and empathy they all deserve.
What do you find most rewarding about your role?
Knowing that I’m making a positive difference to someone’s life, and seeing the impact that my work has on them. Having the opportunity to improve someone’s quality of life, provide comfort and support their wellbeing is deeply fulfilling to me.
I remember supporting a lady when I was working in the UK – all she wanted was companionship. And she’d tell me that I made her so happy and that she loved to see me. That alone makes my job so satisfying and rewarding.
How did you get started in your career?
I was inspired by my father, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and needed 24/7 care. I learnt a great deal, and after his passing, I decided to take up a career in caregiving.
I started out in a hospital here in Nigeria, training to be a patient caregiver, before making the move to the UK to continue my training. As a caregiver, it’s really important that you continue developing your skills and knowledge, so I was really excited to find out about FuturU, although I thought it might be too good to be true!
I’d been able to do some free training through other providers, but would have to pay for certificates, which are often really expensive. It was very frustrating for me. But with FuturU, I can learn and download certificates for free, which is mind blowing.
What do you think of the FuturU platform?
When I first discovered FuturU I was like, wow! I started out doing the Health and Social Care Introduction in a virtual environment and it was really, really amazing – it took me a while to recover!
I moved onto the Moving and Handling course, which taught me more than the hands-on training I’d done in the UK, and since then I’ve taken more courses which are really helping me to support the individuals I’m looking after right now.
Another amazing thing about FuturU is that I can access it from any device. It’s easy to use, very user friendly, clear and concise. The training combines text, video and scenarios, so it’s more engaging, and the design of the training content overall is excellent too.
How has FuturU helped you?
I’ve been able to apply my training in various practical scenarios, and this has really, really enhanced the quality of care I provide to my clients. For example, recently one of my clients showed signs of a potential stroke – I’d completed FuturU’s Stroke Awareness course and immediately recognised the symptoms. I followed the FAST protocol, which I learnt on FuturU, and immediately called the emergency services.
I’ve learnt so much from the Parkinson’s Disease course too. I really knew nothing about the disease previously, but the training has really helped me to support my clients.
I’ve developed so much confidence, I’m no longer a novice! I know what I’m doing and it makes me so excited.
Would you recommend FuturU to others?
Oh wow! I would so recommend FuturU to anyone that’s looking to continue their professional development and to keep their skills up to date, or who’s interested in starting a career in care.
Finally, would you recommend a career in care to others considering the profession?
Yes, definitely. Especially if you love working with people and want to make a difference to people’s lives. If it gives you joy, then I would definitely recommend people to take up a career in care. Of course, it has its challenges, but the reward is amazing – it’s a deeply fulfilling career.