FIVE Gwent women are nominated in the prestigious Wales Care Awards, which celebrate excellence in the care profession countrywide.
LONG CAREER: Matron Mari Jones with resident Catherine Price at St Catherine’s Nursing Home in Newport
Newport matron Mari Jones hopes to round off her 40-year career with a prize for Leadership and Management in Residential Care Services.
The Risca Road resident, 64, has managed St Catherine’s Nursing Home in the city for 20 years and helped a colleague become the Royal College of Nursing’s Nurse of the Year Award.
Home administrator Francine Wilson said Mrs Jones, who is due to retire this year, took her dedication to patients to the ‘next level’, while the matron herself said the nomination was the ‘pinnacle of her career’.
“Over the years I’ve seen a lot of changes in the role of care home manager but I’ve never had a single regret,” Mrs Jones added.
Meanwhile Anne Dwyer-Thomas and Jaymylee Colver, 33, saw one door close and another to success open after both stopped working in one field and found their calling in another.
CHANGE OF CAREER: Anne Dwyer-Thomas
Ms Dwyer-Thomas’ decision to open a wine bar instead of teaching was a blessing in disguise after the economic downturn as she turned her hand to training carers instead. Now the Allt-yr-Yn resident is up for a Commitment to Training and Workforce Development Award after temporary office work at Llanhennock Lodge, Caerleon became a full-time training officer post.
NO MORE DOUBTS: Jaymylee Colver was unsure if she would like the job at first
And Ms Colver, from The Bryn, Newport, now manages Rogerstone House on Risca Road after work at Blackwood’s Gossard underwear factory ended in redundancy.
She is up for a Leadership and Management in Supported Living or Small Community Living award after joining the Care Management Group as a support worker in 2005.
“I wasn’t sure that I would like the job when I first came here but now I get great satisfaction from seeing the service users achieve things and see tasks through from beginning to end,” Ms Colver said.
CARING GRAN: Nina Wright talks with care home resident Lillian Harris
Gran Nina Wright, 60, from Tredegar Park, has also been nominated for her work at Cartref care home in Cardiff, and Brynmawr carer Laura Emery, 20, for an Exceptional Newcomer award.
BRIGHTENING PEOPLE’S DAY: Laura Emery, 20 has been nominated for an Exceptional Newcomer award
Residents at Beacon Lodge in the town say Ms Emery brightens up their day and is described by manager Michael Jones as a model employee.
Winners in all categories will be announced at Cardiff City Hall on October 21.
Awards celebrate carers
THE Wales Care Awards recognise the important work carers do.
Run by Care Forum Wales, a non-for-profit organisation set up in 1993 to support independent care providers, they annually celebrate staff and companies from across Wales.
Care Forum Wales chief executive Mario Kreft MBE said the awards recognised the unstinting dedication of unsung heroes and heroines across Wales, and commended the women for their success.
He said: “The care sector is full of wonderful people because it’s not just a job it’s a vocation – these are the people who really do have the X factor.
“It is a pleasure to honour the contribution of all the finalists – each and every one of them should be very proud of their achievement.”
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