ADVERTISEMENT Mum's care inspires Ryman Janine to return to Saying yes to the position of assistant to the manager at Edmund Hillary Retirement Village was an easy decision herself just added to the life experience that becomes invaluable when working in a retirement village, he said. Janine's maturity and life experience especially around looking after her mum that's huge Janine was in the special care centre the other day and helped to assure one of the residents and keep them calm "She said to me aftenwards for Janine Aitken. After all, she had previously worked as village manager for another Ryman Healtheare village-Grace Joel-and before that had been the administrator But it was the experience of being carer for ber own mother, who has severe dementia, that made ber see this role with fresh eyes. Says Janine: "I knew the role, I knew how it worked and what I'd be doing so it was easy to step back into it. "And having had that experience with mumI just really like what the retirement sector is all about, which is looking after older people. "My mum went into care last year and that has really made me appreciate the quality of care that Ryman delivers, the attention to detail and the effort put in to trying to get it right all the time. "Having experienced both sides, that of a staff member and that of a relative, I can see that everything we do as a team here is to ensare that that she woeldnt have been able to do that a couple of years ago but through her own experience she felt confident she could. While her affinity with the residents is a huge plas, most of Janine's role involves working with the staff and ensuring their employment needs are met, fromn their initial employment, to training, rostering and professional development You really have to know your way around all the systems, which takes time to learn," says Janine. "For me, having someone who understands what need, has been there before and knows the role is great, adds Dean Janine joins Dean's dream team at Edmund Hillary Retirement Village personal experience that has driven me and brought me to this point. He adds: "The biggest thing for our residents that come here, is about making those retirement years of their life special, enjoyable and fun "Our role is to take away the hassle and the need for 1see our job as making that move as seamless as possible. says Janine. "At the same time, I want to make sure that the staff feel appreciated and if the staff are doing things in the right way and getting the right results it's important to thank them for doing a great job. Like Janine, Dean is constantly striving to pat residents needs before anything else. Before working in the retirement sector, Dean was a familiar face at a local garden centre, working his way up from delivery boy to senior management over 30 years Many of the skills he learned at the garden centre were transferrable to this role, he says. But the experience of seeing his mother admitted to hospice, when he was only 22, was what planted the seed that caring for older people would be a good fit "It's really all about people. And it was that Having started her career working for a well-known bank, Janine had it ingrained in her from early on that good customer service was the be all and end all and at Edmund Hillary that translates to making everything 'resident-centrie "Moving into a retirement village is not always an easy transition for the family or the resident so our standard of care is good enough for mum or dad" Village Manager Dean Jackson, who will soon be celebrating seven years in his role, said it was fantastic having someone with Janine's experience as his right-hand woman Looking after an older parent and being a parent them to look after a property and do all those sorts of things for them so that they can just get on with living and enjoying life. best of The very resthome, hospital and dementia care To enquire about availability phone Dean on 570 0070 221 Abbotts Way, Remuera EDMUND HILLARY RETIREMENT VILLAGE RMAN ADVERTISEMENT Mum's care inspires Ryman Janine to return to Saying yes to the position of assistant to the manager at Edmund Hillary Retirement Village was an easy decision herself just added to the life experience that becomes invaluable when working in a retirement village, he said. Janine's maturity and life experience especially around looking after her mum that's huge Janine was in the special care centre the other day and helped to assure one of the residents and keep them calm "She said to me aftenwards for Janine Aitken. After all, she had previously worked as village manager for another Ryman Healtheare village-Grace Joel-and before that had been the administrator But it was the experience of being carer for ber own mother, who has severe dementia, that made ber see this role with fresh eyes. Says Janine: "I knew the role, I knew how it worked and what I'd be doing so it was easy to step back into it. "And having had that experience with mumI just really like what the retirement sector is all about, which is looking after older people. "My mum went into care last year and that has really made me appreciate the quality of care that Ryman delivers, the attention to detail and the effort put in to trying to get it right all the time. "Having experienced both sides, that of a staff member and that of a relative, I can see that everything we do as a team here is to ensare that that she woeldnt have been able to do that a couple of years ago but through her own experience she felt confident she could. While her affinity with the residents is a huge plas, most of Janine's role involves working with the staff and ensuring their employment needs are met, fromn their initial employment, to training, rostering and professional development You really have to know your way around all the systems, which takes time to learn," says Janine. "For me, having someone who understands what need, has been there before and knows the role is great, adds Dean Janine joins Dean's dream team at Edmund Hillary Retirement Village personal experience that has driven me and brought me to this point. He adds: "The biggest thing for our residents that come here, is about making those retirement years of their life special, enjoyable and fun "Our role is to take away the hassle and the need for 1see our job as making that move as seamless as possible. says Janine. "At the same time, I want to make sure that the staff feel appreciated and if the staff are doing things in the right way and getting the right results it's important to thank them for doing a great job. Like Janine, Dean is constantly striving to pat residents needs before anything else. Before working in the retirement sector, Dean was a familiar face at a local garden centre, working his way up from delivery boy to senior management over 30 years Many of the skills he learned at the garden centre were transferrable to this role, he says. But the experience of seeing his mother admitted to hospice, when he was only 22, was what planted the seed that caring for older people would be a good fit "It's really all about people. And it was that Having started her career working for a well-known bank, Janine had it ingrained in her from early on that good customer service was the be all and end all and at Edmund Hillary that translates to making everything 'resident-centrie "Moving into a retirement village is not always an easy transition for the family or the resident so our standard of care is good enough for mum or dad" Village Manager Dean Jackson, who will soon be celebrating seven years in his role, said it was fantastic having someone with Janine's experience as his right-hand woman Looking after an older parent and being a parent them to look after a property and do all those sorts of things for them so that they can just get on with living and enjoying life. best of The very resthome, hospital and dementia care To enquire about availability phone Dean on 570 0070 221 Abbotts Way, Remuera EDMUND HILLARY RETIREMENT VILLAGE RMAN