Offering support to those affected by and through endometriosis is a key role of QENDO. It is important that those who take on the support role are properly trained to assist.
What does training involve?
Training to be a support worker only takes four (4) hours on a Saturday morning. It is a relaxed, casual affair with emphasis on the experience and developing confidence. Participants will learn basic listening skills, ethics and confidentiality and general information about the support worker process.
Why do we need training?
It is important that support workers are equipped with the skills to effectively assist callers or know how to refer them if needed. Telephone support is a different medium to face-to-face interactions, so special techniques are taught and discussed.
About your trainer
Anda has been a member of QENDO for approximately 10 years. She is a trained professional counsellor specialising in the area of loss and grief. Currently Anda is working as a lecturer in counselling at the Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors. Anda has a passion for teaching others about the joy of counselling.
Some personal notes from those undertaking the training
“ I did the free counselling training with QENDO so that I could find a way to communicate to my family, friends, and colleagues about Endometriosis. I found that people often tuned out or shut down when I spoke about endo. I wanted to learn how to talk about it so that people around me would listen and also allow me to help them if they were having the same experiences.
Through the course I developed techniques for listening and in volunteering as a support worker, I am able to help people who are calling out for support, and to share experiences of having Endo. I really find that it is much more satisfying to try and support those who want and need it than to sit around feeling sorry for myself or lecture to those who aren’t asking for help!
This has lead me to have a greater involvement in the association which is also beneficial, informative, social, and enjoyable for me, and at the same time I feel I am making a contribution.”
“It took me a long time to feel that I was ready to become a support worker and finally took the training session. My knowledge of endometriosis was only from my own experiences and from what I had read in books and learned from others. I was a bit nervous at first, but once the session was underway I was wondering why it had taken me so long to do the course. I realised that you don’t have to be an expert in endometriosis. You learned be a good listener. I learned new skills in how to manage different situations, most importantly, how to know your limits and seek help if you can’t answer the question asked. I have been a support worker for the past 4 years and have found it a very rewarding experience to be helping others. I feel that I am making a positive difference to the lives of others with endometriosis”
President’s Note:
In this 20th Anniversary year we wish to acknowledge and thank all those Support Workers from the past who have undertaken the support worker training and given their time to our Association.
This Support Worker Training session will also be a refresher for any of you who feel that it has been a while since your training was done and would like to be part of our roster again. We would dearly love you to come along. We are desperately in need of more support workers for the roster. We need 9 support workers to cut down the on-roster time to 3 x 2 week rosters per year. The more support workers we have on the roster, the lighter the load for us all.
A note on how things have changed:
No more pagers – Yay!
If you have a phone anywhere in the world you can retrieve the messages from the Messagebank! This means country members who have completed their training can also be a part of our roster.
No more couriers - Yay!
We supply you with your own Support worker information folder so there are no more hassles waiting for the bag to turn up! You have everything you need right at your fingertips.
So if you have been thinking about how to get more involved, come along to the free training session.
Please book your place by calling us on the Messagebank (07) 3321 4408.
