For Lead Therapist Debbie Myers her work at Bloomhill isn’t just work, she loves her job and she’s happy to take it home with her.
“We live and breathe our work – for example, we go home wondering how clients are feeling after a treatment,” Debbie said.
“Even if someone is nearing end of life, I’m wondering if they’re ok, sending them good vibes, hoping their night is less painful. I know something good has happened for them in their day when they’ve made it to therapy.”
Debbie said often breast cancer patients get through a treatment and say after it’s finished they didn’t realise how much their life would change with cancer.
“In time I always see a new, better version of them, they become very strong,” she said.
Debbie began as a volunteer at Bloomhill as a receptionist.
“I would watch people come in broken and then see them leave after a treatment as brand new people. I thought, ‘I would like to be part of this’.”
So she studied massage therapy.
“It was nice to do massage, but I could see their need and it encouraged me to further what I could offer them. I wanted to be able to give them as much relief as possible.”
She became a lymphoedema specialist and was further inspired to do a nursing degree she will complete next year.
“All the work I have done with clients has inspired me to do it at a different level. The more qualifications I have, the more learnings I have, the more I can advocate for clients,” she said.
“Also my increased knowledge means I’m more aware of the illness trajectory and likely outcomes and this helps me to be able to treat clients more appropriately.”
Once she has graduated as a registered nurse, Debbie plans to expand on her skill set further, continuing to work with lymphoedema patients while becoming more involved in holistic cancer care.
“Every person is so individual, even when they’re coming in for a standard treatment there is so much variety, everyone’s body is different and the treating plan is tailored to the patient,” she said. “We’re so fortunate here to have everyone under same roof here at Bloomhill. This makes a big difference to clients.”
“When I see that we have made a huge difference for them, it’s the icing on the cake. I love that.”
Author: Jan Richards, September 2022
