Tresna Mackrill and Dementia Alliance representative Phil Couchman at the Deniliquin Aged Care Forum.
Tresna Mackrill is 75 years-old and resides in Deniliquin, an idyllic country town nestled along the banks of the Edward (Kolety) River on Wamba Wamba, Perrepa Perrepa Country.
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Deni, as the locals call it, is home to about 8000 residents and is chiefly a farming community.
In summer, the town welcomes an influx of tourists enjoying life on and around the river.
Tresna and her partner, David, sold their house and had spent the next eight years travelling around Australia in their motor home.
It was an easy time, they were carefree, independent and happy together, exploring this great land.
When David passed away, Tresna was lost.
Her entire way of being had to be re-examined.
Without David, she could no longer live in the camper. She was not confident enough to drive on her own.
So now she had to find somewhere to settle.
Her family came to help, but Tresna did not want to be a burden.
She was grieving and physically unwell now, and so with the blessing of her children and other family members, she moved into Navorina, one of the two aged care residences in Deniliquin.
What a culture shock! Such a difficult transition.
In a matter of months, Tresna had lost her partner, her lifestyle and, to some degree, her independence.
She questioned her purpose and wondered what she would do with her time, now that her travelling days were over.
But at Navorina, Tresna was welcomed with open arms.
She found people who genuinely care for her and about her.
Tresna Mackrill on St Patrick’s Day - just one of the annual events celebrated at Navorina.
She found a team who offered her support while maintaining great respect for her autonomy and independence.
And soon, with her health and wellbeing on the mend, Tresna found a new role and purpose. Tresna is a student mentor.
In 2023, Three Rivers Department of Rural Health, Charles Sturt University, partnered with Navorina in a project funded by the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training program.
This project is about hosting health students in aged care; to improve the perception of aged care as a challenging yet rewarding career choice for graduate clinicians and to promote recruitment, showcasing rural practice as a unique and desirable work environment that provides an enviable work-life balance.
Students attending such placements are in the first or second year of their degree, so these placements are especially formative, a time when they can ‘try on’ their professional identity, observe others who model empathy and best practice, in a space that has a wonderful abundance of educators, the residents.
Our aged care residents bring a wealth of knowledge and lived experience which they are more than willing to share with students both formally and informally.
So now, Tresna is one of our resident volunteers and acts as a mentor to students.
A student learning guide, written in easy read, plain language helps Tresna better understand the learning needs of the students she meets.
The social interaction that comes with having (young) students in the nursing home, and the opportunity to offer her insight and perspective around all aspects of ageing, is important to Tresna.
“They (the students) are comfortable to come and talk to us about anything,” Tresna said.
“And I think that’s important, for them and for us.
“It’s nice to be needed.”
~ Cassandra Biggs is a lecturer in rural health/clinical educator with Three Rivers Department of Rural Health at Charles Sturt University.
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