News
Cooking up a storm
UWS nursing graduate Amina Elshafei first came to public attention as a contestant on Australia's most popular TV cooking show, MasterChef. However, there is a lot more to her story.
Despite the family passion for food, Amina kept her application to MasterChef, the television show which pits amateur cooks against one another, a secret from her parents and sister at first.
Amina quietly applied to become a contestant, not sharing the news with her family until she received a call from a casting agent. After some gruelling selection processes, she ended up being one of the lucky 24 contestants chosen for the 2012 series and was instantly an Australian favourite, thanks to her warmth and humour.
Amina believes her multicultural perspective and her background as a registered nurse were among the main reasons she was selected from so many hopefuls.
“Australia is so diverse and I’m a minute part of it compared to some of the contestants; I brought two cultures to the table,” she says.
Amina was five when her parents decided to move from Saudi Arabia to raise their family in Australia. Attending primary school in the multicultural mixing pot of Campsie in Sydney’s Western suburbs, she grew up knowing the many faces of Australia.
“Whether it was through the school or community, you had so many nationalities. For my parents, UWS graduate Amina Elshafei first came to public attention as a contestant on Australia’s most popular TV cooking show, MasterChef. However, there is a lot more to her story. being immigrants, it wasn’t too bad for them settling in because they were able to associate with other Koreans or other Arabs,” she says.
Straight out of high school, Amina followed in her mother’s footsteps by studying for a nursing degree. She became a registered nurse in 2008 and started a graduate program at the Children’s Hospital in Westmead.
In her third year of working as a nurse, she decided to push herself up the ladder and further her education by returning to university to study a Masters of Child and Family Health (Kartiane) at the University of Western Sydney, graduating in 2012.
“I’m really happy I did the Masters because it’s really opened my avenues for further development, as well as helped to further my career if I choose to,” she says.
In 2012, Amina was honoured with the Woman of the Year award at the Australian Muslim Achievement Awards 2012. As a proud Muslim-Australian woman, Amina wore her hijab during her stint on MasterChef, and unexpectedly, had a hugely positive impact on the way Muslims are viewed in Australia.
“It was fabulous winning the award as it emphasised to me the effect as well as the change of opinion I’ve had in the community,” she says. “I never went onto the show to make a statement about being an Australian woman with a headscarf – it was about the food and that was it. “But food has that wonderful effect on people. No matter what culture you’re from, bring a great meal to the table and everyone sits around and enjoys it. Food is a great portal to experience, as well as a way to share what you have been brought up with, your cultures, your religion.” Even so, Amina says she couldn’t quite believe the effect she had on the general population, which was “quite astounding”. Amina’s experience on the show has also opened up avenues for her in further exploring cooking and the world of food.
She writes a recipe column for The Australian Women’s Weekly magazine, mainly featuring food she likes to cook at home, and often hosts popup restaurant nights with her fellow MasterChef contestant, Audra.
Cooking up a storm “I’m really happy I did the Masters because it’s really opened my avenues for further development, as well as helped to further my career if I choose to.” A major project – her ‘big baby’ is the cookbook she is working on, a very personal collection of recipes her parents taught her. She is also developing an interactive website for Australians to discuss and share recipes, which will launch this year.
And in between all these foodie adventures, Amina is still bringing her passion to her other great love of working as a nurse. “When it comes to nursing, I’m still trying to improve my knowledge and my development in the clinical setting,” she says. “Nursing is so dynamic, there’s always something to do and learn.”
For more information about Nursing courses (opens in new window) or Postgraduate study (opens in new window) at UWS, visit
http://future.uws.edu.au/future_students_home
To find out more about the UWS Nursing Alumni visit Nursing & Midwifery Alumni Chapter
Source: GradLife
Posted: Mayl 2013
Type: Printed
May 2013
A new career is born
Working as a registered nurse specialising in oncology, pediatrics and neo-natal intensive care motivated Rachael Hyde to pursue a career in midwifery -a move she describes as a shift towards more positive healthcare.
"I've worked in numerous fields of nursing but I really liked the idea of working in partnership with women and their families that are, on the whole, well," says Hyde,who chose to undertake the University of Western Sydney's Graduate Diploma in Midwifery. Designed for registered nurses, the 12-month course includes a hospital placement and is approved by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency.
"Since starting [the course], I've felt more loved than I've ever felt in public health - the intensity of it all is appreciated," Hyde says. Balancing shift work with a busy study schedule - including four days at the hospital and a day at UWS's Parramatta campus - has been the biggest challenge. "There is a lot jammed into the [diploma] year," Hyde says. "I've had to be responsible with my time and how I allocate it."
She hopes the switch to midwifery will be a good long-term career fit. "It is definitely much easier to tell someone they are pregnant than they have cancer ...and it is personally fulfilling to care for women and be present at the birth of their babies."
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
Written By: Tanya Ryan-Segger
Posted: 20th April 2013
Type: Printed
April 2013
A new generation of midwives
Five years in the making, the UWS Bachelor of Midwifery commenced this autumn session, aiming to educate professional midwives to serve the Greater Western Sydney community.
The course has proven popular, with 400 applicants striving to fill the 40 places available.
“Midwifery is a separate profession to nursing, with its own philosophical framework and professional standards,” explains Hannah Dahlen, Professor of Midwifery and one of the creators of the course. “Most of the world is now moving towards midwifery being a direct-entry qualification.”
As students commence the course, they will begin by studying Primary Healthcare, which Hannah says underpins the entire course, and covers bioscience, midwifery skills and practice, knowledge around the profession of midwifery and facilitating normal birth. “Students will have the exciting opportunity to follow 20 women who they get to know and form a professional relationship with during pregnancy, labour and birth, and for up to six weeks following birth,” says Hannah. “Students will watch the wonder of families being made and growing.”
Margaret Duff, Senior Lecturer and the Director of the Academic Program of Midwifery, says that because a whole pregnancy, labour and birth won’t fit into an academic term, midwifery students practice throughout the year. “UWS and the School of Nursing and Midwifery have assisted students by providing lectures online and flexible study arrangements. “The National Standard requires midwifery courses to consist of equal amounts of practice and theory,” explains Margie. “UWS’s iPad initiative has also assisted midwifery students with flexibility in their course.”
Aaliya Furmie has just commenced the course and is already feeling motivated and inspired by the tutors and clinical educators she will be working with. “As the numbers of students enrolled in the course is small, you get to know the tutors, clinical educators and facilitators really well,” she says. “I’m excited that 50 per cent of the course is made up of clinical practice, so I will gain a lot of valuable practical experience, and I feel that this is very important when completing a health-related course. Under the guidance of some of the best midwives in the field who have amazing midwifery experience, I hope to become a confident midwife.”
Hannah says that the introduction of the course in the region is a great boon for the community as a whole. “The Greater Western Sydney area has the highest number of births in Australia, and we now offer the population the opportunity to undertake midwifery education at UWS and work at hospitals and in community settings in the local area,” she says. “This course will also attract students from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds to become midwives and work in their community.”
While the course has been limited to just 40 students due to clinical placement limitations, Hannah and Margaret are hopeful that more available places will become available in the future so more students have the opportunity to undertake the Bachelor of Midwifery.
“Our students will be exposed to exciting and emerging practice opportunities like never before in Australia,” says Hannah.
April 2013
Professor Hannah Dahlen, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Western Sydney
Hannah is the Professor of Midwifery in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at UWS, and has been a practising midwife for 24 years.
She has significantly contributed to the development of maternity services both within Australia and internationally, and is one of the first midwives in Australia to gain eligibility and access to a Medicare provider number following government reforms in 2010.
An active researcher, Professor Dahlen has strong national and international research partnerships, and has received 12 grants since 2000. She has had over 60 publications in the past seven years and has spoken at over 100 national and international conferences.
The national spokesperson for the Australian College of Midwives, Hannah has been interviewed by media over 300 times and featured in two documentaries. She is also a past President of the Australian College of Midwives, receiving Life Membership in 2008 for outstanding contributions to the profession of Midwifery.
In November this year she was featured in the Sydney Morning Herald’s list of 100 ‘people who change our city for the better’. Hannah was described by a member of the selection panel as probably the leading force promoting natural birth and midwife-led care in Australia.
Ends
January 2013
Study seeks male perspective on traumatic childbirth
Mums’ traumatic childbirth experiences have been well studied in the past, now a new study is looking at the impact on male partners.
The research by the University of Western Sydney’s School of Nursing and Midwifery(opens in new window)
will explore men’s experiences of labour and birth where their partners have experienced complications, required emergency intervention or the birth was traumatic in other ways.
Of all life events, the childbirth experience is consistently described as a significant life event of powerful psychological importance in a couples lives, says principal researcher Dr Rakime Elmir(opens in new window).
“Although birth is a normal physiological process, it can be associated with certain risks to health and in a rare event may pose a threat to survival of the woman and her infant,” says Dr Elmir.
“This has the potential to impact significantly on the physical and emotional health and well-being of the woman, her partner and the family unit.”
Dr Elmir says traumatic birth experiences and the effects on women have been researched by several scholars; however, little is known about the effects traumatic birth experiences can have on men where their partner has experienced complications or emergency interventions during the labour and birth.
“Distress following a traumatic childbirth has the potential to impact on a large number of Australian men.”
The participants will also be invited to take part in a focus group, involving other men who have had similar experiences.
“The research results will add knowledge and provide additional insights to the current body of literature on men’s experiences of birth trauma,” says Dr Elmir.
“It’s hoped the findings of this study will help create greater awareness among health professionals - particularly midwives and child and family health nurses - of the support needed for men following traumatic birth.”
The study findings also aim to direct and inform future research on men’s health.
For information on the study or to participate please contact principal researcher Dr Rakime Elmir on (02) 4620 3372 or r.elmir@uws.edu.au.
This study has been approved by the University of Western Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee. The approval number is H9966.
Ends
3 January 2013
