Jennifer Carruthers

My name is Jennifer Carruthers and I am a nurse and deputy manager of Rashielee Care Home. I am registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

I was training to be a teacher when my children came along. My studies ended and I became a full-time mum, but when the girls were older I needed a job which could accommodate flexible working. I was employed by Littleinch Ltd as a care assistant and soon fell in love with the role. I decided to start my nurse training.

I have a dual role now. Part of the week I am nurse and the other part I am office based as deputy manager.

The nurse role can be busy, ensuring the residents are happy and healthy by helping them plan their care.

When I’m deputy, I carry out audits on our paperwork. This includes looking at records for medication and incidence of falls. We look for patterns to show where improvement can be made.

I also support staff to work to the best of their abilities, by continuing to develop themselves and improve care for residents.

In both roles, I’m a role model to the staff, working by their side. I like to think I pass on my passion, making the home a happy place to live and work.

I attained Standard Grades and Highers at school. Later, I completed my BSc Adult Nursing degree, and recently I undertook my SVQ in Care Services Leadership and Management at SCQF level 10. I found completing my SVQ challenging as it had been some time since I was in formal education. I learned so much from it but I did require a lot of support, which I got from my manager.

It’s not all about the written learning though, I had been a supervisor before in a pub and burger chain, and this gave me experience in managing staff and treating them with respect.

I enjoy working in social care, being able to change how older adults in care homes live. I love seeing the difference I make to the lives of the people living here and seeing residents smile.

I take pride in supervising student nurses and influencing the nurses of the future.

The advice I’d give to people coming into the care home sector is to use your voice to speak up for those who can’t speak for themselves. Always treat people as you would like to be treated yourself and be creative in finding opportunities to have fun – yes, there are risks in life, but life also needs to be worth living!