Healthcare Humanity Awards - Sharon Quah, Therapist Assistant, St Luke’s Hospital

Money cannot buy the recovery and positive changes of the elderly patients whom I care for in my Community Care work. Despite being relatively new to the healthcare profession, one of my more memorable cases was a patient who had mood swings and displayed aggressive behaviour by shouting at staff and other patients. When I was supporting her with therapy, she would refuse and shout at me.

I didn’t give up. Over time, I learnt her preferred exercise time, food and other concerns. As her comfort zone was in the ward, I helped her do some exercises there. I also told her about the benefits of exercise and incorporated it into her daily lifestyle. This increased her confidence as she could see what she could do. She became more confident and cheerful. She even encouraged her fellow patients to do their exercises. Instead of shouting at staff, she helped them with language interpretation. The positive changes I saw in her inspired me to continue helping others.