Alumni Profile – Stephanie Mahon R. M

Alumni Profile

STEPHANIE MAHON R. M – CLASS OF 2000

What Year did you graduate? I graduated in the class of 2000

What did you study after Year 12?

I went on to complete 1 year of Nursing, and transferred to Bachelor of Midwifery (my dream job since I was 13). Graduating from Bachelor of Midwifery in 2004. I have just completed a Post-Graduate Certificate in Health Services Management, June 2020.

What advice would you give to someone considering undertaking this study path?

Subjects such as year 11 and 12 Physical Education and Maths were the subjects that prepared me most for University. Physical Education gave me a sound knowledge of anatomy and physiology, this foundational knowledge led me to understand much more than if I was learning it at university for the first time. Knowing about chemical structures, muscles, bones and relationships between all these components was crucial in understanding the relationship and changes in a woman’s and babies’ bodies during pregnancy and postpartum. While university was wonderful, having this prior learning made it much easier for me to complete core subjects. What I didn’t realise at the time, was that all subjects are likely to help you in the future, despite your career path, as the more you learn the more adaptable you are to thinking broadly – especially in healthcare. I certainly wish I paid more attention in maths at school. This is crucial to health and safety in medication administration as a midwife. For example the amount of medication we administer is based on the patient’s weight, which means the amount of the same medication you administer to one patient could be entirely different to the next patient. Therefore, throughout the shift you will be calculating volumes and drip rates regularly. It’s not as hard as it sounds, but it is crucial that your calculations are correct.

What influenced your choice of career? When I was a child / teenager I had an obsession with caring for babies and small children. I was the neighbourhood babysitter as a teenager. Every subject I chose at school was with the intention to set me in the direction of becoming a midwife.

How did your experiences at St Aloysius prepare you for this path?

There are many ways you can achieve your goals and chosen career path in life if you remain focused and believe in yourself.

What influenced your choice of career?

Having teachers that supported my individual interests was crucial to my learning. What we understand in the workplace now is that the most optimal learning environment is that which has set up a space of what we call ‘psychological safety’ – i.e. at school would be the ability to ask questions comfortably and a curriculum that allows teachers to focus on individual student learning interests. There are some stand out teachers from my time at St Aloysius; In my mind I know for a fact they have played a big role in my success as a midwife.

What impact has Covid19 had on you?

I manage 4 departments in a large metropolitan maternity hospital. As we are an essential workforce (babies don’t stop coming due to a pandemic!), we still have to come in to work every day. One of the first things you learn as a nursing student is about something called “universal precautions” – this is the foundation of safety when it comes to prevention of spread of disease. Universal precautions works on the assumption that everyone we come in to contact with has the potential of carrying a contagious disease. So when the pandemic was declared by the world health organisation, as a workforce we were already donning Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) where appropriate, when

Alumni Profile

“WHERE ARE THEY NOW?”

working with women and families and hand hygiene is one of our most basic and common practices. The major difference now is all staff are required to wear PPE at all times in the hospital, not just when in contact with patients – it feels like a scene out of a movie! Everyday everyone who enters our building undertakes a questionnaire and temperature check to ascertain safety prior to entering the building. We are getting very used to having covid – 19 swabs as well for the mildest of symptoms as we are dedicated to caring for our community and all feel strongly about keeping our new mothers and newborns safe.

What have you learnt from Covid-19?

I have learnt that public education is crucial in health and hygiene. A lack of understanding of disease spread leads to catastrophic outcomes. That government policy and structure is crucial for public safety. It has highlighted to me how lucky I am, not only choosing a job that I love, but that my job is needed in the community, I will always have the safety of work and financial stability. In a time where I have seen a lot of friends losing their jobs due to the pandemic and nature of their roles, I feel very greatful.

What do you recall of your time at St Aloysius? What is your fondest memory?

I fondly remember school camps with my friends and the Physical Education subjects - both theory and practice was just incredible. I have always been interested in physical and mental health, anatomy and physiology. I also loved home economics – learning to cook was very exciting to me!

If you could give your high school self some words of advice, what would it be?

Stay focussed – it’s worth it! Having a goal to work towards was crucial in keeping me engaged as a student. Even if people around you don’t know your goals – stay true to yourself because you’re the only person who can do the work to achieve the desired goal. You don’t have anything to prove to anyone else – ever! A lesson that took me a long time to learn.

Who or what has inspired you?

My Mum and Dad have been my most inspirational motivators. Despite the negative and positive flows of normal life, they reminded me of the bigger picture and helped me work out what I was most passionate about. My Mum was a counsellor for Nursing Mothers, now known as the Australian Breastfeeding Association, when I was a child. Being around mothers and babies during my early years set up my passion. Having an understanding of the importance of breastmilk chemistry early on and the impact on gut health and long term health was very interesting to me – this was a major reason I became a midwife.

What are your career aspirations/goals in the coming years?

I am blessed to be in the position I am in, my goal was to become the manager of a specific workforce in my organisation – which I achieved in January 2020. I would love to take time to consolidate this position now, as the pandemic created other challenges which have led me to focus in ways I would never have expected to.