The past year’s COVID-19 pandemic measures and lockdowns have contributed to a shortage of over 2,000 full and part time caregivers to the Greek community of Melbourne.
Quoting industry sources, the Institute of Tertiary and Higher Education Australia (ITHEA) said the demand for bilingual caregivers for first-generation Greeks in Melbourne has been growing.
“The current situation with the lack of carers shows the harsh reality experienced by thousands of Greek elderly immigrants who, either cannot communicate in order to seek help and support from the authorities, or are trapped in a lonely life, faced with a stalemate” said Peter Jasonides the managing director of ITHEA.
He said that there were employment opportunities in Greek, as well as in other private and state care centres for the elderly; particularly as government funding to the sector had grown.
“There are, however, needs for carers in other areas of pre-school education, individual support, children, adolescents and family support, people with disabilities, mental health and social services. To work as a caregiver in these fields, one must have formal qualifications that can be obtained through a specialised curriculum, while a basic level of English is mandatory,” Mr Jasonides advised.
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Colleges, such as ITHEA, offered specific courses in the field that were, under certain conditions be subsidised by the state government and could apply to permanent residents of Australia.
Mr Jasonides said the college, based at the Hellenic Cultural Centre in Lonsdale Street had been operating for the past 14 years. It was a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) that met the criteria set by the Ministry of Education to offer a range of classroom-based or online courses that were relevant to ageing, disability and child care fields.
♦ For more information contact Penny Kourtis on 9650 3900 or visit the ITHEA college website.
