Erica Johnston is a Team Lead (Band 5) with the Western Health and Social Care Trust (WHSCT). She works in a residential unit for adults with a learning disability in Kesh, Co. Fermanagh. Erica has been in the post for three and a half years.
Social Care Journey
Erica left school after completing her GCSEs. Staying on to do A Levels or going to university was not something she considered at the time, and she went out to work after finishing school. She moved to England for a few years and worked in various jobs, such as waitressing. Erica returned to Northern Ireland and applied to work in a private nursing home as a Care Assistant when she was 21. She worked in this role for six years. With previous experience of caring for relatives, she thought care work would be rewarding.
“I had had lots of jobs like waitressing, for example, that you could do without any qualifications and thought the nursing home would allow me to build up a decent number of hours to provide a decent income.”
While working in the private nursing home, other staff spoke about agency work and the benefits—better pay and conditions. She applied to an agency and began working as a Healthcare Assistant in the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen, within the Accident and Emergency department. She also worked in Ward 1, an assessment ward for non-urgent patients. Erica found this suited her skillset better; the work was less physically demanding than in nursing homes and involved a wider variety of patients, conditions, and age groups. She felt she learned a great deal about the healthcare system in this role.
Erica considered a career in nursing but going to university in Derry or Belfast would have meant giving up her full-time job—a financial risk she was not prepared to take.
“When very few around you have gone to university, you become hesitant and lack confidence in taking the risk of leaving full-time work and moving away. Especially as I was now in my thirties and felt I had ‘missed that boat’—I felt I was too old to be a student. When you live in Fermanagh, there are no universities on your doorstep. I just felt it wouldn’t be feasible, and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to manage a university course.”
While working with the agency, Erica took a shift in a local day centre supporting adults with learning disabilities in October 2019. She enjoyed the work and began taking more shifts there until COVID-19 shut the centre down. She returned to Ward 1, which became a COVID ward. Despite the challenges, she found the experience valuable and inspiring.
In September 2020, the day centre reopened on a limited basis and was accepting agency staff again. Erica welcomed the change from 12-hour hospital shifts to 9–3 p.m. shifts. When a Support Worker (Band 3) position became available, she applied and was successful. She started working for WHSCT in September 2021. A year later, she applied for an Acting-Up Team Lead role (Enhanced Band 3) and, in May 2023, secured a permanent Team Lead (Band 5) post.
Erica has enjoyed all her roles in health and social care. In nursing homes, she supported older people and adults with various mental and physical health issues, including dementia.
“Working with the elderly is a real pleasure; it’s a privilege to support and comfort people through their last weeks, months, and years—to provide comfort, dignity, and respect. To hold the hand of an individual as they pass, to support them spiritually, and to know that you’ve made the process a little more comfortable—that truly is an honour. But make no mistake; the work is hard and physically demanding. You’re dealing with hoists, slide sheets, drips, drains, dressings, peg feeds, paralysed or contorted limbs, confused and sometimes aggressive individuals… continence and feeding needs. To this day, it is the hardest work I’ve ever done in the healthcare system (and I’ve run seven marathons!). I have so much respect for those in nursing homes.”
As a Team Lead, Erica supervises two staff members. She values supervision as a space to support and appreciate staff.
“Supervision allows you to press pause, say thank you, and focus on the staff member. The home centres on the residents, but supervision centres on the staff. You can notice small things that make a big difference when done well.”
She uses supervision to encourage staff to reflect on their career goals and development and believes it builds morale.
“When you’re in a busy environment, appreciation often gets lost in the moment. Supervision is the right place for it. A good working relationship is important—and supervision is a very useful tool.”
Learning and Development Journey
Erica has completed all mandatory and refresher training required by the Trust through both e-Learning and in-person sessions, including:
· COSHH,
· Safeguarding,
· Fire Safety,
· Food Safety/Hygiene,
· Infection Prevention Control,
· Safety Intervention,
· Information Governance,
· Moving and Handling.
While in the nursing home, in-house trainers delivered safeguarding, moving and handling, and pressure sore awareness. As an agency worker, Erica ensured her mandatory training was current and travelled to attend sessions. However, she couldn’t access MAPA training as an agency worker, limiting her roles.
Under a WHSCT contract, Erica accessed additional training:
- Makaton: Delivered via Zoom; improved communication with individuals with different needs.
- Autism training: Voluntary but beneficial, as many residents have an autism diagnosis. Held in Omagh over 1–2 days with a range of other social care and social works staff.
Erica had also returned to further education, completing an access course in Social Sciences part-time from 2011–2013. She funded it herself and felt proud to complete it after years away from education.
“I was proud of myself for just seeing something through and sticking at it after I’d been out of education for what felt like so long; it’s so easy to prioritise overtime shifts or just forget about the bookwork when adult life gets busy, so completing it felt like a real achievement.”
The course reignited her love of learning and opened her mind to new perspectives.
Erica completed her Level 4 Diploma in Health and Social Care in April 2024. In 2023 when the manager was off none of the Team Leads where in a position to apply for an Acting Up management role and it was the Community Service Manager who encouraged her and the other Team Leads to enrol on the Level 4 Diploma.
Delivered via Zoom and supported with 1:1 tutor meetings, Erica found the course intense but valuable with a very supportive tutor. Studying in short, regular sessions kept her motivated.
“Whether it is regarding safeguarding, supervision or managing conflict, you have dealt with it in your work in some form or other and you have lots of examples to draw on and reflect on – it provides a different perspective rather than continuing to do something just because that was the way you were shown by another staff member when you first started. It helps you understand better the reasons why you are offering choice, why you follow a care plan, what the procedure is for certain situations. My favourite optional unit was on Autism and I had never considered how someone could be touch sensitive or smell sensitive – the course helped me to understand behaviours of some of the residents and why they were doing what they were doing. It helped lots of things to click in my mind “Whether it's safeguarding, supervision, or managing conflict, you’ve dealt with it in work, and now you can reflect. It helps you understand why you offer choice, follow care plans, and follow procedures. My favourite unit was on autism—it helped me understand residents’ behaviours better.”
The qualification boosted her confidence and helped her better understand policies and procedures.
“You come in and learn from others, but as a Team Lead, you’re responsible and need to justify decisions. The course gives you that foundation.”
It also improved her interview skills.
“When I went for a Band 5 interview, I didn’t need to rehearse. The knowledge was just there. The course kept it fresh in my mind.”
Another useful unit focused on conflict resolution, helping her manage disagreements among residents or staff who may not want to take direction or take correction.
Erica has discovered through completing the Level 4 qualification that she likes learning and development and it now motivated to develop further. She is interested in learning more about speech and language therapy (SALT) and plans to contact SALT trainers for further opportunities.
Career Progression
Erica benefited from being supported by management. She recognises that with the right support this can make a huge difference, helping you build your confidence, worth and value and set your future goals.
Erica is interested in moving into management.
“When I was in the nursing home, I never imagined I’d become a Team Lead—equivalent in banding to a nurse. Joining WHSCT changed everything. It showed me a career path. I went from Band 2 on minimum wage to Band 3, enhanced Band 3, and now Band 5—equal to a university graduate. I also gained a recognised Level 4 qualification, provided for free.”
Her tutor has recommended her for the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management, and her manager has submitted the request form. Erica is not pursuing a management post just yet, but sees it in her future.
She’s proud of her progress and attributes her journey to resilience, hard work, and finding her niche.
“Social care is rewarding but challenging. You need resilience for the difficult days. I love working in learning disability—getting to know residents and how best to support them. Everyone needs to find their niche—that part of care they’re passionate about. Then even the tough days are manageable. For me, it’s a great job with good security, progression, and high standards of care.”
Care in Practice Framework
Erica had not heard of the Care in Practice Framework before her interview but has since reviewed the information provided. She now feels it’s a valuable tool for social care staff to progress and continue learning and developing.