Maureen Wilson, schools liaison officer.Schools liaison officer
What's it like to work with schools for the Health Service Executive East Coast Area?
Interesting and varied. As a health promotion officer working in schools, my responsibility is to develop services that assist schools to design and implement health promotion policies and programmes.
Social, Personal Health Education (SPHE) is a curriculum subject from primary to junior certificate. We try to support teachers so that they can incorporate holistic health approaches into the school environment.
What's the best part of your job?
Three things. To work effectively, I draw on expertise from a multi-disciplinary team within the health promotion department and the broader health services. Their knowledge and commitment to researching best practice and developing projects in response to changing needs is impressive and very supportive.
Additionally my national counterparts, working in areas with longer established schools programmes, have willingly shared their expertise during my three years in the role. Plus the acknowledgment from schools of the work and knowing that they feel appreciated and supported in the important health promotion role they undertake.
What's the hardest part of your job?
Being aware of the health inequalities in modern Irish society and the multiplicity of factors that need to be addressed to influence an improvement in population health.
Who's your education idol?
No one individual, but I have great admiration for the commitment, enthusiasm and energy of the teachers I meet in the course of my work. I feel that the education of the future adults in our society is a huge responsibility deserving of recognition and support.
I have fond memories of some of my own teachers and guess, like most people, I remember them more for the encouragement and support they gave than for the subjects they taught. Nowadays they would be described as holistic educational practitioners, interested in the development of the whole person.
If you could change one thing about your job, what would it be?
Myself. I would like to know more and do more. There are just not enough hours in any one day, but perhaps that's just me.
What's unique about your job?
I am fortunate that my career change allows me to use broadly-based skills and training acquired as part of my wider educational role. Home economics, my teaching subject, has a lifeskills base, and 10 years voluntary work with subject associations, chairing ATHE (Association of Teachers of Home Economics) and SARG (Subject Association Representative Group) provided organisational, team work, seminar and training experience.
I developed educational resources and upskilled my educational base with study in experiential learning, curriculum, assessment, management and IT.
It's important to me that my current employer supports and encourages such continuous personal and professional development.
