There's no place like Leeton for Kate Gerlinger

Kate Gerlinger has come full circle. The Riverina girl came back to her roots to follow her dreams of being a nurse after years of travelling all over Australia, and she could not be happier.

She spent her childhood running around her home town of Leeton with her sister, with nothing but a curfew preventing them from adventuring far and wide.

After finishing her schooling, Kate took on the role of a pharmacy assistant – a job that she loved – but after a few years began looking for bigger adventures.

One of Kate’s co-workers had secured a job as a travelling salesperson, selling high-quality pots and pans door-to-door, so Kate decided to throw caution to the wind.

“I didn’t think pots and pans would be my forte, but the job was actually amazing and took me to places like Alice Springs, Darwin and the Gold Coast. Eventually I felt I needed something more substantial and decided to move closer to home,” Kate said.

Not long after moving in with her sister in Albury, Kate met her now-husband and ended up in Brisbane, where her children were born.

“It was my amazing and positive experience at the maternity ward that planted the idea I may like nursing,” Kate explained.

“But as I became really busy with my growing family, I had to put the idea out of my mind. I felt fortunate to be able to throw myself into my most important role as a stay-at-home mum,” the mother of three said.

Kate relished the time spent with her children in Queensland, but found she was “constantly comparing my free and easy childhood in Leeton to the one my kids were experiencing in the city”.

“I wanted them to have the same opportunity to thrive in a quieter, safer and more laid-back environment,” she said.

It seemed like a no-brainer to move home.

Once Kate and her family were settled back in the Riverina she allowed herself to consider her own path, so in 2017, Kate enrolled in Charles Sturt University’s nursing program and quickly began her Registered Nursing (RN) degree after completing her course.

The budding healthcare worker applied for an aged-care placement assuming “it was just something I should do to broaden my skill set, I would tick that box and move on to upskilling as a midwife”.

“But I fell in love with the job,” Kate said.

“The more I worked within aged care, the more I knew I wanted to stay. I now feel that it’s even more special to be part of the ending of someone’s life journey, to assist their family offering your care, support and skills.”

Primarily working within the dementia wing of Leeton’s Carramar Aged Care Facility, Kate is keen to eventually specialise in geriatrics when she completes her RN qualification.

“Dementia patients often cannot verbalise what is wrong or if they are in pain, and as a healthcare professional you really need to be skilled and patient enough to work it out,” Kate said.

“I really look forward to offering my skills and experience in this sector, which is sometimes overlooked. So many healthcare patients in regional areas are over 65 and I feel that this is the area I can most contribute to.”

In 2020, Kate transferred to Leeton Hospital during the pandemonium of constant COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdowns, and it was this time that reminded her of how lucky she is to live in a regional area.

“We are able to tackle problems together and actually get things done, without the fuss and roadblocks. You just do not get that in big cities. People don’t all know each other in the same way like they do in Leeton. We actually care!” Kate said.

She recalls a time when a friend lost her house and contents in a fire and the community came to her aid to help get her back on her feet.

“My husband has fallen in love with Leeton, and our family is so settled here. We have everything we need, including rewarding careers, a simpler lifestyle with family and friends and the peace of mind knowing my children have more freedom to just be kids,” she said.

“There is no greater gift than that.”