When he started in the role, the Nepalese migrant’s English wasn’t perfect. 

He felt embarrassed trying to make small talk with other people, and he also had to overcome his natural shyness. 

But he has put effort into learning something new every day, and after a year and a half in the role, Mr Chand said he now prides himself on his communication. 

“[When I first started] I was just doing my job, finishing my shift, and going home,” he said. 

“That was not a good thing.

“But then I started to talk a little bit, and that grew my confidence.

“Now I engage with everyone. 

“Everyone is the same, but not everyone has someone to talk to.”

The nature of his work brings its own communication challenges. 

He works in several different areas at StGiles – in group homes, in-home support, and helping run respite camps for children with a disability. 

He said no matter the client, the key was to take small steps every day, and to gradually understand their personalities and needs over time. 

The most important quality a person can have to do his job is patience. 

“Some of my clients are non-verbal,” he said. 

“They don’t speak at all, but ... they speak with their eyes, with their smile.

“If you ask them something, you can see their eyes or if they smile, and you know the answer.”  

Mr Chand is a graduate of the Migrant Resource Centre North’s Jobs for Migrants in Disability and Aged Care program. 

In his home country of Nepal he was a teacher, so he was drawn to the possibility of being able to work with children again. 

Before coming to Australia with his wife, he never expected to be doing this kind of work.

And he certainly didn’t expect StGiles to be a transformative experience for him. 

“The first day when I was on my placement I saw the other staff working there,” he said.

“They were really dedicated to their work and what they were doing. They knew why they were doing it. 

“So I thought, provided the chance, I would do the same. And I got the chance.”

He said he loves his job and the opportunity to do something every day that gives him a feeling of purpose, and of helping others. 

Although, of course, he doesn’t like everything about it.

“I don’t like getting up at five for the 6am shift. But then when you get in at 6am and you see the client with a big smile on their face, just to see you, at six o’clock in the morning… it’s all good,” he said.