Melissa Cunningham
Sligo,Ireland
Summary
A dedicated, hardworking Healthcare assistant with 13 years of care experience and 7 months within the Irish health sector. Having worked in various care fields from mental health hospitals, residential, rehab and end of life hospice care.
Previous experience in constructing rotas and staff allocations as well as patient-based admin such as writing up care plans and key-working.
Compassionate Healthcare Assistant and apply this to the care I deliver. Committed to making a positive impact on those I care for.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
4
4
years of post-secondary education
1
1
Certification
Work history
Healthcare Assistant
Orchard Healthcare
Boyle, County Roscommon
11.2025 - Current
- Provide 24hr care to individual in their home.
- Reviewing and updating care plans.
- Having responsibility of being key-worker and ensuring meetings/action plans are up to date
- Ensuring person cantered approach at all times.
- Dealing with challenging behaviour and trained in Studio 3. Knowing when to recognise triggers/escalating behaviours and following care plan on how best to support individual during these times to prevent incidents.
- Working flexible hours, covering nights, weekends and bank holidays.
- Cleaning work areas and ensuring IPC is filled out daily as well as touch points. Reporting faulty/inadequate equipment to maintain safety.
- Used critical thinking to break down problems, evaluate solutions and make decisions.
- HSE Land training is up to date in accordance with workplace expectations.
- Carried out day-to-day duties such as supporting resident to activities/food shopping and daily tasks.
- Supporting resident with money management.
Nursing assistant
St.Johns Hospice
Moggerhanger
05.2019 - 09.2022
- Provided end of life care, offering dignity, comfort and care during final stages of life .
- Regular observations, repositioning of patients to prevent pressure sores.
- Supporting those who have passed away with care and respect and ensuring dignity is intact through to very end.
- Brining patients to mortuary after washing/dressing.
- Gave in depth handovers to nursing team.
- Worked 12hr shifts days/nights.
- Counselled caregivers and families on end-of-life planning. Offered support and shoulder to cry on.
- Worked apart of large multidisciplinary team consisting of nurses/doctors/ family counsellors and healthcare assistants.
- Provided personal care and carried out duties such as washing/dressing patients providing mouthcare/ wound dressing and supported nurses with catheter changing.
- Providing emotional support to patients who wanted to open up and talk.
Rehabilitation Support Worker
The Marbrook Centre
St.Neots
01.2017 - 04.2020
- Providing individuals with everyday support after experiencing strokes/brain injury or
accident which has limited their physical capabilities. - Working within multidisciplinary team such as physio therapists, nurses and doctors.
- Providing Personal care and using specialised equipment to support individuals.
- Following structured physio and care plans to support resident back into community and back into their own homes.
- Assisted in meal preparation, promoting healthy eating habits.
Milton Park Therapeutic Campus
Brookdale Care
St.Neots
12.2014 - 01.2017
- Health care assistant
December 2014-January 2017
Supporting individuals who suffer from mental health, following each individuals care
plan and supporting their care around their personalised care needs. - Promoting independence and assisting individuals to lead one for example assisting
with preparing food/meals, washing/dressing and supporting on trips out in community. - Managing challenging behaviours by using verbal de-escalation techniques and physical intervention.
- Supporting individuals to attend appointments and MDT reviews.
Caring out set tasks such as 1:1 observations.
Recording information such as observation sheets, food and fluid charts as well as activity planners. - When allocated on security ensuring patents and staff are safe. For example
locking and securing unit at night, cutlery counts, fire warden checks, key and
alarm checks and keeping record of where each patient is at present time.
Healthcare Assistant
The Manor Leonard Cheshire Disability
Brampton
12.2013 - 12.2014
- Supporting long term residents with various disabilities.
- Following individuals care plans and making sure these are up to date with any changes.
- Using equipment such as ceiling mounted hoists, adapted baths and other equipment to support patient with their everyday needs.
- Supporting with personal care.
- Using different techniques and ways of communicating, for example one of our
residents was deaf and required us to use picture boards to communicate and
another had type and sound board. - Taking Residents on trips out such as seaside and home visits.
Education
GCSEs -
St.Neots Community College
St.Neots 09.2012 - 09.2016
NVQ Level 2 - Media Hair and Make-up
Cambridge Regional College
Cambridge /2011 - /2012
Skills
- A compassionate individual with a bubby, friendly attitude Picked up many skills along the years in the care sector
- Experience in wound dressing, taking observations and proving highest level of care
- Enjoy talking to people and great communicator with emotional intelligence Ensure patient feels safe and comfortable with me
- Key-worker skills and knowledge promoting and delivering person-centred care
- Passion is end of life care, ensuring dignity, care and respect to patient
Certification
HSE land Training completed and up to date.
Fire trained
Basic First Aid trained
Studio 3 Trained
Timeline
Healthcare Assistant
Orchard Healthcare
11.2025 - Current
Nursing assistant
St.Johns Hospice
05.2019 - 09.2022
Rehabilitation Support Worker
The Marbrook Centre
01.2017 - 04.2020
Milton Park Therapeutic Campus
Brookdale Care
12.2014 - 01.2017
Healthcare Assistant
The Manor Leonard Cheshire Disability
12.2013 - 12.2014
GCSEs -
St.Neots Community College
09.2012 - 09.2016
NVQ Level 2 - Media Hair and Make-up
Cambridge Regional College
/2011 - /2012