Gretchen Mayor

When I graduated from nursing school in the Philippines, I worked for three months in a hospital and then I said to myself, this is not for me. I sent my resume to five different countries and I got a job offer within two days to be a private nurse in Israel for a patient who was totally paralyzed and had ALS. I had $3 in my pocket when I left the Philippines.

After nine months, my client passed away. I had to find another job. And then the same thing happened. I was in Israel for eight years and cared for 18 clients through their end-of-life during that time. In June of 2015, I moved to Rome and then from there I decided to immigrate to Canada to be a care provider. I got a job caring for a father and son who were both palliative. When my clients both passed away, I had to find a new job and a new home quickly. I was fortunate because my neighbours drove me to interviews, and another neighbour let me live with them until I could find another opportunity. Due to the nature of my work – caring for seniors as they near the end of their life – I have experienced a lot of difficulty with work permits, which has been very stressful. I have been a care provider in Canada for more than five years and I still do not have permanent residency.

I never thought that I was going to share my journey and my experience as an immigrant care provider with anyone. The opportunity to speak at the Canadian Caregiving Summit, to share my story, my voice and have that resonate with others was very heartwarming. It makes me feel like the burden that I have been carrying over the years has softened. It’s not really a rock anymore. I used to just leave it inside and I was scared, I didn’t want to share what I was going through. But those three days, being at the Summit, talking to different people that I never met, it was wonderful and made me realize I’m not alone. I can be part of fighting for change so that my work is acknowledged and valued.

After the Summit, I told myself, every time an opportunity knocks, I’m going to say yes. I want to help people going through similar experiences and let them know that the CCCE is there to support them.