FATIMA

Student of the training in “Personal care of the elderly and sick” – Bekaa- Lebanon.

Alongside the certified long training courses, the IECD is developing certified short training over a period of 2 to 12 months, in particular in Lebanon and Syria. The training fields covered meet the demand in buoyant employment sectors: Fatima followed the FAPAM (Training in personal care of the elderly and sick) course which transformed her life.

« I wasn’t lucky enough to be able to continue my studies after school. I come from a large family: I have eight brothers and sisters and I had to work so that they could continue their studies. My previous job as an ophthalmological secretary wasn’t very satisfying: I was always doing the same things and I couldn’t see how I was going to progress. I felt that I was in a rut, like a machine waiting for the end of the month to be paid.

One day, on Facebook, I found an advertisement for training in personal care of the elderly and sick at the hospital in Bekaa. It wasn’t very far from my home, so I decided to enroll. There were 15 of us and we developed a very close bond with each other despite our differences in age, religion and region. We learned how to care for patients as people, regardless of their identity and religious beliefs. I felt that I could be useful to my society.  You work for yourself but also for society!

I wanted to do something with my life, but I needed support and someone who believed in me. During the training, I found what I needed. It gave a taste for life again: I was depressed and now I am proud of myself and I am happy to be successful in my work which offers support at home for the elderly and sick. With this renewed interest, I now want to continue my studies through to the end. »