With four years of experience, Pauline Wiggins, a Direct Care Worker (DCW) of Muskegon County, recently stepped into a new role as an MSU IMPART Alliance trainer after enrolling in her first training course in late 2023. A champion of person-centered care, Pauline sees her work as a tool, helping people live fully.
“I tend to take a minute to realize that I’m an advocate for and with, not an advocate over that person.” she said.
Pauline’s passion for direct care comes out naturally, motivating those around her to also join the field.
“My daughter has expressed to me, she just sent me a message today stating that, ‘mom, I want you to talk to someone. I think I want to be a caregiver’, and that’s just really inspiring for me because she sees the work that I do, and then she sees the training that I’m taking and the way that I talk about the work, and it has made her want to do it,” she said.
Training is imperative for care professionals to succeed in their jobs; feel confident in the choices they’re making and avoid potential injuries. Beyond that, Pauline sees training as an opportunity to be an active resource and help those receiving support feel confident in her ability as a direct care worker.
“I’ve noticed, the clients that I’ve told about this, you know, they’ll ask me different questions about their care and then I’ll say, you know what? I’ve seen that in next week’s training, we’re going to be discussing that. So let me write down your concerns and I will ask those questions during that training,” she said.
IMPART Alliance is currently offering competency-based, flexible, and free direct care training with options to learn virtually, in person, and in hybrid settings.
“You’re investing your time, but you’re investing in yourself because this knowledge is going to help you be better at your job,” Pauline said.
Students can take refresher classes on specific topics or choose to complete full course levels at their own pace and earn certificates.
In late March, Pauline was awarded the Direct Care Worker Certificate, the final recognition for completing all four levels of training offered by IMPART.
“Pauline has been exceptionally devoted to our training programs and has the unique position of being a student, a producer, and a trainer – all three,” said Bethany Duyser, IMPART Alliance’s assistant director. “So, we want to honor her dedication and successful completion of all our classes.”
As a trainer, Pauline is excited to connect with other direct care workers who are driven to learn and look at the job through similar empathetic, caring lenses. Looking into the future, she can see herself teaching for the rest of her life and continuously empowering those who choose to join this crucial workforce.
“I love the idea of being able to inspire generations and generations of people into this field,” she said. “I don’t think there’s enough people that realize how important it is and how important this training is for the field.”
This project has been made possible through a grant awarded to IMPART Alliance by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.
