Across UnitingCare, we have more than 25,000 staff and volunteers and we are proud to say that there are many families who choose to work for us.
One such family is General Manager Patient Revenue and Digital Health, Peter Haigh, and his daughter Physiotherapist, Gabby Haigh.
Gabby came to work for UnitingCare while completing her Physiotherapy degree with the Australian Catholic University.
“I was fortunate enough to gain employment as an Allied Health Assistant, where I was able to grow and learn alongside some of the most passionate, caring and hardworking people I’d ever met,” Gabby said.
“My drive to provide the best patient care only grew with my final clinical placement taking place in orthopaedics at St Andrew’s War Memorial Hospital.
“Just when I thought the organisation couldn’t get any better, they answered our prayers and employed my Dad, Peter, meaning he could quite literally return home to Australia after many years of working overseas.”
“Having now been on the physiotherapy team for the last few years, I’ve had the privilege of working across sites including St Andrew’s, The Wesley and more recently St Stephen's Hospital in Hervey Bay,” Gabby said.
“Having grown up on the Sunny Coast myself, Buderim Private Hospital must surely be next!”
Peter began his journey with UnitingCare when he was invited by the Group Executive - Hospitals, Michael Krieg, to join the management team in 2019 to help with funding agencies.
“I had spent 16 years at Bupa, where I negotiated the first Hospital Purchaser Provider Agreement between any health fund and our hospitals,” Peter said.
“As a faith and values-based organisation, Gabby and I both love the organisation’s commitment to providing care, compassion and dignity to those we serve.
“The people we get to work with are of the highest professional standards and are committed to our values and the success of UnitingCare, and we also have a great sense of fun in the workplace.”
Peter has had a long relationship with UnitingCare, being Christened a Presbyterian, he was born at St Andrew’s and his mother Val was a dedicated community nurse who managed the BlueCare’s Clayfield branch for several years.
“I remember knocking on doors as a 10 year old raising money for BlueCare and I would often wash the Clayfield branch cars for pocket money, and may have taken the odd Datsun 120Y and Holden Gemini for a brief teenage test drive,” Peter laughs.
Gabby said UnitingCare is very special for their whole family, especially her mother Lisa who is also the Head of Physiotherapy at The Wesley Hospital.
Peter and Gabby say that Father’s Day is a wonderful excuse to spend time with their family of six and extended members.
"I look forward to celebrating what our Dad has meant to our lives and remember those much-loved fathers and grandfathers who are no longer with us,” Gabby said.