Former student credits college for instilling passion for helping others

Mt Maria College Mitchelton
Hanna Hoswell loved the opportunities Mt Maria College at Mitchelton, gave her to help improve other people's lives

PARAMEDIC Hanna Hoswell credits her time as a student at Mt Maria College, Mitchelton, with instilling a passion for helping others.

The 2013 graduate was one half of the caring Queensland Ambulance Services (QAS) team who, in May 2018, made national news headlines when they granted a palliative care patient one of his dying wishes – a caramel sundae.

Speaking about her act of kindness, Hanna thanked Mt Maria College for the real-life, community-centred opportunities she experienced during her high-school education.

Hanna said she loved that her holistic Catholic education involved many social justice opportunities to participate in community-focused endeavours.

“I had a really wholesome learning experience where I was exposed to several incredible charities and was fortunate to have the opportunity to regularly participate in charity initiatives.

“Whether they involved feeding the homeless with Rosies, engaging with the elderly in community respite centres or sharing a coffee with those marginalised in society…, (it) was really impactful to have been involved in from such an early age."

“My experiences definitely played a strong role in my decision to pursue paramedicine and help people in such vulnerable times of their life."

Hanna said she aspired to help disconnected community members reconnect with others, particularly the elderly.

“That's where all my attention is going at the moment – I'd love to go back to helping communities and a big gap I saw was in the elderly becoming disconnected as they lose their support network," she said.

The college's motto: “Strong Mind - Compassionate Heart" truly underpinned Hanna's passion and she credited it with playing a part in enabling her to see through her goals.

“Personally, I think the motto goes hand-in-hand," she said.

“I was raised to know that if you have the capability, then also you have a responsibility to society to use that knowledge to improve other people's situations, which has a strong undercurrent of 'giving back' and using your skills and knowledge to benefit others."

In her role as a paramedic with the QAS, Hanna was clear in her mission to better a patient's outlook.

“It's one of my personal mantras that I never want to leave someone without any positive benefit, whether that's through clinical intervention or whether that's just by listening and helping someone feel supported."

Since graduating from Mt Maria College, Hanna has been awarded international scholarships for placements in Vanuatu and Thailand to provide health and educational services to local communities.

She has also undertaken an ambassador role with the Queensland University of Technology to support students and graduates with their course-load requirements.

Along with her QAS paramedic role, Hanna also provided health consulting services through Deloitte Consulting with the aim of using her knowledge of on-the-ground responsive services to better the lives of other people in the community. ​

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