"Speechless": Nepalese primary school friends reunited 10,000km away at Southern Cross Care NSW & ACT
Rakshya Karki and Prasamsa Khanal were both healthcare professionals in their home country of Nepal in South Asia.
Strangers since being friends in primary school, they have been reunited at Southern Cross Care (SCC) Cootamundra Residential Aged Care, 390km southwest of Sydney.
"We were both speechless when we saw each other here in such an unexpected place," Rakshya said.
"The shock and joy of meeting after so long, and so far from home, was overwhelming."
“All our friends who have come to Australia have settled in Sydney, Melbourne, and Adelaide and neither of us thought there were any Nepalese in Coota.
“However, as it turns out there are now nine of us working with SCC and two more on the way. We are both so very happy and thankful to the SCC team for such a great opportunity and for reuniting two friends after decades.”
Rakshya is sponsored by SCC as a Registered Nurse, and Prasamsa is undergoing training to achieve Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) registration as an Internationally Qualified Nurse. Both have seamlessly integrated their expertise into the residential care home.
They have introduced elements of Nepalese culture to Coota, such as traditional music and storytelling, enriching the lives of the residents.
Facility Manager Marianne Cook said the whole community had embraced the staff members of Nepalese descent.
“They are so caring and have settled in really well.”
The 2020 Aged Care Workforce Census Report stated there 277,671 people in the workforce, with 208,903 staff in direct care. 41% are born overseas.
