A passion for helping others leads Davidson into a healthcare career

What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people. This is one of the proverbs which interim Radiology Admin Team Leader, Davidson Taylor works by in his role in our radiology department.

Davidson, now 25 years old, grew up in Gisborne and has always had close contact with the Marāe (Ngai Tamanuhiri/Rongowhakaata) in Muriwai and as a youngster was always involved in preparing everything for Manuhiri (visitors, guests) with his Nan. It was this in this preparation that he realised his passion for helping others.

What is interesting about Davidson’s journey in healthcare is not only that he started at Hauora Tairāwhiti many years ago as an orderly, but that he also has a degree in Aviation Studies from Massey University, another one of his passions, of which he currently has 250 hours of flying time under his belt.

Until Davidson’s grandfather passed away in his first year at Massey, he had never had much contact with the hospital. It was during his time at his grandfather’s side that he saw the incredible work that goes on here. He then applied to be an orderly at the hospital and during holidays from his Aviation degree, he always came back to earn extra money. When he finished his degree, he came back to his orderly position on a full-time basis while he weighed up his options.

Radiology Manager, Leigh Potter, said “Over a period of two years, Davidson stood out to me as an orderly delivering patients to radiology – this wasn’t because of his good looks by the way, it was that every time he entered radiology or I passed him pushing a patient down the corridors he always had one of those infectious smiles on his face.  Every time I saw that smile, I would smile and I would think of how much he resembled our WAKA values, particularly the Aroha he had for patients and how he greeted those of us in radiology."

"Having the opportunity to experience Davidson’s potential, he is now acting Team Leader for radiology administration and not only manages the administration team but looks after all of us who work in radiology.  I look forward to seeing what the future has in store for this talented young man, but for now, I’m pleased to have him as part of my team and using that infectious smile to brighten the team in radiology and those who use the radiology service."

In his role as Radiology Information Systems Administrator, he ensures the on-going functionality of the RIS (Radiology Information System), especially at the front end of the radiology service where clerical staff manage the radiology referrals, scheduling and SMS messaging for various radiology modalities.  In addition to this demanding role, he also tests any new functionality or up-grades, importing and exporting images/reports and basic data analysis. Davidson mentioned “I feel that through effective data collection and analysis we are making constant improvements and I am making a huge difference to peoples’ well-being, especially for whānau.

Davidson's advice to those looking to enter similar systems administration positions in healthcare would be that “qualifications and experience, while important, do not compare to having that passion and drive to help people, having a smile on your face, and treating people with the respect they deserve. I would encourage anyone who has a desire to make a difference in healthcare to follow their dreams, as passion and attitude are the most important characteristics – the rest can be learned over time.” 

If you are interested in other positions across the organisation, please contact Pad@tdh.org.nz to discuss them further.