Providing intentional peer support to those experiencing mental health challenges and/or addiction to help restore their hope and personal power.

This role involved working in a team of case managers to support sensitive claims clients (people who have a mental injury caused by sexual abuse) with their treatment needs. Most clients were in long-term therapy so daily duties were focused on the continuation of funding primary supports, considering rationale for secondary supports and liaising with external providers and internal psychology advisors to ensure appropriate and timely service delivery.This team was created as part of a nationwide restructure so being able to pragmatically identify service gaps and problem solve was an integral part of the role. My success in this was recognised by me becoming a subject matter expert on several business projects and earning an excellence rating in my last performance review, which reflected my high-quality standard of work and positive influence on my team and the wider organisation.

Duties involved assessing and managing applications for clients with various types of permanent injuries. My responsibilities included interpreting and applying relevant ACC policy and legislation, reviewing cover decisions, collecting and arranging medical information, organizing assessments, liaising with internal departments to ensure all necessary parties are on the same page, issuing decisions and most importantly, communicating with clients throughout the process.

Due to company restructure my previous contract ended and after an extended holiday in New Zealand I returned upon accepting an offer for this position.In this role I managed complaints and appeals for the European region and assisted with other regions when needed. My responsibilities included investigating and resolving complaints and appeals across various business platforms, which contain multiple issues, and coordinating responses that incorporate input from multiple business units, including external vendors. Other responsibilities include timely, customer-focused responses to complaints and appeals, review and analysis of plan documents, company policies, internal processes and regulatory requirements in order to make decisions and recommendations as how to resolve these issues.Through my duties I developed strong collaborative relationships with many operational areas including, but not limited to Member Services, Claims Plan Sponsor Services, Compliance, Legal, Medical, Underwriting and Regional Directors. I also played an active part in root cause analysis, identifying trends and recommending business solutions.

After resettling in London I worked on a rolling temporary contract basis for Aetna International in the Operational Plan Sponsor Team. My role included supporting the Sales and Account Management Team in processing and coordinating new and existing business, providing focused service for large and small corporate group policies and developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships with brokers and direct clients. I also took an active part in managing the team mailbox, assisting in chasing aged debt, auditing relevant documentation, tracking post, preparing and sending membership packs, maintaining service levels, adhering to underwriting and compliance requirements, liaising with other international offices, updating and managing e-databases, and assisting with monthly workflow reports. During my time there I won the ‘Going the Extra Mile Award’ twice in recognition of my efforts in the implementation of new business for two of our key brokers. I was also awarded the ‘Temp of the Month’ award from my agency after being nominated by my Managing Director.

Before travelling abroad I spent 15 months working with IAG NZ as a Claims Consultant in which I gained skills and experience for many different types of claims. My role involved providing advice and guidance to customers, initiating claims settlement and mitigation via internal and external service providers, settling claims and carrying out other supporting tasks. During my time with the Global 100 Company I achieved consistently high results for both customer experience and compliance and leakage while working towards a senior consultant role.

For five months in and around London I worked as a face-to-face street fundraiser for London’s leading homeless charity. My role included approaching members of the public from a wide variety of demographics and signing them up to donate to the charity on a monthly basis. The role was performance based and I was always above average for quality donor sign up’s which was measured by amount donated and retention rates.

Alongside full time University studies I worked for two years as a Mental Health Support worker. My role included providing support to psychiatric and head injury patients in various areas of their day-to-day lives including motivational support to achieve goals and domestic duties. I was known to be very efficient at using my interpersonal skills to assess and diffuse many potential situations before they became problematic.