Paula Jacob is the “Feelgood Manager” at the VAMED Klinik Schloss Pulsnitz. Okay, the official title of the team she heads is “Integration Management & Onboarding”. But Feelgood Manager hits the nail on the head. Because new employees should feel at home from day one, ideally from the very first contact. And she pulls the strings to achieve this. She and her team look after both the specialists acquired abroad and all other “newcomers”. The support is varied – it starts with ensuring that the technical equipment is in place when the new employee starts work, through to managing their accommodation and assisting them with visits to the authorities. And sometimes all it takes is a sympathetic ear for the concerns and problems of new colleagues.

Paula Jacob has been accompanying the international specialists from Brazil since 2020. At that time, 11 Brazilian nursing staff arrived as part of a pilot project, 8 of whom completed the knowledge test. Today, all 8 nurses work at the facility. These employees now even support the VAMED team on acquisition trips to Brazil and with integration in Pulsnitz. In September 2023, they will be going on their sixth acquisition trip to Brazil, for the first time without the support of the ZAV. “My goal was and is to ensure that all acquired employees feel at home here in Pulsnitz, see Saxony and the district of Bautzen as their new home and, if possible, stay forever.”

The team is currently preparing for the arrival of 12 more Brazilians from the fourth acquisition trip. The nursing staff will arrive in a few days. “In advance, I regularly skype with the Brazilians and send WhatsApp videos of my family’s everyday life and clubs in Pulsnitz to sensitize them to life in Germany and take away their fears. The Brazilian employees and the practical instructor regularly explain the differences between working as a nurse in Brazil and Germany in advance. Articles in regional newspapers, regional networking events and notices in the hallways of the company apartments inform the population about the arrival and the cultural differences.

Because only as a team and with the support of the entire population and authorities, who are behind us, can we manage to keep skilled workers in beautiful Saxony in the long term.

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