DSE top scorer joins enrolled nurse training programme to follow her dream with financial support

Lok-yiu hopes to apply her nursing skills not only at work but also to share family responsibilities by helping her mother to care for her bedridden grandmother.

There are different pathways to a career in nursing, and some people choose to begin as an enrolled nurse. Fung Lok-yiu decided to take that route and is currently in her second year of study on the Enrolled Nurse (General) Training Programme at GH’s School of General Nursing. She scored 29 across her best six subjects in the DSE in 2023 but chose to join the fully subsidised two-year enrolled nurse programme run by the HA rather than enroll on a university bachelor’s degree in nursing. With three siblings still in school, she wanted to avoid imposing more financial strain on her family. “I would like to graduate and start working sooner by choosing a course that costs less and takes less time,” she explains.

Lok-yiu was inspired by a friend to become a nurse. She recalls how a companion on a hike sprained his ankle and a nurse in their group calmly carried out first aid, making her wish she could help others in the same way. She later gained a deeper understanding of the work of nurses after two clinical placements. “Taking care of patients in the ward made me realise what I do can impact the lives and health of patients,” she says. “The consequences of mistakes can be severe, so I must be attentive and cautious at work. This profession requires care and diligence to learn more professional knowledge so I can help my patients more in future.”

Lok-yiu plans to join the HA after graduating in a year and hopes to continue her education to become a registered nurse. By then, she can apply for a sponsorship offered by HA for its enrolled nurses to attend registered nurse conversion programmes.