Welcome to Vancouver Island University and the Faculty of Health Sciences and Human Services. Yours is one of the most challenging and rewarding professions that you could possibly choose; whether you are working with young people, families, or the elderly, or just learning about the many issues facing young people and families in today’s world. It is a profession that takes an enormous amount of heart. Post-secondary education can give you the knowledge and skills for the work, but you have to come to the profession with the heart and capacity to provide that extra caring, love, and direction when it’s needed. I would encourage you to work in and get to know the life-space of the people you work with – it is a privilege to know their spaces. It gives you a window into their world that can't be captured from an office chair or the bedside. Life-space work requires that you know yourself, your vulnerabilities, and your strengths, and most of all it requires that you are prepared to engage in the moment. That you enter into your client’s world – just for a moment – and explore that space, in whatever manner is explained to you. These are things that may be hard to remember in the midst of studying for that next test. If you lose your focus, just take a moment and remember why you're here, and return to your studies with renewed inspiration and motivation.
Dr Patricia O'Hagan, PhD
Dean of Health Sciences and Human Services