Spinal Cord Injuries Awareness Week - Anju Man Ara Ayrin Employee Spotlight

Anju Ayrin 's story is one of great resilience. She shared the story of how she joined Acusensus as an Image Reviewer subsequent to major life events - moving to Australia, experiencing a car accident, recovering from spinal cord injury and welcoming a newborn baby.?

Anju moved to Australia from Bangladesh in September 2016. On May 2017, while holidaying to New Zealand, she experienced an accident that led to her spinal cord injury.?

On a five-hour drive on the fifth day of her six-day trip, a car crashed into the car Anju and her family were in – the car drove straight through where Anju was seated in the backseat. The driver was illegally using his phone while driving and speeding – he did not see Anju’s family’s vehicle.?

It was quickly identified that Anju experienced a spinal cord injury. She then underwent ten hours of surgery. After surgery, health professionals did not expect Anju to walk again – “but miracles happen and one morning I started walking with the help of my son and a stick – I could do four or five steps,” Anju recalled.?

As Anju was adjusting to life in a new country, she needed to find employment to support her family, which included her son who was then five years old. This was challenging as Anju had lost most of her mobility and her physical abilities decreased following her accident. This is when Spinal Cord Injuries Australia helped her gain employment.?

On May 1, 2020, Anju welcomed her daughter. A few days later, on May 22, she received a phone call that introduced her to Acusensus and the Image Review role. She underwent the interview process and training and thus began her start at Acusensus. “That’s the beginning - I started my job with a 5-week-old baby,” Anju laughed.?

Since her employment in 2020, Anju has been involved in multiple Acusensus programs, including programs in South Australia and New South Wales, railway monitoring and Westat in the USA.?

When asked what she loved about working at Acusensus, Anju explained that she loves the Image Review Team and the opportunity to work in road safety. “The best thing is our team. You cannot imagine how supportive each and everyone is,” Anju shared that the team is understanding due to having common experiences in working with physical limitations and having families to take care of.?

“Regarding my job… I love my job because I know that by doing this job, I can contribute to ensure road safety.”?

“I’m very thankful to Acusensus for giving me the opportunity to get back to my life and to do something that is very related to my life,” Anju explained. Her life changed because of a distracted and speeding driver – today, Anju feels as though her job directly addresses a pivotal moment in her life and gives her the ability to prevent what happened to her from happening to others.?

“When I do the reviewing, I am trying to ensure no one loses their life, no one loses their ability, no one needs to [be] in a wheelchair, no one has to go through the terrible situation that happened to me. I am so lucky, I am so fortunate that I’m working to prevent these kinds of problems. These kinds of offences.”