Careers in The National Health Service

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Careers in The National Health Service

• Dawn Porter
• Joanne Rhodes

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Origins of the NHS

• The NHS was set up 57 years ago on the 5th July
  1948 to provide healthcare for all citizens,
  based on need, not the ability to pay and is now
  the largest organisation in Europe.
• It is recognised as one of the best health
  services in the world by the World Health
  Organisation

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Funding and management of the NHS

• The NHS is funded by the taxpayer and managed by
  the Department of Health, which sets overall
  policy on health issues.
• It is the responsibility of the Department of
  Health to provide health services to the general
  public through the NHS.

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NHS a massive employer

• In England alone, the NHS employs about a million
  people but the NHS needs more staff to deliver
  improving and expanding levels of treatment and
  care.
• 7,500 more consultants -2,000 more GPs
• 20,000 extra nurses -6,500 extra therapists
• 1,000 more medical school places by 2010
• There are over 300 careers within the NHS, which
  means that there is something for everyone

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NHS in Birmingham 4 areas

• Acute Trusts
• Primary Care Trusts
• Mental Health Trusts
• Specialist Hospitals
• e.g. Womens
• Childrens
• ROH

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Acute Trust

• Mostly large district or general hospitals (ie
  UHB, Heartlands, Good Hope, City)
• Employ up to 6500 members of staff, across
  various disciplines/areas
• Deal with acutely (recent) and chronically (long
  term) unwell patients
• Mostly adults over of the age of 16

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Acute Trust contd

• Mostly have an Accident and Emergency department
  and therefore deal with ambulances bringing in
  patients from 999 calls
• Have wards, theatres, specialist
  units/departments and out-patient departments
• Patients are brought in as emergencies or are
  electively (planned) for specific operations
• Have regular patients who attend for treatment
  i.e. Cancer centre, Dialysis

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Primary Care Trust

• An NHS organisation which looks at the health of
  the entire local population and address issues
  specific to the area.
• Mainly based within a community setting, for
  example Medical/Health Centres and Community
  Hospitals (West Heath and Moseley Hall Hospital)
• Their aim is to keep health care close to home by
  moving care from the Acute settings into a
  Primary Care.

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Primary Care Trust contd

• Primary Care Services include
• Carers Support
• Chiropody/Podiatry
• District Nursing
• General Practice
• Health Visiting
• School Nursing
• Physiotherapy
• .

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Primary Care Trust contd

• Some Primary Care Trusts also offer specialised
  community services which can include
• Childrens services
• Complex Care Nursing packages
• Dental Hospital
• Community Hospitals at Moseley Hall, West Health
  offering Rehab and Elderly Services
• Services for People with Learning Disabilities
• West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre

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Mental Health Trust

• Based in Hospital and Community settings
• Spans the city of Birmingham and Solihull
• Employs approximately 4,000 staff
• Deal with clients with Mental Health illnesses of
  all ages
• Adults, Older adults and adolescents

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Mental Health Trust Contd

• Have both in-patient and outpatient services
• Provide specialist services-
• Mother and Baby
• Deaf Services
• Forensics

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Specialist NHS HospitalsBirmingham Womens
Hospital

• A leading specialist teaching hospital dedicated
  to serving the health needs of women and babies
  within the West Midlands, and beyond for some of
  its specialised services
• Hospital, one of only two Trusts in England
  dedicated to womens health

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Womens contd

• Provides full community midwifery services to the
  population of South Birmingham delivering over
  6,000 normal and complex maternity cases per year
• Receives and cares for women with high risk
  obstetric problems
• The hospital has a large neonatal and special
  care unit, providing a regional service for
  neonatology as well as caring for babies
  delivered here

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Womens contd

• The Trust employs approximately 1,500 employees
• Services include a full range of specialities
  including
• Obstetrics and Maternity Services
• Gynaecology
• Neonatology
• Genetics
• And other specialist pathology services

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Private sector

• To incl
• Hospices
• Nuffield
• Bupa
• Nursing Homes
• Also employee various members of staff, but under
  very different terms and conditions of employment

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Graduate Clinical Roles

• Broadly speaking clinical roles can be separated
  into the following groups
• NURSING AND MIDWIFERY
• MEDICINE
• HEALTHCARE SCIENTISTS
• ALLIED HEALTH PROFESSIONALS (AHPs)

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Nursing and Midwifery

• Individuals undertake a 3-4 year course to
  become a
• General Nurse (also called adult)
• Mental Health Nurse
• Childrens Nurse
• Learning Disability Nurse
• Midwife

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Nursing and Midwifery contd

• After qualification individuals may go on through
  further training to become
• Health Visitors
• Practice Nurses
• District Nurses
• Specialist Nurses

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Health care scientists

• Provide a vital service to screen, diagnose and
  treat patients. Well over 70 of all diagnoses
  are made with the help of the scientific services
• About 40 different professions in Healthcare
  science
• Various routes of entry

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Medicine

• Excellent grades at A level are required to go
  onto University for 5 years to become a doctor
• After further training and exams a doctor may
  then go on to become a
• Surgeon Consultant
• Psychiatrist GP
• Pathologist Anaesthetist

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Allied Health Professionals (AHPs)

• Qualified AHPs have generally undertaken a 3-4
  year degree/diploma to become a
• - Physiotherapist - Dietician
• - Occupational Therapist - Orthoptist
• - Podiatrist - Prothetist/Orthotist
• - Radiographer - Speech Language
• - Operating Department Therapist
• Practitioner (ODP) - Pharmacist

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Assistants within AHPs

• There are no national qualifications, however
  some GCSEs are expected or work experience to
  become assistants to
• Paramedics Physiotherapists
• Radiographers Dieticians etc

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Unqualified carers/assistants

• No minimum qualifications (other than sometimes a
  pass at level 2 in a basic skills test) are
  required to become
• Health care assistant
• Auxiliary nurse
• Phlebotomist
• ECG technician
• Operating department assistant

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Non-Clinical Roles

• The ability of the clinical staff to do their
  vital work depends upon a massive back up
  operation
• This is provided around the clock by a huge range
  of support staff
• Working mainly behind the scenes to ensure the
  NHS can function

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Non- clinical graduate roles

• Management
• Accountancy/Finance
• Human Resources
• Project work
• Information Technology/communications
• Librarian
• Research

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Non-Clinical Roles

• Broadly speaking the remaining non clinical roles
  can be separated into the following groups
• - Health Informatics
• - The Wider Health Care Team

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Health Informatics

• There are four main specialist areas in this
  group
• - Information and communication staff, who run
  the internal and external electronic
  communications
• - Health records staff who collate, store and
  retrieve the patient records
• - Knowledge management who support clinical
  staff in their education, training and
  professional practice
• - Information management who use statistics and
  other information to develop the health service

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Wider Healthcare Staff

• There are many roles within this category and
  include posts within
• Catering
• Clerical staff
• Estates
• Finance
• Management
• Facilities

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Benefits of working for the NHS

• Generous paid annual leave (per year)
• 27 days or 202.5 hours on commencement with the
  NHS
• 29 days or 217.5 hours after 5 years service
• 33 days or 247.5 hours after 10 years service
• 8 public holidays per year
• Paid sick leave (6 months full pay/6 months half
  pay after 5 years service)
• Excellent pension scheme
• Child and carer advice line and support

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Benefits continued

• Training and development opportunities
• -skills escalator
• -European computer driving licence
• -appraisal system
• Occupational Health
• Holiday and Leisure discounts
• Flexible working opportunities
• Family friendly policies

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Any Questions