Name: Camilla Coulston
Left in 2015
Current occupation: Lead Activities Coordinator
What might you do in a typical day of work?
As soon as I arrive to work I begin a morning class with the residents such as cooking, flower arranging, exercise or Arts and Crafts. Once this is finished I then write up my notes. During my lunch hour I work on the Marketing for our Care Home and work closely with PR.
For the afternoon I focus my time on 121 room visits with our dementia patients where I offer cognitive behavioural therapy, hand massage, and manage many other techniques to deal with anxiety and depression. At the end of the day I once again write up my notes and pass on healthcare information or medical changes during shift handover.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
The sense of reward I feel at the end of everyday. No matter how much of a struggle it has been, I know that when I get home I have made a difference to someone else’s day and made their life better. I enjoy being able to think about everyone else before myself, it has taught me the value of life, empathy and putting others' needs before my own.
What experience and qualifications do you need to do your job, and do you have advice for current students looking to go into your sector?
- Experience in a health care setting
- Extreme patience!
- Basic medical knowledge (For example brain trauma, medication and their uses)
- Mental health experience (For example counselling)
- A whole lot of enthusiasm and passion
- Knowledge in marketing and PR
- Ability to plan lessons/classes
- Time management
What challenges have you faced in your career so far, and how have you overcome them?
The biggest challenge is being able to motivate a group of residents who are usually over 90 and suffering with isolation and depression and have already given up – it’s then my job to show them there is life still to be lived. Also it is hard when a resident passes away, its impossible to not get attached!
What is one piece of advice you would give to current students?
Do a job that makes you happy! Money is not the answer and something I will never chase! I am very lucky that in this role I get paid very well, however If you earn enough to pay your bills and still have a glass of wine in the evening, that is all you really need! There is so much more happiness to be found in life and it does not come on your wage slip.
Name: Sophie Daniels
Left in 2009
Current occupation: Lead Nurse
What might you do in a typical day of work?
I see a variety of patients throughout the day. I would perform procedures such as administering baby vaccinations, cervical smears, blood pressure checks, contraception reviews and long term condition reviews for Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). I also run a leg ulcer clinic every week with one of our Health Care assistants. As well as this, I complete various admin tasks and lead our ‘treatment room team’ I attend meetings and am responsible for the nurse and health care assistant’s rota.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
I love how varied my job is - no day is ever the same and the day goes really quickly. I am lucky enough to see patients when they are well but require additional help to improve their health. I also get to work with a great team of Doctors and Nurses as well as receptionists, administrators and secretaries. We are a large practice in Guildford with 4 different sites including a practice at the University of Surrey so we see a broad spectrum of patients with varying complaints.
As well as this, my job provides me with the opportunity to constantly learn and develop my skills.
What experience and qualifications do you need to do your job?
I got 11 high-grade pass GCSE’s including double English, Maths double Science and Health and Social Care. I then went to college and received a BTEC National Diploma Triple Distinction in Health and Social Care.
Next to the University of Surrey and completed my Adult Nursing BSc degree (hons). I went back to University the same year that I qualified and completed the ‘Introduction to General Practice Nursing’ Diploma. I have completed numerous courses to develop my competencies in certain areas of my nursing field including cervical smear taking, wound care, contraception, spirometry, etc. I am now working towards my Master’s degree in Strategic Clinical Leadership.
What challenges have you faced in your career so far, and how have you overcome them?
As I have achieved quite a lot very early on in my career, I can sometimes find that I am not taken as seriously as some of my peers due to my age and experience. I don't feel that this should impact in how I'm perceived but find that it sometimes does.
What is one piece of advice you would give to current students?
I know that it may seem like you won’t need certain parts of your GCSE’s whilst you’re studying for them but they really do come in handy - particularly for English, Maths, Science and ICT!
Name: Freddie Hodkin
Left in 2013
Current occupation: Respite Carer/PA
What might you do in a typical day of work?
As a respite carer/PA for an elderly lady with dementia, my role was to allow the family to have ‘respite’ from looking after her for a few hours at a time, and to keep her active and independent. As such, we might sit and have a chat for while with some TV, look through old books and photos to help with her memory, take her to an exercise class, run errands, go to a café, go for a walk in the local area, listen to her favourite music, prepare food and tea etc.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
I love developing a friendship with the client. Over time, we developed in-jokes and routines and things we enjoyed doing. I enjoyed listening to her stories of when she was younger. It also felt good to be doing something genuinely useful for both the client and the family.
What experience and qualifications do you need to do your job, and do you have advice for current students looking to go into your sector?
No formal qualifications were required (this may vary by local authority/family) but I believe my experience working with disabled children helped. Generally though, just being a kind, caring, patient person is good for this type of role. Listen to the family and the client, and make sure you follow any role-specific guidance. I believe there are also plenty of training courses forspecificskills that would be useful in this area (at varying levels) so looking out for which ones might be useful/required is a good idea.
What challenges have you faced in your career so far, and how have you overcome them?
I was not in this role for very long due to moving away from the city, but as with anything new, it can be easy to worry too much about getting things wrong. Just remember to relax and not be afraid to ask for help if needed.
What is your next goal?
My next big goal is to complete my MA Music (Composition) at Cardiff University and then hopefully find a role that allows me to continue my love of music.
Examples of my music work can be found at the following links:
https://soundcloud.com/user-266139723-86660914
https://www.instagram.com/freddiehodkincomposer/?igshid=mnbamacspiwk
What is one piece of advice you would give to current students?
Don't worry if you don't know what you want to do yet - this is normal! (For example, this role had nothing to do with my study of music! )
Just by taking opportunities and working hard can help you achieve anything you want to.