Rating

6.3/10
  • 1. Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
  • I was assisting with the administrative functions of a local GP in various ways. I was mainly concerned with dealing with the patients' details. It was stored in a physical form (as well as electronic) but for a while it had been neglected and all the pockets containing the patient information was piling up in the storage facilities of the GP, with no order and taking up too much space. I was in charge of ordering all of these. I had to first take them all out and then reorder them in various filing cabinets and cardboard boxes in a way which made sense (usually patient details or alphabetically). It was a tedious but rewarding process when completed.

    9/10

  • 2. Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
  • Yes. I learnt a great deal about being able to organise a large chunk of information in the most efficient way possible. A key learning point was that it is most efficacious to sit back, consider all the information provided and decide on the best method to utilise instead of charging in headstrong. Another skill which I developed was the ability to talk to and communicate to strangers (at the till), especially when they were being antagonistic.

    10/10

  • 3. To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
  • I absolutely loved the entire experience. The work itself was admittedly difficult both physically and mentally but by the end it was rewarding. I had no team per se but the other workers at the centre were all really amicable and I forged some great friendships. The premises itself was fastidious. I had previously heard this would be a bad idea and as a result I had low expectations but I was pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable the whole programmed was.

    10/10

  • 4. How valued do you feel by NHS?
  • Not a lot. While the work I did was rewarding, and my superiors went out of their way to recognise the work I had accomplished and I knew that what I had done would aid them, I don't feel valued by the NHS as a whole. This is mainly because the NHS is a massive organisation, employing thousands, if not millions of people and amongst all of them, it is hard for someone doing an admin job to feel very valued.

    2/10

  • 5. How well organised/structured is your programme?
  • In some aspects it was very well organised. I went in on my first day and met the manager of the practice. I spoke to her and we planned what I would do for the rest of my time there. We then mostly stuck to this plan ON THE WHOLE. However there were some details of my job and the situation which was missed out on which resulted in necessary impromptu adaptations. This included surprise meetings I was unaware of and no one felt the need to tell me that the practice closes early on Fridays

    5/10

  • 6a. How much support do you receive from your training provider?
  • She is very helpful in giving me advice in how best to tackle various situations. There have however been times when she's been unable to offer me guidance on a certain type of problems and doesn't refer me to anyone else more experienced so I have had to learn to deal with those problems myself. She is however very enthusiastic about supporting me. I do mostly enjoy it although occasionally she rebukes me which while I don't enjoy I know is for the best.

    7/10

  • 6b. How much support do you receive from your employer?
  • The manager was there on my first day where I received a huge amount of support and instruction with planning my itinerary. Also during that first day she would offer me relevant and helpful advice to deal with problems. However I felt I lost accessibility to that support in the coming time because I was not able to speak to her (I did not know where she was nor did she offer any form of communication) and so I was left feeling a bit neglected but my mentor was always there to help me.

    6/10

  • 7. How well does your salary/package meet your costs?
  • Perfectly. My living costs are covered through different methods so I did not need to fret about those. Travel costs were minimal in themselves anyway, because the location was very convenient for me. I had daily costs such as foodstuffs and then there are of course social costs which were never compulsory. Overall the salary allowed me to manage my costs.

    7/10

  • 8. Are there many opportunities outside of work?
  • No. There are no company events, at least not for the period relevant to me. There are no company activities which take place for me to partake in nor are there any voluntary initiatives. There were classes in the local community for various things which I looked into but none of which appealed to me. The nearest leisure centre was far too far away for me to visit.

    1/10

  • 9. Would you recommend NHS to a friend?
  • Yes


  • 9b. Why?
  • I learnt a lot about the working of an integral part of our society. The NHS is too huge and too important to be ignored - experiencing it is hugely beneficial to understanding it. It also aided my decision making for my future career path. While the workload was strenuous, it's likely that would be the case at most places but I don't know if any other place would be as rewarding as the NHS


  • 10. What tips or advice would you give to others applying to NHS?
  • It's important to apply weeks in advance. The NHS is in high demand and you can't just apply 2 days before and expect to get it. There is often an interview process. Realise that you WILL be interacting with lots of patients who will all be strangers. You can only prepare yourself mentally for this but it will help when faced with difficult situations. That's something I wish I had known beforehand. It's also useful to keep asking if you're allowed to do "this" (whatever "this" may be) - even if you get rejected that's ok, don't be discouraged. Lots of things are forbidden due to age restrictions and it's not that they don't like you or think you capable, just they're not allowed.


Details

Work Experience

Accounting, Finance

Central London & City

July 2017


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