Rose Kennedy, a second year student from Stockton Riverside College, is hoping to train as a paramedic. Her T-Level work placement in A&E at the University Hospital of North Tees has given her the chance to work in a fast-paced healthcare environment giving her an amazing experience.
Tell us about your T-level experience
My time on the Health pathway T-level course has been a great experience where I have been given amazing opportunities. The highlight for me has been the industry placements, especially my placement in the Accident and Emergency Department at North Tees Hospital.
I am hoping to train as a paramedic so the chance to work alongside emergency healthcare professionals in a fast-paced healthcare environment was an amazing experience for me. To be face-to-face with real patients, often in a serious condition, gave me a realistic view of my future career and motivated me further when in college lessons so that I could understand exactly what was going on when at placement.
Additionally, we were given the opportunity to complete our care certificate through the NHS, which is a key qualification most NHS jobs require. Once I have completed this and my course is finished, I will be ready to move straight on.
Describe a typical day on placement
During my time in A&E, I was assigned to a different member of staff each day, meaning I worked with a variety of different job roles. I spent a lot of time with patients, improving my bedside manner and developing my communication to people with different backgrounds and needs.
I was able to take clinical observations such as blood pressure and oxygen saturation and document these to the system, with supervision. Also, I watched lots of medications be given, learning about the different kinds and the ways they can be administered. I helped patients with personal care needs and generally helped staff members with whatever they needed.
How supportive have you found staff?
The staff from the Education Team have been great with organising all my placements and extra-curricular skills days. I felt confident going into placement because of the training session we had with them before our first day and thought this was very beneficial.
The healthcare staff I worked with during placements were all really informative and clearly wanted to give me the best opportunity possible. They were happy to answer all of my questions, and I never felt embarrassed or nervous as they were so supportive.
Is there a reason you want to pursue a career in healthcare?
Firstly, I’ve always known that I would love a job that involves caring for people, as it is important to me to feel like I am helping others. I am also a very hands-on, practical person and feel I would get bored in an office-job. Finally, the human body and the way it works fascinates me, which gave me the interest in a clinical healthcare job.
What are your plans after completing your T-level?
After finishing my T-level, I would love to initially get a job as a healthcare assistant on a hospital ward. I will be able to apply for these positions as soon as I finish my course because of the qualifications I will leave with. I would like to do this before moving on to a degree level course to gain experience.
After that, I would love to get an ambulance support worker apprenticeship and work up through the roles to being a paramedic through the apprenticeship route.
Would you recommend the T-Level programme to others?
Yes, I would definitely recommend this course to someone interested in a healthcare career. Healthcare is not something that can be learned solely in a classroom, making the industry placements so valuable to this course. This is where you learn the skills that cannot be taught, giving you a massive advantage when applying for university / healthcare jobs. This, mixed with the classroom-based learning creates someone ready to step straight into a healthcare career.
Find out more
You can find out more about the Trust’s T Level healthcare programme here.