Shadowed Ward staff Review

I was very interested in going into Medicine, and felt that the more experience I gained during my childhood would allow me to have greater opportunities for places on good University courses later on in life. I really enjoyed the experience, and really developed my communication skills with the nurses, doctors, porters and patients. You really learn to appreciate how the whole system works, and this definitely allows you to appreciate how lucky we are in this country to have a health service like we do.

I felt very valued. I was only 16 upon completion of the work experience, but feel that I was plunged into the deep end. I was asked to do things way beyond my levels of experienced, but was more importantly shown how several basic procedures were done. This allowed me to really demonstrate I wanted to learn, and ultimately pursue a career in the field

A lot! Its really important to take all of this on, and make sure you aren't just sitting back and gliding through it. I was lucky to be able to shadow a variety of persons, and therefore was able to experience a loot of different levels of guidance. Shift rotation allowed me to be exposed to a variety of people, and this allowed me to receive a huge amount of support

Communication was key. I was a nervous child when I entered the hospital, but the nurses and doctors really encourage you to speak to everyone including patients. They were clear that if I didn't want to do anything, then i should tell them and they would immediately step in to help. This was a huge relief, but allowed me to understand what these people go through each day.

Very well structured. Every day I followed a variety of people in different areas of the hospital and saw so many different process' and procedures. this really widened my own scope of the business area, and I feel that I was able to really eradicate the stereotypical view of how a hospital operates. I was also then asked to report back to my supervisors how I had enjoyed the week, and what I would suggest could be improved for future insight weeks.

Its a hospital so very serious, but you learn to respect that. However, the nurses and doctors try and keep everything as light hearted as possible for the patients. I also really appreciated this, and feel that the reason the NHS is so beloved is because nothing is greeted with a stone cold response. Everyone has empathy, and as a result, the wards can be great places to meet a diverse group of people.

There was definitely a focus on how I could continue my own career aspirations with a view to completing my A levels and choosing specific Universities. This was really helpful and definitely developed my thinking process to assist my future career. There wasn't much time for more development, and I was very content with the training that I did receive.

It is impossible to match what the real world experience would be like, but an insight week will definitely contribute to how I consider medicine going forward. It was great to see patients getting better, and that is something that I probably hadn't considered as a huge job facet before. It is one of the reasons so many people enjoy doing the job that they do in the NHS.

This is such a key factor. I imagine that the NHS probably has different cultures across the different business areas. I very much enjoyed my experience and was able to meet a couple of other insight week students and they had also had fantastic experiences during their time there. I like the aspect that you can explore loads of different business areas.

Really good. I wish that I had been exposed to a couple of different areas in the hospital as my scope was a little bit narrow, but I did enjoy the opportunity to do something that I haven't experienced before. It was also really full on and there wasn't much more time to experience anything else. I am very grateful for the organisational skills of my supervisor

I wasn't provided any covered costs, but I lived in the local area, and was given lifts into work every day by my parents. This was really helpful, as the hospital is a little bit out of the way. I would always encourage you to do a local insight week if you aren't having your costs covered. I was too young to even consider being able to travel a long distance.

Lots of opportunity to network with a lot of people in a variety of roles. This was really useful, and allowed me to scope out what others in a similar position to myself had done with their own careers. This helped me plan my own immediate short term. Another option that I had from networking, was the ability to then email the people I have met for future opportunities.

There wasn't much opportunity to socialise with other members of staff mainly due to everything being so busy all of the time. The rolling rotation of shifts also meant it was difficult to always be with the same people all of the time. However, everyone was always welcoming and social on their shifts and took a real interest in what you were doing.

There is a huge community within the NHS and lots of people did stuff together outside of work in their own spare time. This varied from being involved in Sports teams, to general social activities and even having a group coffee catch up now and again. I think its really important for these types of jobs to have that social aspects to appreciate your colleagues as humans.

If you are interested in medicine then without a doubt. Its one of the greatest things you can do at that age. I personally have now adjusted what I want to do with my career, but this isn't due to the experience at all. I have a great deal of respect for what these people do, and feel that it comes from my week shadowing.