Healthcare Assistant information

Hi there,

I don't really visit this blog any more, I used to be a total addict!

I'm really busy now, and have a different path in life really.

But I keep getting emails, quotes & private messages for people to see my blog.

Here are some posts from that blog that may be useful.

Jake.

____________________________________________________________

Hello and Welcome to you - the readers of my Journal of a Health Care Assistant.

In October 2009 I made the decision to apply for the job of a Health Care Assistant for a Hospital NHS Trust in the Merseyside Area.

Late October on my way to Manchester on the train to the Department for Childrens, Schools and Families conference at Manchester United Football Club I received a email on my blackberry. I sighed thinking it was spam as I received it about 6pm thinking offices where closed and had already given hope on being offered a interview for the job. I was delighted to find that I had been invited to an assessment day where I would be taking a English and Maths Keyskills exams with a 60% pass rate.

I attended the assessment day early November 2009. I arrived 30 minutes early and was standing outside the education centre with other applicants for jobs within the trust. The atmosphere was scary, people biting there nails worrying about these exams! There was a lady next to me who had a A4 pocket full of paper, I politely asked her if we where supposed to bring information along with us. Unfortunately we where supposed to so I had to go and fill the papers out! But I had then made the first move in talking to people! Myself and this lady who I will name Mary then stayed with each other for the assessment. We sat next to each other in the Exam room. Mary's phone went off 3 times during the Exam's and the Sister (nurse) at the front of the lecture theatre was not at all happy! On the last time Mary's phone went off she literally threw her bag to the wall and all her stuff fell out and rolled down the stairs, she just left it until the end of the exam! At least that lightened up the atmosphere.

After the first exam which was a maths one I was giving up. I told Mary I was going home and that doing the English exam would be a waste of time because I thought I had failed the Maths exam. Mary persuaded me to stay over a cup of tea during the break. Thanks to Mary I did the English exam but ended up thinking I failed that too!

One week later, sitting at home I get a email through my blackberry again, this time I opened it on the laptop so I could read it properly. I was invited to an interview.

I attended the interview late November where I was met by one of the Matrons. The matron took me up to the interview rooms and I walked into room 6 where I was met by the matron and a practice education facilitator. We had a lovely interview I was very nervous as this was the best job I had ever had a interview for. I knocked over a empty jar which was containing a tiny bit of water left in, it was on the end of the desk which I was leaning on for no apparent reason! I then apologised and was shaking when I went to sit outside I was stopped before I opened the door. The matron asked me if she could read the file I was holding (the file was my personal profile with all my certificates and qualifications and records of volunteering and stuff) I then left the file with them.

I was called back into the room where the Matron was just going through the last few pages of my file. She shut the file and handed it back and then wrote something down on a piece of paper. "Jake, we think you are suitable for the job as a Health Care Assistant" I was told by the Matron. I was absolutely delighted!

We where then taken down stairs to fill in our CRB's and have a quick appointment with Occupational Health.

Three days later I was called by the Matron of a certain ward in the Hospital asking me would I like to work on her ward. I accepted it before she could even finish her sentence! I passed my Occupational Health screening in the early days of January 2010.

Reply 1

JakeM

Applying for the job...

I have seen many questions on the internet from people asking how to become a Health Care Assistant, How old you have to be, What qualifications you need and Do you have to have a interview.

Just before I answer these questions I would like to say my answers are from personal experience and may not be truthful in your NHS trust. These answers may not answer questions for care home Health Care Assistants.

So how do I become a Health Care Assistant?
To work for most NHS Trust's you have to apply through NHS Jobs by searching for 'Health Care Assistant' and your desired Location. Then you have to fill in 7 sections. The section I was told was one of the most important was the Additional Information section. I copied and pasted the person specification and underneath each requirement I wrote about how I meet the criteria.

I then sent of the application and received a invite to an assessment day where I would be taking English and Maths Key Skills exam's (Please note this was a new requirement to my trust and not all trust's require this).

You can then read about the assessment day and interview day at my first blog post: Hello and Welcome.

How old do you have to be to become a Health Care Assistant?
This really does vary from Trust to Trust. My trust had a minimum age set of 16. But an awful lot of Trusts do require you to be 18. I found that it was 16 by calling my Trusts HR Services who informed me it was 16. (I am aged 17 so that is why I had to find out).

What qualifications do you need?
My trust had no formal requirements for qualifications, although I did put the ones I had gained onto the application form. The thing that makes you stand out for the job is voluntary experience, I am a disability inclusion worker so I have had care experience for 2 years. You can find out what qualifications are required if any on the person specification.

Do you have to have an interview?
At my trust there where over 50 applicants who all had interviews. I cannot see why you would not be required for an interview unless you already worked for the trust. You will find this out on the NHS Jobs website linked above.

The process then of becoming a Health Care Assistant is to have your vaccinations and CRB Clearance. It is your CRB which will take the longest.

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