Healthcare assistants hold the back of doctors and nurses in every sphere of their work. The emotional and the physical assistance which a patient seeks is gratified by a Healthcare assistant. Be it GP surgeries, health centres or hospitals, selfless service is the duty of a Healthcare assistant. Performing blood checks, making beds for the patients, dressing, building up a happy ambience for the patients are some of his responsibilities.
How do I begin working as a Healthcare Assistant?
As such there are no specific requirements to become a healthcare assistant. The prime expectation is that you are good in Literature and numbers. Employers may ask for GSCEs or equivalent in English and Mathematics. ABTEC or NVQ qualification in healthcare may be demanded by some. Being a Healthcare assistant also call for some sort of past health care experience, be it paid or voluntarily. An apprenticeship can give you enough experience to apply for HCA posts. HCA does not need registration with a professional council.
What skills do I need to become a Healthcare Assistant?To become an HCA:
- A caring, gentle and kind nature is of utmost importance.
- Your personality should be pleasing. You should be able to provide
- comfort needed by the patients so that they can communicate their problems to you.
- You should be able to handle the patients in difficult situations.
- You should possess efficient communication and proficient listening abilities coupled with organizational and observational skills.
Below are some of the day-to-day work of a Healthcare Assistant.
- Preparing a patient’s bed
- Dressing, washing, feeding patients
- Keeping a check on blood samples
- Building up a friendly environment for the patients
- Managing medical apparatus
- Sterilising medical apparatus
- Regular check on patients recovery
- Providing physical and emotional assistance to patients
To encapsulate, the responsibilities revolve around giving assistance to the patients and monitoring their improvement of health until they are kept under medical considerations.
What career progressions are available after becoming a Healthcare Assistant?Healthcare assistant’s job makes you acquainted with a lot of responsibilities obligatory to the health sector. The job will teach you a lot about patients’ behaviour and the ways to tackle them after enduring various situations.
After successful years of completion as a Healthcare Assistant, you can further widen your expertise in the following ways.
- You can become a Senior healthcare assistant.
- Just like nurses, midwives and radiographers you too can train as any of these healthcare professionals.
- You can serve people as a social worker.
- You can also reach to various other fields in the healthcare sector.
Training and Development
Training involves some elemental nursing skills advancement. You’ll be trained towards the Care Certificate.
You may also get a chance to study for qualifications like Cache level 2 Certificate in Healthcare Support services and Cache level 2 or 3 Diploma in Clinical Healthcare support. An apprenticeship can fetch you these.
Another option to enhance your skills and broaden your network is to join the Royal College of Nursing. With this, you’ll come across several training programs that will help you if you are planning to frame your future in healthcare areas of work.
Working hours and SalaryWhat are the working hours of an HCA?
Healthcare assistants also work in shifts. There are night as well as day shifts for the HCAs. Shifts may also include early morning as well as weekend shifts. Work hours could be around 37 hours weekly.
What is the salary of HCA?₤15,000 is the average salary of HCA having less than 5-year experience. Furthermore, the salary has shown a gradual increase. Salary of an HCA can range up to ₤16,000 as per statistics and records. NHS pays the HCA on an Agenda for Change (Afc) pay system. It initially starts from Afc band 2. With passing experience and upgradation of your skills, you can put in for Afc band 3 or 4. At present, NHS pays round ₤15,000 to 23,000 yearly.
Jobs and VacanciesApprenticeship probabilities in health and social care centres have shown increment. There is also a hike up in the vacancies for HCA in various hospitals. Working in the NHS has its own perks. You are awarded not only the best pension schemes but also increase in payment. Rewards are also given for the overhead hours of work that you may do.
How can Britasiadoctors help you?
“The process of getting a doctors job in the UK is a bit complicated and the very first step that you should take to ensure that the process is hassle-free is choosing a partner that can guide you through each step. The team of Britasiadoctors is beside you from the point you decide to work as a doctor in the UK till you achieve your dream. With our experience and prowess, we will make all the stages including the registration process, exam and interview preparation, visa application and your arrival in the country as easy and as best we can. Our robust support team will guide you through all the steps so that you can complete the process smoothly. Having gone through the process ourselves, we can give you personalised advice and ways to make life easy for you. Our major role will be to organise interviews, connect you with the right employer, help you through the visa process and anything we can do on your way to success. For more information, please visit our service section.
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Example CV for HCAs and APs Click here
