What do our managers say?
“Apprentices at St George’s will have the same opportunities as employees, earning a wage and working alongside experienced staff. Each apprentice can ‘earn while they learn’. Learning can be done in Outpatients, minimising disruption and maximising impact on how we deliver our services. We have had very positive feedback from colleagues regarding our current cohort in Outpatients”
–Michelle, Outpatients Manager.
“We had an apprentice in the Sterile Services Department. I was very impressed with my apprentice during the interview process as he showed a good understanding of decontamination processes used in reprocessing of medical devices. The best advice I can give to managers is to prepare a good induction, provide the apprentice with a mentor and guide the apprentice on the correct way of performing their duties so they don’t pick up bad habits. As this job opportunity could be their first employment, it is also extremely important that managers set expectations from the beginning so that the apprentice understands the importance of working as a team and that the team relies on their performance in order to provide good quality of patient care”
– Barbara, Sterile Service Manager.
“Outpatient Services has the highest volume activity for the trust and so having the right staff with the right skills is crucial to our success. Over the past few years we have a recruited a number of apprentices through the education programme. Eager to learn and passionate about pursuing a career in the NHS, they’ve become an invaluable addition to our Outpatient family and helped us welcome and nurture-in the next generation of NHS Professionals. Across two cohorts, many of our apprentices succeeded in securing further employment with us at the end of their education contract – With continued investment in their development, I have no doubt they will continue to form even stronger foundations for the trust in the years to come”
– Adam, Service Manager for Surgical and Respiratory Outpatients.
“Having an apprentice within the team has proven to be a positive experience for us in the Staff Bank administration team. It has enabled us to look at the work environment and relationships with different eyes. Engaging in a development relationship has been a good opportunity for some members of our team who have worked closely with the Apprentice. This has been an opportunity for them to develop new skills as well so it’s actually been a win-win situation.
I knew when the round table interviews were held that our Apprentice would be right for our Staff Bank recruitment team, and since the day she arrived she has grown and developed into a key member of the team. She has grown in confidence, has learnt new skills and has been able to become an effective member of the team contributing at an extremely high level. I am hopeful that once her apprenticeship is completed that she will apply for a permanent position within the Trust. We are going to be taking on a second apprentice in the Autumn for another sector in the Staff bank team”
– Jeanette, Staff Bank Manager.
