St George’s HCA becomes one of the first to work a shift through the South West London Collaborative Bank

Tsai Spence works as a Healthcare Assistant at St George’s through our staff bank, and became one of the first people to work a shift through the South West London Collaborative Bank.

The Collaborative Bank, which launched in April 2018, allows Band 5 General Nurses and Band 2 Healthcare Assistants to see and book upcoming shifts at St George’s, Epsom and St Helier and Kingston Hospitals, all via the easy-to-use ‘Me’ smartphone app.

Tsai Spence works bank shifts at St George’s, mainly on Marnham Ward, and heard about the South West London Collaborative Bank through one of her colleagues.

“When I heard about it I really liked the idea of getting the chance to work a shift at another Trust.”, said Tsai, “I spoke to the St George’s Staff Bank team who were able to help me download the app and fill out all of the required forms.

“Once I’d done this, it was only a couple of days before I was able to book on an upcoming shift at St Helier. I just had to click ‘Book’ and the shift appeared on my roster.”

Tsai worked her first shift through the Collaborative on A5 Ward at St Helier Hospital and was pleasantly surprised with the welcome she got on the day.

“I was so taken aback with the warm welcome I got, the Clinical Lead was there to welcome me and the HCAs were really friendly and warm when they showed me around.

“I found working there not too different to St George’s. There was the same friendly and welcoming approach we have here. A lot of my friends have asked me what the staff were like, and it’s all been positive.”

Tsai will be looking to book more shifts through the app, especially when more wards at each of the Trusts are included in the Collaborative Bank.

“I’ve been raving about it to all my friends as I found it a great experience. You get to network and learn more about life at another Trust too.”

If you have any questions about the South West London Collaborative Bank, please contact the Staff Bank via collaborativebank@stgeorges.nhs.uk.