I’m the first point of contact when someone calls up our department to enquire about our services. I, therefore, have to explain who we are and what we do. Patients will often ask lots of medical questions with an initial enquiry, often about their knees, hips, feet and ankles.
It’s a really interesting and rewarding role, you get to speak to all sorts of people and try to help them with their conditions.
We reassure them that we work with top consultants at our Hospital and have everything under one roof to treat them; imaging, bloods, surgery, physiotherapy, paediatrics, outpatient clinics and our Casualty First urgent care centre. Everything is done at our Hospital.
Explaining things clearly makes people feel comfortable about coming here and also, we have a great reputation. After all, we’ve been doing this for over 160 years.
Even during the COVID-19 lockdown we were able to offer virtual consultations with our consultants. And once they’ve had that virtual contact, the next step is to get their imaging, or whatever tests are required, done. We were constantly providing that service throughout.
What I love about our Hospital is the people. The staff are amazing, everyone is so friendly and really accommodating. It’s very much like a family.
Before joining the Hospital I worked with all ranges of people, from kids to the elderly. I started as a nursery nurse with toddlers and pre-school kids, became a healthcare assistant working with young adults with mental health issues and then worked with older people providing personal care at a care home. My final position before joining here was as a care-coordinator and involved planning care for elderly in the domiciliary care field. Working in partnership with various professionals such as carers, social workers and councils formed part of the role to ensure that the service users were assisted to live fuller longer and more productive lives.