5 4 Two radiographers have proudly stepped into their new professional roles after successfully completing their apprenticeships, marking a significant milestone in their careers. Kerri Barker and Holly Mount graduated this July from the three-year apprenticeship programme, fully funded by the trust’s apprenticeship scheme. Both began their journeys with different backgrounds but shared the same drive to advance in radiography. Kerri Barker, based at CFH, has been with the trust for 23 years. Starting in a clerical role at BH, she gradually transitioned into patient-facing assistant roles. “Moving into those roles meant much more patient interaction, which I really enjoyed,” Kerri reflected. After qualifying as an assistant practitioner in 2011, she worked in that capacity until she embarked on the apprenticeship course in 2022. The apprenticeship involved attending the University of Exeter campus three times a year for one week at a time, with the rest of the learning integrated into her work at CFH. “I’m definitely a face-to-face learner, so this setup suited me perfectly. The support from my team and mentors was incredible,” she said. Now qualified, Kerri embraces a more challenging workload with enthusiasm. “I’m fully responsible for patient care during appointments. I like to think I’m a caring person so it really suits me, and I find it truly rewarding,” she added. Mental health has always been important to me personally “ “ Apprenticeships open doors to dedicated staff Carl Leith van Heyningen, paediatric ED consultant A RFL mental health champion has introduced new training for staff working in the children’s emergency department (ED) at North Mid, to help them better manage young patients experiencing a mental health crisis. Carl Leith van Heyningen works as a paediatric ED consultant at North Mid and recently took on a mental health champion role at the trust. Carl was keen to help staff develop their skills by creating an engaging way for them to train for mental health emergencies. He developed simulation training sessions where staff can roleplay scenarios in the ED, recreating cases of children with mental health struggles attending in crisis. The team then debrief and discuss best practices. Role playing can include acting out phone calls to family members, security and the police. Mental health champion brings new ED training to life Kerri Barker now embraces the challenges of her new role Staff from the children’s ED team at North Mid Holly, who was in the same class as Kerri, viewed the apprenticeship as an opportunity to complete a long-held goal. She initially pursued an undergraduate radiography degree but paused her studies over 13 years ago when she became pregnant with her first child. Despite this, she maintained a strong connection to the NHS, working in various roles since she was 16, often taking bank shifts. “At the time, the academic side of the degree was tough,” she said. “I failed by just one mark when I became pregnant at the end of the second year, so I decided to leave and focus on my family.” She left with a qualification in imaging and healthcare science but always intended to return to radiography. She later became an assistant practitioner in radiography at BH, and her manager suggested she consider the apprenticeship programme. “I had never really thought about apprenticeships in healthcare before – usually, you hear about them in construction,” Holly said. Holly now aspires to specialise in interventional radiology and encourages others to pursue apprenticeships for career growth. “Nothing is too difficult,” she said. “As a single parent balancing work, study, and family, graduating has been challenging. My children are proud and tell everyone about it – and having them at my graduation was amazing.” Paul Marijetic, head of apprenticeships at the RFL, praised their achievements: “We are incredibly proud of Kerri and Holly. Their dedication and hard work have been outstanding, and their expertise now contributes directly to delivering highquality patient care at the RFL. “Apprenticeships are a vital route to developing skilled healthcare professionals and they can also address staff shortages. I encourage all managers to consider them as a way of growing their own teams.” Search ‘apprenticeships’ on Freenet to learn more about the various options available to staff. “We need to give mental health the same respect as physical health. They are intertwined and our young people are suffering significantly. Mental health has always been important to me personally, particularly after seeing someone I’m close to struggle with her mental health at an incredibly young age,” Carl said. “This training is all about improving the experience of care that these children receive. Safety is also paramount for them and our staff. While ED colleagues might not be experts in mental health, they need to have confidence in their skills to help these patients and keep them as safe as possible.” North Mid has seen the number of children with mental health difficulties in ED double in recent years, similar to hospitals across the UK, showing just how vital this training is. Over 120 members of staff involved in children’s care have taken part so far, and 90% reported feeling confident in coping with a young person having a mental health crisis after receiving the training. One scenario used in the training sessions involves a ‘young teenager’ brought into the ED after having selfharmed. They then run outside the hospital having not yet been assessed by a member of the team. In this case, the team would practise carrying out a local search around the hospital, negotiating with the young person to come back, and act out a phone call alerting the family. These kinds of situations aren’t uncommon in ED – staff can often assess young patients who have overdosed or are at risk of self-harm. Carl said: “Whenever a young person becomes a risk to themselves, we need to be able to talk with them, assess their physical safety, consider the safety of others, and potentially involve security.” Erica Da Silva, senior staff nurse, completed the training. She said: “One of my simulation scenarios involved a 15-year-old who seemed irritated at first, but this escalated to the point where it wasn’t safe to get close to her. Carl brought in an actor to act this out and it felt so real. Seeing patients since, I’m more aware of how things like tone and proximity can affect us and the patient.” Carl added: “This training is just a small part of the work that needs to happen. As healthcare professionals, it is all of our responsibility to upskill.” Holly Mount hopes to specialise in interventional radiology
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