Be careful what you wish for......

[BA to the Stars]

Have any of you found NHS work detrimental to your career/CV?

If anything having public sector experience does open many doors (I am lucky in that I have both public & private sector on my CV). NHS & Public sector in general is a totally different culture to the private sector.

I have found having NHS experience has been positive from a CV / contract opportunity perspective. Often agents will state that you need NHS experience to go for gigs (probably so that the culture is not too much of a shock).

[theroyale]

but because the NHS trusts were REQUESTING to pay these rates. I'm talking £500 per day, for an "executive assistant" (PA/meeting notes taker to you and I).

Wow! Mate I have 4 years work experience in healthcare (never in nhs though), get me this job!!

Have any of you found NHS work detrimental to your career/CV?

This is a great question, and I'm interested too in hearing an answer from anyone who's been there.

[supergal]

What do you do in such public sector environments where:

it is not clear who does what.
people don't have signatures on their emails.
People don't reply to your emails.
Semi-educated people pretend to be mangers and so on.
The whole thinking paradigm is I'don't do that you do it.
Nobody cares about nobody.

If you ask me it is the same in a corporate environment it is just more extreme in the public sector.

[Mustang]

Have any of you found NHS work detrimental to your career/CV?

I will stick with it for the time being - good for family life even if funds not brilliant. It will be useful (technical) experience too. You cant have everything......! I dont think I will be able to stick it for longer than the 12 months of the contract though!!

[mobi]

I worked on an NHS project for few months.

The work was so little that I could read story books in my computer screen and no one would notice

Good if you want a stress free life for few months. NHS pay is bit lower than market rate though.

[Old Greg]

.....because you might just get it!!

I had tried a number of times to get a role within the NHS. In Q2 I managed to land a role in London and, as it really suited family life, I took it. Imagine my surprise/horror when I realised what it was like from within.

Four weeks in nearly and to say I am having trouble getting the project up and running would be an understatement!! No one seems to care that they have seen little or no return on the money they are paying me. I have been proactive and although not yielding results, that seems to have scared the Be-jay-sus out of them. Clearly I am going to have to adapt to survive.

Any tips from anyone who has made a similar transition???!!

In the meantime, I am keeping my head doing what I can and enjoying leaving on the stroke of 5 whilst it lasts. At least I can spend time with the wife and kids....!!

I think we've discussed this kind of thing before. I've spent my life in the NHS (employed then contracting) and still find it frustrating.

Assuming you are working in a project environment, I find that NHS folk often don't understand project governance structures, and I need to sit down and go through it with them. Who is the Exec Director accountable to the Board for delivery or non-delivery? Who is the SRO (and don't let them get away with thinking that the #O# stands for 'Officer' rather than 'Owner'). The trick I find is to get them to commit to delivery (do they have a Business Case and/or PID?) and them make them realise that you are there to help them deliver THEIR project. They often think it is your project.

Best of luck.

OG

[The Agents View]

Would you be interested in being a "reference point" for a letter I want to write to the Prime Minister?

I spent 3 years watching one of my colleagues placing people into jobs at vastly inflated rates - not because he was dishonest (he's absolutely straight as a die) but because the NHS trusts were REQUESTING to pay these rates. I'm talking £500 per day, for an "executive assistant" (PA/meeting notes taker to you and I).

Its upset me so much, that I wish to make a point - reference material would be appreciated - It may fall on deaf ears, but at least I can say I tried!

[Spacecadet]

Imagine my surprise/horror when I realised what it was like from within.

I spent less than a week in the NHS. I hated every minute of it and when another offer came up I didn't loose any sleep in making a (morally bad?) decision to bail out.

Unfortunately with interviews you never really see what an organisation is like to work with. It's not just you who is trying to make a good impression.

If I did take another contract with the NHS elsewhere then I would insist on a 2 week break clause in the contract so I can escape without having to give notice.

[stillooking]

This is proof that there is plenty of room for cuts in government spending.

I've been doing stuff in the past year with the NHS and the lot I've been with have overspent/ got no budgets. Working currently on a v.short term gig (1 mth) it sucks.

[HairyArsedBloke]

This is proof that there is plenty of room for cuts in government spending.

[pmeswani]

.....because you might just get it!!

I had tried a number of times to get a role within the NHS. In Q2 I managed to land a role in London and, as it really suited family life, I took it. Imagine my surprise/horror when I realised what it was like from within.

Four weeks in nearly and to say I am having trouble getting the project up and running would be an understatement!! No one seems to care that they have seen little or no return on the money they are paying me. I have been proactive and although not yielding results, that seems to have scared the Be-jay-sus out of them. Clearly I am going to have to adapt to survive.

Any tips from anyone who has made a similar transition???!!

In the meantime, I am keeping my head down, doing what I can and enjoying leaving on the stroke of 5 whilst it lasts. At least I can spend time with the wife and kids....!!

Keep your head down, do the minimum you have to do, get timesheet signed and invoice away. Nowt you can do until the budget cuts hit the NHS fan... only then the perms will value their jobs.

Oh, and welcome to the Public Sector world.

[Mustang]

.....because you might just get it!!

I had tried a number of times to get a role within the NHS. In Q2 I managed to land a role in London and, as it really suited family life, I took it. Imagine my surprise/horror when I realised what it was like from within.

Four weeks in nearly and to say I am having trouble getting the project up and running would be an understatement!! No one seems to care that they have seen little or no return on the money they are paying me. I have been proactive and although not yielding results, that seems to have scared the Be-jay-sus out of them. Clearly I am going to have to adapt to survive.

Any tips from anyone who has made a similar transition???!!

In the meantime, I am keeping my head down, doing what I can and enjoying leaving on the stroke of 5 whilst it lasts. At least I can spend time with the wife and kids....!!