CHOOSING A DEGREE APPRENTICESHIP

Having been in my role as manager for five years, I had come to a point where I wanted to develop myself further in order to fill knowledge gaps and progress my career. I wasn’t able to do a degree when I was younger so when I found out about the Chartered Manager Health and Social Care Degree Apprenticeship, it was ideal. I could remain working whilst gaining on-the-job experience and being taught the valuable tools I was missing in the field of management and leadership.

The apprenticeship was also attractive as on completion I would gain additional qualifications; the NHS Leadership Academy Mary Seacole Programme qualification and Chartered Management status. Having the Manchester Met degree apprenticeship programme on my CV, I felt it would make me stand out from others as it shows my commitment and ability to develop myself and others.  

I thoroughly recommend doing a degree apprenticeship. The extra skills you acquire while learning on the job cannot be gained solely from the classroom. It’s also really nice to have people from different areas to learn from. In my cohort, there were people from a variety of secondary care departments, and I found it interesting to see how their organisations operate.  

CAREER PROGRESSION

Thanks to the programme, I was able to present my project at the WONCA Europe Conference 2023. And I believe this achievement was possible because of the skills, confidence, and determination I was able to develop during the apprenticeship. At this European Conference, I was contacted by a French doctor at a university who has a similar project interest. We are currently in talks to collaborate on work. I am also working towards getting my project published in SAGE journals. If it wasn’t for this programme, I would not be where I am now.

The apprenticeship has taught me many valuable tools. The biggest impact has been within my leadership. I am more aware of myself and those around me. I have been able to mentor and coach colleagues and it has been nice to see them develop. For my career, the apprenticeship has given me the confidence I lacked. Whilst on the programme I was surprised by how much I knew however, in the workplace I repeatedly questioned myself. The apprenticeship has cemented my knowledge and made me determined to progress further.    

PROJECT IMPACT 

I wanted my project to make a difference to the patients at my practice. I was aware that the NHS Long Term plan included increasing early detection through cancer screening. From this, I decided to produce innovative creative media informing patients of the benefits of being screened for bowel or cervical cancer. My aim was to target patients living in areas of high deprivation, who have learning or physical disabilities or are from ethnic minorities, all of whom may have varying difficulties comprehending the screening programmes and had not engaged despite previous attempts.

In cervical screening, the project increased overall participation by 16% and increased bowel screening by 12%. For our organisation, this enabled us to meet our KPIs set by the NHS but more importantly, it detected positive results in a small amount of the patients screened. From the project, we also found reasons why people were not coming forward to be screened. In cervical screening, there is a belief if you have had the HPV vaccination you do not need to have screening. This has now developed into another project to create awareness around this.

SUPPORT RECEIVED FROM THE UNIVERSITY

My experience has been incredible. I never thought when I began, I would have the knowledge and confidence that I do now. I have grown both as a person and a manager through the completion of the apprenticeship. I feel privileged to have been given the opportunity and thankful to the Manchester Met tutors and my work colleagues for their support throughout.  

I felt fully supported by both the University and my employer during the apprenticeship. Whenever I contacted the lecturers for advice, I would always receive a reply promptly. This was a huge help since the degree is part-time and I was working remotely. I am also very lucky that my employer has been fully supportive throughout. I feel this has made a big difference as it enabled me to implement my learning and ask questions in day-to-day operations without any issues.  

Find out more about our Chartered Manager Health and Social Care Degree Apprenticeship.