Towards the end of my first placement
So, it’s coming towards the end of my first placement. The way the General Management scheme is structured means your first placement is 11 months long. Initially this sounds like a long time, but in reality, it really isn’t! It takes a good few months to get your head round things; a new organisation, new people, a new role and all of the extra stuff that comes along with being a part of the grad scheme such as the educational side of things and the experiential learning sessions.
I have learnt so much on this placement and have really valued my time at Sheffield Health and Social Care. I have had so many opportunities to get involved in a variety of things (which you can read about in my previous blogs if you wish!) and have met so many wonderful people and have forged some great working relationships! I am conscious of getting as many competencies signed off as possible, we need to be at 40% by the end of the placement, but I am aiming to get as many signed off as possible to ease the pressure in my next placement. Something I have to focus on in my final month is handing over the work that I have been doing to other members of staff and making sure procedures are in place for the work that I have been doing to carry on, or me working extremely hard to get it all done in the final few weeks! There is always more to be done though so I expect the final few weeks won’t consist of ‘winding down’ as you may expect!
Part of me doesn’t want to leave, but I am really looking forward to my flexi-placement at the Department of Health which starts in September and then moving to a large acute Trust; Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, in November. Mental health is the area of health I am most passionate about and interested in, so I feel fortunate to have had my first placement in this area. My flexi is in the mental health policy team, so I am excited to continue working on and around mental health, but I am anticipant to learn about acute providers and see if the cultures and ways of working are different. Who knows where I may end up after the scheme …