Health Care/ Support Workers

livelyred

Why is it so hard to get a career as a health care/support worker in the NHS ,I have alot off previous experience ,have filled in loads off application form to my local NHS and no interviews,what are they looking for ?

slummymummyof3

Perhaps they don't have any vacancies. Have you thought about volunteering on a ward and that might be a way in to paid employment with the trust as a HCA.

livelyred

slummymummyof3 wrote: »

Perhaps they don't have any vacancies. Have you thought about volunteering on a ward and that might be a way in to paid employment with the trust as a HCA.

I have joined there emailing system so when posts come up i apply i have apply for about 10 now and no luck

LADY_A_5

hmmm maybe just not in your area? when i applied for my job (still waiting for crb nearly 5 months later!) they were looking for 8 hca's.
is your local hospital a main one?? i also belive at my local there are a high turnover with hca's, dont know why? maybe if your prepared to travel try another main hospital?

slummymummyof3

If you have a CRB from previous employment/volunteer work, include a copy of it with your application as it speeds up the process!

livelyred

yes the posts are in my local area

trishandbubs

It could be a number of things stopping you getting interviews. My husband is a nurse at our local hospital and has just finished his first ever set of interviews for hca positions at the hospital. He was also responsible for choosing the short list and as so many people apply he had to be quite strict.
Here are some of the reasons he didnt consider some applications:
He couldnt read the writing
The application form wasnt complete
The applicants sickness record wasnt good
The applicant had too many previous jobs for the length of time they have been working
They are over qualified for the job (been senior health care assistants else where and come across as someone who wouldnt fit in)
They didnt write in black ink (someone wrote in green ink!)

There are so many reasons why you might not be getting interviews and if you have applied to a number of different posts and still not got an interview then you should maybe be checking that your application forms are getting to the personnel department and maybe considering having some one look at them for you. You could maybe try applying to the nurse bank first and getting some experience within the nhs and getting you name known on the wards etc.

livelyred

Thanks for that well all what you said i haveent really none off it,i havent had loads off jobs even thou im 39,the application for is done online not written in pen,i am qualified but never been a hca before i worked in another hospital for many yrs as a senior orthopaedic plaster techniacian,been a care assistant in residential homes but not a hca in the nhs,i know the online forms are getting to the recruitment dept as when u are not seccessful they send you an email,can you ask your husband if there is any advice he would give me,perhaps read my cv for me,as i have never done a cv before i dont think its that great,think the layout is correct,do you mind ?

livelyred

You also said about bank work well im a single parent of 1 child i need to look for 16 hrs very shortly so bank work is a no.

clairec79

I did bank NHS work and claimed WTC with it - spoke to tax credits and said as long as I averaged over 16 hours it was fine even though it wasn't guaranteed (They may have said to ring them if I did less than 16 hours in a week. I think I averaged 4-5 shifts a week)