As we approach a new lockdown in the UK, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows a 4.5% unemployment rate from June to August (ONS, 2020) – equal to 1.5 million people being unemployed.

Sectors likely to have been hit include restaurants, hotels, and tourism.

Jobs which are increasing their vacancies include care work, and the NHS.

The Thursday night clapping for the NHS showed workers their appreciation, and the value the British people hold in the NHS and its hard-working staff.

Perhaps you are one of the many people who have found themselves redundant, and now would like to look for work helping the Coronavirus Pandemic.

It can seem every role requires many qualifications, such as Nurses, Doctors, Paramedics, or other specialists.

However, this article will go through some roles available now within the NHS and associated organisations which require little to no care experience.

It is your transferable skills which can make all the difference!

The following provides an overview of possible job roles.

Remember to check each individual job advert to ensure you meet the requirements.

Healthcare Assistant

First and foremost, and especially if you are looking to eventually get into Nursing, becoming a Healthcare Assistant often requires minimal experience, and can help you build a great foundation for a career in healthcare.

You can find out more about becoming a Healthcare Assistant with little to no experience here.

Customer Service Advisor

The NHS provides opportunities in a variety of customer service roles, in different parts of the NHS.

These include Level 2 Apprenticeships.

The role involves giving vital support to clinical staff, without which they would be unable to give safe care.

Duties can include working in a reception area, secretarial responsibilities, booking appointments, data inputting, and supporting a team with administration tasks.

For these roles, customer service experience is usually essential.

However, customer service experience within a medical environment is usually desirable – so if you have any previous experience, do not be put off by the medical aspect.

Some job descriptions specify it is desirable to have experience of using phones in a busy and demanding environment, which would be suitable for anyone who has worked in call centre.

This is also customer service! Remember that although this position will probably be face to face, your customer service experience does not necessarily have to have been.

Read the job description carefully to see how your previous roles might relate, and if in doubt there will be a contact specified on the NHS job advert who you can email and ask for more details before you apply.

Alternately, you could apply and see what happens.

Blood Donation Team Assistant

This role is perfect for someone who is friendly, flexible, and able to put volunteer donors at ease.

You do not need any qualifications or a medical background, as training is provided.

Blood donations are used in a wide variety of medical situations, including coronavirus and medical emergencies.

You will be supporting the vital work of blood collection teams, and tasks could also include welcoming donors, and covering the after-donation refreshments area.

As blood is collected 7 days a week, you could be working evenings and weekends.

Environments include within a hospital, at donor centres, or mobile sessions.

This is classed as a Band 2 position, with a salary of around £9.02 an hour.

Laundry Operative/Laundry Assistant

When we think of hospitals, we might imagine wards, beds, patients, nurses, doctors... but what about the famous NHS nurse uniform?

The bedsheets, neatly and hygienically changed at least once a day?

Essential towels used for bathing and washing.

Laundry in the NHS is one of those things that, although often in the background, would cause chaos if it was not there.

Hospitals have laundries within their buildings, where everything is washed, sorted, and steam pressed according to health and hygiene guidelines ready for the next shift.

Perhaps you see a long list of A-levels or other qualifications and think the NHS doesn’t have a place for you.

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Maybe you prefer to learn on the job and learn better by doing.

Or perhaps you have valuable experience working in teams, following rules and guidelines, and like to be physically active.

If so, a laundry operative or assistant might be perfect.

Laundry operatives collect bed linen and other laundry from around the hospital, which will have been prepared for collection by ward staff.

You will receive training on the job as you will be working with commercial equipment, including washers, ironers, and folders.

Salary for this position is around £18,005 – 19,337 per rata.

Some shift work might be involved.

Ambulance Care Assistant

Ambulance Care Assistants escort patients to and from non-emergency hospital appointments.

This is an entry level position, and as such you do not need any healthcare experience.

However, you will need a Category B driving license, with no more than 3 points at application and selection, and at least 3 years’ driving experience.

It also requires a minimum of 2 GCSEs at grades A-C, including English literature or language, and maths.

Alternatively, they also accept a Level 2 Functional Skills certificate, or a Level 3 qualification in a health-related subject.

Check any job descriptions carefully for further qualifications needed.

The main aim of this job is to provide transport for non-emergency patients.

There are several reasons why someone might need to travel in an ambulance, and these can include people whose condition means they may need additional support during the journey; parents or guardians of children who are being transported; and people who find it difficult to walk or who have physical disabilities, for example people who use a wheelchair.

You will receive training for basic life support, including oxygen therapy, and completing accurate records.

This is a perfect entry role for someone who is interested in working in healthcare.

The average salary starts at around £18,100 a year.

This can be with the NHS itself, or it could be working for a company who works with the NHS.

Other Jobs

There are other vacancies within the NHS which may be appropriate. Remember the NHS, like any other organisation, has a need for a range of professionals.

These roles often require specific experience, and can include working in HR and recruitment, administrator, project management such as Programme Manager, and working as a Medical Records Assistant.

Always check the experience and qualifications needed.

As well as this, do remember that there may be the risk of exposure to Covid-19, although it might be possible to either work from home or work in a Covid-secure environment.

Hopefully this article has given you an idea of the range of jobs available in the NHS.

Most of these will provide excellent experience for entering a career in Nursing, however they are also valuable careers in themselves.

Healthcare and the NHS provide such a wide range and choice of roles, so if you like the sound of any of the job roles in this article have a search.

You will be contributing to a valuable and rewarding career, especially so in the current climate.

Good luck!

Let me know in the comments your thoughts on working in the health sector and the ideas i've given above - let's chat there!

Oh, and please Like this article to let me know you enjoyed it - thank you!

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