Clinical Leader
Addenbrookes Hospital

Nick F

00:00:03 My name’s Nick F, and my job title is a Clinical Leader for ODP. An ODP, the title is Operating Department Practitioner. Basically what that entails is assisting the Anaesthetist during surgery, assisting the Surgeon during surgery, or working in the recovery unit looking after patients after they wake up.

00:00:26 When I started in the hospital I started as a Theatre Orderly. So I’d go to the wards to pick up the patients, go and collect blood from blood bank to bring to theatres. After – I did that for about three years, and then I went to work in the Recovery Unit as a Health Care Assistant, and then I went ahead and did my ODP training to become a qualified member myself.

00:00:46 The route that I’ve taken is very common in becoming an ODP, the majority of the staff that I come into contact with have all started as a Theatre Porter or an Orderly, and worked their way through the training courses. I’ve now become a Clinical Leader, which means that I assist looking after a team of ODPs. I have a Unit Leader and Team Leaders that are the next progressions, but I’ll wait for them to move on before I jump into their job.

00:00:16 It’s just a job that I could feel proud to say that I do, you know, if someone asks me what I do and, you know, I just feel really proud to be an ODP, and really enjoy my job. Every day when I go home, hopefully I’ve made a positive difference on someone’s life, and on more than one person’s life. For me that’s what it is all about.

00:01:36 I looked after a patient that had cancer, and you know, after looking after someone like that you suddenly realise problems you may have in your life aren’t as bad as someone else’s and I – you know that’s hopefully how I try and live my life.

00:01:50 You know when I see people now that I went to school with, you know, I didn’t do Biology, or anything like that at school, you know I had everything, all my sciences were based on going into a different job. The options were very limited, you know, the jobs weren’t out there, or they were but no-one knew about them. And I think, you know, I’ve been lucky to find the ideal job for me, just more by luck than judgement.

00:02:16 When I left school I had my heart set on working in the building industry. I followed my Dad, he was in the industry himself, I trained as a Quantity Surveyor when I left school. And it wasn’t the job for me, you know, it was a hard decision to break the sort of family tradition, but I’m very glad that I’ve done it now and, you know, this is where I am now.

00:02:40 The reason I decided to change careers was, at the time I was young, I was on a YTS scheme, and I was earning no money compared to all my friends who were doing dead-end jobs. So I followed – you know went to work with them, had a good laugh for a few years, ended up becoming a First Aider at the company I was worked at, enjoyed it, everyone sort of said you know you seem to have an aptitude for this sort of thing, and luckily someone I knew was already working in the hospital, and they got me an application form and, you know, the rest is history.

00:03:12 In five – ten – fifteen years time I’m just going to see what happens, hopefully stay within the hospital area, ’cause that’s the job that I like doing. No plans as yet really.

00:03:24 I read somewhere once that if you enjoy your job you’ll never work a day in your life, you know, and that’s very true, you know, I don’t find it a bind coming in to work, you know, I look forward to coming in to work and, you know, as long as I’m having fun and enjoying myself then, you know, life’s good.

00:03;40 I think I’ve found my niche in life, you know, is to work in the Health Service. I mean I think, you know, sometimes you have a bad day at work and think Oh I wish I could do this, or I wish I could do that, but, you know, I think it always comes back to the fact that I’m enjoying my line of work and enjoy doing what I’m doing. Like I say I’m proud to do what I do and so really no, I might moan about it, but I’m sure I’ll be here in another thirty years.

00:04:03 ENDS