Work experience

Work experience in the NHS is a fantastic way to gain insight into a particular career. It can also be a valuable way of getting some confidence and experience of working in a team and caring for people. Work experience can help you understand what it is like to work in an area, or prepare for a university application.

Placement opportunities

We offer short work experience placements for those who are going on to Medical School and those who are interested in other roles within the NHS, including clinical and non-clinical professions. You will spend time observing the work of the department and those who work there.

Once you are sure which area you would like to experience, please contact that area directly using the details provided. They will provide you with an application so that we can check that you will get the experience you are looking for, and make arrangements for your placement.

The only placements currently available are listed on this page. We are unable to arrange placements on an ad-hoc basis for any applicant.

If you are over 18, you need to apply for a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check ahead of your placement.

Available placements

Pre Medical School work experience

As part of the UCAS application process it is extremely advantageous to have undertaken some work experience in a hospital / surgery environment.

Sitting in on clinics and consultations may be beneficial, but does not introduce prospective medical students to the practical skills which form a major part of the medical practitioner role. Our week long course exposes you to a range of experiences in a controlled and supervised environment. You'll have the chance to:

Visit theatres
Attend clinics, ward rounds and clerk simulated patients
Speak to doctors and medical students to gain an insight into medical training
Enjoy talks from medical educationalists about training and applying to medical school

For more information, visit our Medical Education website.

Rockingham (Orthopaedic Elective) Ward - not currently taking applications

*Please note - due to the high number of applications, we are not currently offering placements on Rockingham Ward*

Placement Name	Rockingham Ward (Orthopaedic Elective)
What you will see	Rockingham Ward is a busy, fast-paced ward with 14 orthopaedic elective beds. There will be experience looking after patients from 16 years plus that require elective orthopaedic procedures such as new hip or knee joints. You can experience post op care alongside basic nursing care.
Available placements	Monday to Sunday, 7am to 7.30pm. To be arranged on application to suit work experience needs.
Contact	Ward Manager: Laura Roberts Email: laura.roberts17@nhs.net

Fracture and Orthopaedic Clinic

Placement Name	Fracture and Orthopaedic Clinic
What you will see	Our Fracture and Orthopaedic Clinic has appointments with patients that include consultations for pre-operative discussions for joint replacements. Alongside trauma patients that have an orthopaedic injury pre or post op for clinical management. There is also the opportunity to attend the plaster room where patients will have a range of casts applied/removed alongside specialist appliance and casts.
Available placements	Placements available Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 7.30pm to be arranged on application to suit your work experience needs.
Contact	Department Managers: Charmaine Lait or Amanda Hobson on c.lait@nhs.net and amanda.hobson7@nhs.net

Ward B5 non-elective surgery (Placements not currently available in this area)

Placement Name	Ward B5 non-elective surgery
What you will see	We are a busy, fast-paced ward with 33 beds caring for acute/non elective surgery patients. There will be experience at looking after general surgery, urology, maxo-facial and medical patients, along with post Intensive Care Unit discharge patients. You will experience caring for these patients pre and post operatively along with delivering basic nursing cares.
Available placements	Monday to Sunday, 7am to 7.30pm. Arranged on application.
Contact	Lauren Olliver, Ward Manager. Telephone: 01709 425365 Email: lauren.olliver11@nhs.net

Nutrition and Dietetics

Placement Name	Nutrition and Dietetics
What you will see	You will learn how diet can be used to optimise a patient's health. There will be the opportunity to observe different places that Dieticians work e.g. hospital wards, GP clinics, home visits or teaching education sessions. You will see how Dieticians calculate nutritional requirements and make nutritional plans for patients.
Available placements	Contact Natalie Taylor.
Contact	Natalie Taylor, Dietician Telephone: 01709 424297

Community Occupational Therapy Equipment and Adaptations Service

Placement Name	Community Occupational Therapy Equipment and Adaptations Service
What you will see	As Community Occupational Therapists we visit clients in their own homes to assess for equipment and/or adaptations to enable people to live safely and independently in their own homes. We visit clients with a range of physical disabilities / health needs who are experiencing difficulty with activities of daily living.
Available placements	Contact Catherine Mills to discuss potential dates.
Contact	Catherine Mills: Occupational Therapist Telephone: 07900 918193 Email: catherine.mills@rotherham.gov.uk

Adult Speech and Language Therapy

Placement Name	Adult Speech and Language Therapy
What you will see	You will be able to observe Speech and Language Therapists working with adult patients to support them with their communication and swallowing difficulties. The team work in Outpatient clinics at Rotherham Hospital, and see patients in their own homes or Care Homes.
Available placements	3 placements of 3 days in a year.
Contact	Abi Starr: Clinical Lead, Adult SLT Telephone: 01709 427015 Email: abigail.starr@nhs.net

Finance and Procurement

Placement Name	Finance and Procurement
What you will see	The Finance directorate at The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust is a varied department incorporating financial management, budget monitoring, financial services, annual accounts production, cashiering, credit control and income, cash management, charity reporting, governance, contracting, procurement, and materials management. The placement will help you understand how finance support patient care through payment of invoices and staff, and by providing financial information to help decision making. It would be ideal for those interested in working with numbers in a practical way. To work in NHS Finance, you need to be adaptable, logical, and able to use Excel.
Available placements	Limited placements available. Contact Claire Hall.
Contact	Claire Hall: Assistant Head of Financial Services Email: claire.hall16@nhs.net

Medical Imaging, Physics and Illustration (Placements currently not available in this area)

Placement Name	Medical Imaging, Physics and Illustration
What you will see	Medical Imaging, Physics and Illustration is made up of several departments including: Clinical radiology (Plain film, CT, MRI, Ultrasound, Breast Screening), Medical Physics (Nuclear Medicine, Respiratory Physiology and Cardiology/cardiac devices) and Medical Illustration. This placement can offer a vast insight into the day-to-day tasks of each area, including administrative, clinical and advanced practice roles.
Available placements	Contact Kelsey Longden.
Contact	Kelsey Longden: Deputy Clinical Lead in Plain Film, Fluoroscopy and Dental. Email: kelsey.longden@nhs.net

Digital, data and technology

Placement Name	Digital, data and technology
What you will see	Our Health Informatics directorate provides a wide range of leading edge digital, data, and technology services. From ICT support, software development, data architecture, project management, systems analysis and clinical coding. We are able to offer one or two week introductory placements, either rotating through our departments or focusing on an area of interest. Additionally, we are able to offer placements to undergraduates as part of their year in industry undertaking relevant degrees.
Available placements	Dependant on volume of requests and area of specialism.
Contact	James Rawlinson, Director of Health Informatics jrawlinson@nhs.net