The Isle of Wight NHS Trust is proud to be working in partnership with the University of Derby on their first ever Operating Department Practitioner (ODP) apprenticeship programme.
The first cohort of Operating Department Practitioner apprentices will start their program on the 26 May 2022 and over the next three years they will be learning alongside other apprentices from all over the country which will provide great networking for the students who can share their experiences.
Meet our apprentices:
Daniel Woodford - Dan joined the Trust as a bank Healthcare Assistant (HCA) before becoming a permanent member of the theatre team, working as a theatre support worker just under a year ago. He has always been interested in training to become on ODP, having been inspired by a family member who has been an ODP on the IOW for over 20 years. The apprenticeship pathway will allow him to stay living and working on the island while he studies.
Abraham Portiuito- Abes has been a theatre support worker for 20 years and was one of the first to relocate from the Philippines. He has always had the passion and ambition to develop, and the apprenticeship pathway has finally offered him the opportunity to work and study in a way that works around his family.
Peter Rayner – Before the start of the pandemic Pete had never worked in healthcare, however the pandemic led Pete to join the Covid-19 testing team. He enjoyed this change of work so much that he then joined the Intensive care Unit (ICU) as a HCA at the end of last year. He is ambitious and wants to develop his new career within the NHS having found a passion for helping people in recent roles.
Bethanie William, ODP & Practice Educator for Main Theatres, said: “It’s such an amazing opportunity for our department to home grow the next generation of Operating Department Practitioners. The apprenticeship program offers a fantastic learning and development opportunity for our 3 internal candidates.
“It is a massive opportunity to showcase the ODP role. The ODP has always been a role in the background, but the ODP profession was key to the response to the covid-19 pandemic and as a result their transferrable skill set gained widespread recognition outside the perioperative environment, especially in critical care areas.
“As we move beyond the pandemic, new educational programs such as this provides an opportunity to showcase what we can do and our capabilities. The Pandemic also allowed us to explore new ways of remote working and study, and due to our island location, the long-distance online learning that the University of Derby offers works really well.”
