Page 12 - QARANC Vol 19 No 2 2021

10 The Gazette QARANC Association
Healthcare Assistant Foundation Course 20/002 DMS Whittington
I have been asked to write about my time whilst completing my phase 2 training to be a health care assistant within the Army and discuss how COVID-19 has affected our training as a course.
When arriving at DMSW in January 2021 I felt nervous but excited, as I wasn’t sure what to expect. The first two weeks we completed our online care certificate, but due to COVID-19 restrictions this had to be done via Zoom. The care certificate included lessons about safeguarding, health and safety, policies and procedures and organisation rules. To ensure our understanding we undertook the care certificate online examination which I passed first time and we were then tasked with our diploma assignments. Moving into weeks three to eight we learnt a variety of body systems such as the integumentary, cardiovascular and digestive systems to name a few. PT was introduced which
A chance to bond outside the classroom!
as a course.
Preparing for the Class 3 exam I
was very stressed as I find it difficult to revise however our HCA course staff put on a few revision sessions and
helped us prepare, not just physically but mentally. They did this by putting together PowerPoints, printing out images and making posters for us all to put up in class and take back to the block. The whole course passed their exams with flying colours! The staff on the course have had a huge impact on our training and have helped us all massively
enjoy it. They, Staff Sergeant Fiddy and Corporal Evans, worked extremely hard making sure all of us understood and
Clinical work calls!
learnt by working hard to make sure all theory and practical lessons were preformed to high standards. They constantly checked on us and made sure we were all coping throughout the 16 weeks as they knew that some people were struggling with the restrictions. They put on many revision lessons and both always joined in with PT sessions to encourage us to push through if we were struggling.
For weeks 9-12 on placement I went to Queens Hospital, Burton, where I was really excited to go as I could put all my skills and knowledge into practice. My first week I struggled getting into the role of a health care assistant, however, on the flip side as the weeks proceeded, I became more confident in carrying out duties such as observations, blood sugar levels, manual handling and care of a patient. During placement I felt as if the course struggled with meals, as due to restrictions, cooking was banned in our block. However this was discussed and it was resolved by being able to claim back the money we spent on meals whilst working. Overall, I really enjoyed placement and I think I will enjoy my career as a Health Care Assistant.
The final four weeks we managed to have a break which was definelty needed due to being stuck on camp with COVID-19 restrictions. After returning from leave we all knew there
I was worried about due to
not being prepared fitness-
wise in basic training. Unfortunately, COVID-19
took its toll and we weren’t
allowed to do any runs
or tabs which has had a
negative effect going to unit.
PT then began to ease its restrictions. So, we had the
chance to do a battle PT
session which was fun and
good team building exercise as being in single person rooms we didn’t get to spend a large amount of time together
PTwas introduced which I was worried about due to not being prepared fitness-wise in basic training
Visiting the QA site at the National Memorial Arboretum