Hi, I’m Naila and I work for North East London NHS Foundation Trust. I’m a medical doctor and a general paediatrician. I look after babies, children and young people up to the age of 18 years.
My job entails looking after the health needs of children and young people who are in the social care system.
Children and young people often end up in foster care after experiencing neglect, abuse or violence. My job is to ensure that these children and young people have help and support for their health and well-being. I love my job because of the variety, complexity and opportunity to work with professionals across different organisations for the purpose of improving the health outcomes of children and young people.
I come from humble beginnings and my parents come from a rural part of Pakistan. I was the first person to go to university in my family. I am originally from West Yorkshire and went to a state school. After completing my A levels, I studied medicine at the University of Liverpool. On completion of my undergraduate degree I did my foundation training in West Yorkshire. I enjoyed my paediatrics placement at university and worked on a children’s ward during my foundation year training, which inspired me to apply for speciality training in paediatrics.
My advice would be that if you are interested to work in the health sector, try and shadow a health professional in order to gain better insight into what the job entails. The health sector is not as glamorous as it might appear in the media and sometimes it can be really hard especially if you are working as a frontline worker. The health sector is challenging but rewarding at the same time. It is a great opportunity to make a lasting difference to people’s lives.
The National Health Service is one of the largest employers in the world. Every employee is a valuable part of the NHS body. The job opportunities in the NHS are diverse and can vary from anything such as Finance, Management, administration, Research and development, Nursing, Medicine, Pharmacy, Allied Health Professionals, Information Technology and beyond.
Whatever your interest, there will be place for you to develop and grow within the health sector. Lastly if you do decide to work as a frontline health care worker such as in nursing or medicine, make sure you look after your well-being and emotional health. Keep a good network of friends and family around who can support you through the challenges that lie ahead. It is all worth it in the end. Trust me.