My first week in the working world!

1st September - 5th September 2014

Welcome to my first blog post! My name is Emma Hardy; I am a student at Manchester Metropolitan University, studying Business. As part of the third year of my degree, I had the opportunity to undertake a twelve month placement. I was lucky enough to have found an exciting position here at the NHS Eastern Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group, where I will perform the role of a ‘Commissioning and Quality Officer’.

This particular placement really appealed to me because of the opportunity to work within different departments, meet a range of colleagues and manage a number of projects within the healthcare profession.
After an extremely long summer break (not to make anyone jealous!) I was ready to start a new and exciting challenge as a placement student working for a public sector organisation. As a student entering an organisation as large and well-known as the NHS, I was understandably nervous and apprehensive about my first day, but I was soon made to feel welcome by a friendly and helpful bunch of professional people.

My first week at the CCG consisted of several introductory activities, including Mandatory Training, meeting with staff to discuss their roles, in addition to reading a number of useful NHS documents. I also had the opportunity to attend meetings to listen and make notes about what happens on a daily basis within the CCG. Towards the end of the week, I attended the Locality Meeting, where I met a range of healthcare professionals and GP practice managers to listen to their progress with various projects.

As my first working week came to an end, I had learnt an awful lot about the daily operation of a Clinical Commissioning Group, the vast range of contracts which the CCG is responsible for and the need for high quality services from providers. My first week was one that was very interesting and really opened my eyes as to how CCGs play a crucial role in planning, buying and monitoring healthcare for the local population. There has been a lot of information to get my head around, but I am looking forward to spending the next twelve months developing my knowledge and skills within the CCG.

Visit the CCG's website to find out more; www.easterncheshireccg.nhs.uk