Are you an adult nurse but would like to care for sick children?
This rare opportunity to be part of a team caring for children and young people may be the next step in your career.
We recognise that nurses with experience in adult nursing have specialist knowledge, skills and clinical expertise that can enhance the dynamic of our teams – that’s why we are looking for a cohort of experienced adult nurses who wish to move into caring for children and young people.
Here at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, we have a national and international reputation for clinical excellence and providing outstanding care to our 90,000 patients each year.
You will join our ambitious, brave and compassionate ward-based nursing teams who proudly deliver care across a range of specialties, including complex cardiac surgery, burns, epilepsy, oncology and transplantation.
To ensure you have the support you need to make the change, we will provide an initial orientation and a structured induction programme as well as opportunities for on-going professional development, some of which will be tailored to your specific identified needs.
To be considered for this opportunity you must be registered with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC), have a valid PIN and have a minimum on 18 months’ clinical experience.
Please come to our Open Day on 15th February 2020
Interviews will be held on 22nd February 2020
For further information or informal discussions, please contact Yvonne Millard, Deputy Chief Nurse for Paediatrics via yvonnemillard@nhs.net
Case study
Joanne Moore
Ward Manager, Medical Day Care
Jo began her nursing career at Solihull Hospital after qualifying as a Registered General Nurse in 1988.
A secondment opportunity arose to train as a Registered Sick Children’s Nurse at the old Children’s Hospital in Ladywood.
“I thoroughly enjoyed my training and I gained experience on a variety of wards including Neurosurgery, Day Case, and baby and Cardiac.
“What appealed to me was I that I wasn’t just caring for the child but the entire family; mum, dad and the siblings need as much attention as the child who is poorly.
Jo went on to qualify as a sick children’s nurse in 1993 and worked as a nurse both at Solihull and Heartlands before moving to Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where she now leads the nursing team on the Medical Day Care Unit.
“One of the advantages of having trained in adult nursing is that you gain a lot of medical knowledge from working on specialty wards.
“As ours is a nurse-led unit we cannulate, prescribe and monitor the children and having a breadth of experience is helpful.
“Of course being a mum myself also helps because it is life experience that gives you an empathy with the parents.
“I understand just how upsetting and frightening it is when their child is taken to theatre and so for me it is wonderful to be able to give that care and compassion to parents and their other children, while making sure the child who is our patient gets the very best treatment.
“Our Children’s Hospital is special – it is a very supportive environment with lots of guidance and encouragement; it’s like a big family because that’s what we do best – we care for families.”