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12 July 2011
RUH welcomes teenagers with learning disabilities into the workplace
The RUH is celebrating the success of eight teenagers who are getting ready to graduate from a year’s internship at the hospital. The significant fact here is that each of these young adults has a learning disability.
Thanks to the huge success of Project SEARCH – a programme to help young adults with learning disabilities learn skills necessary for future employment – these young students from Bath and North East Somerset (BaNES) and Wiltshire have significantly increased their prospects of full employment.
The RUH was one of the first hospitals in the South West to welcome teenagers with learning disabilities into the workplace as part of Project SEARCH, working in partnership with Fosse Way School and BaNES Adult Services. This is the second year that students have been taking part in the school-to-work internship at the RUH.
The Project provides an opportunity for real-life work, focused on both general and task-specific job skills. Students receive daily instruction in the workplace and independent living skills and participate in rotations on a particular job, to help them to make a successful transition from school to productive adult life.
Project SEARCH Co-ordinator Jan Marsh says: “Project SEARCH is a really important development for young people with special needs in their last year of schooling. This exciting collaboration with the RUH, is giving them an opportunity to be supported in their introduction to the work place with a real prospect of gaining employment by the end of the year.
“Project SEARCH challenges traditional perceptions about employing people with learning disabilities, proving that with good instruction and tuition, they can perform jobs as well as non-disabled people.”
The students have been working in Oncology outpatients, Trauma and Orthopaedic Unit, Facilities, Urology, Medical Assessment Unit, Catering, Pharmacy and Sterile Services.
In fact one of the students has already secured a job at the hospital and has also been awarded the Chief Executive’s Customer Care Award.
Matthew Baxter is working as a patient support assistant on the Trauma and Orthopaedic unit, where he is responsible for some of the housekeeping arrangements on the ward, such as maintaining stock levels in the stores, arranging for sharps bins to be changed, serving meals, and generally keeping the environment tidy; all things which free up nursing time. Matt’s Mentor Simon Andrews says that Matthew provides excellent support to them and to patients.
Matthew’s manager, Clinical Service Manager for Orthopaedics Julie Stone says: “Matthew came to us on placement for a term and quickly became one of the team. It was obvious to all the staff that without Matthew’s help, nurses would need to spend time away from patient care in order to complete these tasks. We were delighted therefore that he was successful in his application for the post of patient support assistant. Matthew is a well respected member of the team and richly deserves his Chief Executive’s Award.
The RUH is committed to creating an environment in which everyone feels valued and able to give of their best, and believes that a diverse workforce can have a positive impact on both the everyday running of the hospital and the quality of patient care.
Chief Executive James Scott says: “The RUH is extremely proud to be working with students from across the Bath and Wiltshire area in this pioneering initiative. I’ve been really pleased to have been involved with Project SEARCH since its inception, having originally heard of the idea from colleagues at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in the States. We are proud of our staff for embracing the concept and creating such great opportunities for the interns.”
Copies of recent presentations and Publications regarding Project SEARCH can be viewed here.
Click here to download RUH Hospital Insight magazine_-Article on Project Search
