TNAs in General Practice

Kristy Austin

UEA

“I have worked within General Practice for just over ten years now. I began my journey as a part-time receptionist and this role led me down many different pathways within the practice, from     workflow lead to deputy site lead at my current surgery. The role I enjoyed most was that of Nurse Administrator for the Lead Nurse. I began this role approximately four years ago and as the role developed my clinical knowledge, I decided to become a Healthcare Assistant.

“This was very different from that of an admin role, but I realised that this was something I really wanted to do, and I enjoyed every minute of learning as many clinical skills as I could.  When the opportunities opened up at University to be able to further my career as a TNA, I immediately took the opportunity to ask for the support of the Partners and Lead Nurse at my Practice. They were extremely positive about this opportunity and I was enrolled as soon as I could be in February 2020. This really has been an excellent opportunity for me to work full time in the job that I love, while also being able to gain a recognised qualification.

“There is an amount of academic work involved and I thought, at 41 years old, I would struggle as I had left school at 16 and had done no academic study since. But with all the support from the Lecturers, Clinical Educators, Academic Assessors and all my colleagues here, it really hasn’t been as hard as I’d imagine it would first be; The first module was solely to teach you how to reference and research, enabling you to write an academic piece of work.

“I also gained the opportunity to experience two placements to date. These was extremely beneficial to me as it made me realise more areas that I would like to work within by giving me the experience of different care settings. Along with these placements I have also had the opportunity to do ten spoke days. These are days in multiple areas which allowed me to gain a wider breadth of knowledge.

“I would definitely recommend this pathway into nursing. I will be starting my 2^nd year and I’m really looking forward to it. I am also hoping to continue on and do the 2 year top-up to become a Registered Nurse. Becoming a TNA is a really positive move and I think that anyone who is thinking of furthering their carer should definitely consider this pathway, as you can continue to do the job you love whilst learning. It is the best thing that I have done and it’s true what they say, life really did begin at 40 for me.”