The compelling reasons for working in the NHS

Today, I celebrate a 10 year relationship with the NHS. I have either worked in or with the NHS over the last 10 years. It's been an incredible decade - I've learnt a lot, grown personally and professionally and I am passionate about the NHS.


As I reflect back, what I find particularly interesting is the fact that so many of my friends have also been drawn to the NHS over time. For example, at University, I lived in a house of 6 girls. Today, four of us work in the NHS. Two of us in HR / OD roles (and our degrees at university were totally unrelated to this field). One is a Clinical Psychologist and the other has just returned to a Director post in an Arms Length Body after a few years in a consultancy role.

So what compells us to have this working relationship with the NHS?

1) The NHS is complex. It can take a while to get your head around the entire system and how the NHS actually works. As a result, working in the NHS is intellectually stimulating. It doesn't matter where you work in the NHS, for each sector it's the same agenda - just each has a different perspective.

2) When you work within the NHS, you learn to work with limited resources. The NHS might be coming out of the "years of plenty" as a result of the credit crunch, but the NHS has never been cash-rich compared to the private sector. As a result, practitioners have to be more creative, thinking beyond the usual "fixing" mechanisms, to find a result or outcome that will be cost effective but still with the same level of impact.

3) There's an incredible sense of altuism. Everyone who works in the NHS feels it. Each Trust has it's own culture, but the sense of altruism is the thread that ties everyone together. This altruism is often displayed as a passion for improving services for patients. Irrespective of what job you do - you want to "make a difference". When I've had a bad day, I remind myself of the end goal, which is always to improve x, or y so that (ultimately) patients benefit. Even in an HR/OD role, you can still make the link back to the patient.

4) The NHS attracts a wide range of different people into its employment. I have worked for a number of Trusts in Inner London, where local recruitment is integral to the resourcing strategy. The employment profile is therefore very diverse. In the last Trust where I held a substantive post, there were more BME staff than there were white staff. And this reflected the ethnic profile of the local population. I have learnt an incredible amount from the rich diversity of staff that I have been lukcy enough to work with.

5) And finally, the ethics of the NHS. (I had a conversation just this last week with an employment solicitor on this topic) Due to the high union presence, there is a requirement (and rightly so) for processes are to be fair and transparent for staff. I feel as an HR Practitioner that through-out any "employee relations" case due regard for an employee's rights and their dignity should remain central. I believe in fairness and equity for all staff and this key principle is fundamental to me as an HR practitioner. I feel that "at home" in the NHS.

These are my top 5 reasons for why I love working with the NHS. Yes, there are also downsides, but at the end of the day I think the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. What are your reasons for working in the NHS?