How you can volunteer and gain experience that will give you insight into medicine
Medicine is a demanding but rewarding career - as such, medical schools will require all applicants to have at least some idea of what a career in medicine looks like. An important part of this is through experience in a caring-based role or observing healthcare professionals. These are essentially the two forms of experience which medical schools will look favourably upon. Work experience can be paid or unpaid (voluntary), but at the end of the day it generally doesn't matter what type of work experience or how long for - what matters is what you have learnt from it and how this has helped you on your path to studying medicine.
In order to get work experience, you will need to have a CV or letter prepared stating why you want to volunteer/work/observe at any given place. Make a list of all the places where you will be happy to gain exprience - this could be local care homes, hospices, GP surgeries, hospitals (this can be harder to get), charities etc. and then start applying to all of them.
GP surgeries normally allow you to just walk in and hand a letter/CV to the reception, whilst hospitals will require you to email human resources (HR), voluntary services or learning and development departments within your local NHS trust. You can usually speak to care homes, hospices or charities directly and they will advise you on whether or not they take on volunteers. Charities and similar organisations will often have a dedicated volunteer programme already set up, so you should be able to find this just by visiting their website or searching the name of the charity along with 'volunteer'. For example, St. John Ambulance take on volunteers in many different roles and have a straightforward application process.
A final thing to consider is background checks are often required for many volunteering roles, especially if you are working with children or vulnerable adults. You can be asked for a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check if you are aged 16 or over, which can cost between £23-£40, depending on the type of DBS check. If you are volunteering the organisation will often pay for the cost of this - when I applied to volunteer for both CityWise and Age UK, both paid for my DBS check.
It is often easier to volunteer than it is to get work experience, just because the nature of healthcare work makes it difficult to have someone observing. Volunteering can be almost anything - even healthcare-related volunteering covers a a wide range, from care home volunteering to a hospital ward volunteer. Volunteering demonstrates that you are committed to helping people whilst also developing key skills such as communication, compassion and empathy, and even leadership. Volunteering is more hands-on than just directly shadowing doctors and is often more valuable for your medical school application.
It is really easy to get started with volunteering and all it takes is a quick search and perhaps filling out an application form. Good places to get started are volunteering organisations, which will list thousands of opportunities across the country. DoIT, The Royal Voluntary Service and The National Council for Voluntary Organisations each have many volunteering opportunities advertised along useful advice on how to get started. Once you have found a volunteering placement you like the look of, you can contact them directly and go through the application process.
Many NHS trusts now have dedicated volunteer services, which you can just apply for. After applying you can choose the role you want, which ranges from being a meet and greet for patients to being a ward volunteer and with the COVID-19 pandemic, an NHS Volunteer Responder. There are a wide range of roles you can choose from as a volunteer responder, although you have to be over 18. However, you can apply to most NHS trusts as a volunteer from the age of 16, although if you are under 18 you will need the a parent/carer consent form. Before the first UK's first lockdown, I was considering volunteering for Manchester University Foundation Trust, after a friend told me about their service. He also worked as a healthcare assistant whilst studying Biochemistry at Manchester, before going to study graduate-entry medicine at Warwick. This may be an option to consider if you are taking a gap year.
Care home volunteering is perhaps most popular, particularly if you struggle to find work experience or volunteering in a GP/hospital. Care homes and day centres are wonderful places to volunteer, full of older people who have interesting stories to tell and who simply want someone to chat to. The easiest way to volunteer for a care home or day centre is by contacting those in your local area, either by phone or email. Most of the time they are happy for volunteers and are grateful any help they can get. Alternatively, if you know someone who perhaps works in a care home then you may be able to volunteer where they work. A lot of care homes are independently run, but you can also go through organisations such as MHA, who operate care homes nationally and look for volunteers in other areas such as telephone befrienders, shoppers and drivers for their elderly residents. Age UK is a charity that I volunteered for on a regular basis, in a day centre and one of their shops - read more here!
With thousands of charities across the UK, volunteering for one is easier than ever. Whether it's volunteering in a shop, fundraising for the a charity, or supporting people, there is most certainly something you can do to help. It also doesn't matter how much time you give up - it can be one hour a week to 20 hours a week. All that matters is you are making a difference and that you reflect on what you have learnt. A few of my favourite charities to get you started are British Red Cross, The Stroke Association, Alzheimer's Research UK, Cancer Research UK and Macmillan Cancer Support.
With the COVID-19 pandemic much volunteering that was previously done in person had to move online. However, with this presented new opportunities and made use of technology such as video calling and smartphones. An example of a charity which helped a lot of older people during the pandemic is Reengage, who have volunteer call companions that make regular calls to a lonely or isolated older person. I signed up to this at the start of the pandemic but they were so oversubscribed that by the time they offered me a role, I was too busy and felt I couldn't give it adequate time. One good thing to come out of the pandemic is the overwhelming support and willingness of the public to help each other and charities like Reengage, so they can still carry out their vital work.
A lot of medical schools recognise that it is not always easy to get work experience placements in a healthcare setting, hence why they place just as much emphasis on volunteering placements. Furthermore, due to COVID-19 universities are aware it has not been possible to get any healthcare work experience at all. This year, a lot of medical schools have relaxed their work experience requirements, although that does not mean you should not get any experience - in fact many medical schools suggest alternative ways of gaining experience that will still be valuable in medicine. For example, researching online about the NHS and participating in virtual forms of work experience. Two great examples of this are Brighton and Sussex Medical School's Virtual Work Experience and Observe GP. During normal times, most medical schools accept any form of volunteering in a caring role as they want you to have an understanding of a career in medicine and display the necessary skills.
If you do want to do work experience in a healthcare setting, being persistent is key. You may have to contact 20 GP surgeries before one even replies. Do not get disheartened if you don't get a response at all - healthcare professionals are busy people! Likewise, with a hospital placement, this can be even harder to obtain and you may need to apply to several trusts. If you happen to know someone who works in the NHS then they may be able to secure you some work experience, although this is not possible for everyone. Consider all of your options - perhaps it is better to volunteer for a charity or a care home instead of finding a GP placement if nowhere has got back to you and you want to apply this year? Even if you just get in touch with a doctor and ask them a few questions, this will still show that you are willing to gain insight into a medical career and will give you something to talk about at interview. If you do manage to find some healthcare work experience, remember to prepare questions to ask, be ready to learn and most importantly reflect on what you have done each day. All of this will help you write your personal statement and with any interviews you get.
In a particular challenging year, whilst there have been limitations on GP/hospital work experience, there have been ample opportunities to volunteer, even if not necessarily in person. Work experience and volunteering placements form an essential part of your medical school application because it informs on your desire to study medicine and demonstrates your willingness to help others. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter so much what experience(s) you have, as they will be unique to you and as long as you can reflect on it, will be something you can refer to in your personal statement and at interview. A good way of reflecting on your experiences is to keep a diary - this could even be on your phone and you could just write a sentence or two in it everyday. Reading up on the latest news and current affairs, especially about healthcare professionals during the pandemic can be useful - doctors are part of a bigger team in the healthcare system and learning about other professions will be useful. As always, if you want to know the specific work experience requirements for a medical school it is best to check directly on their website. Otherwise, best of luck on volunteering or finding work experience!
The Medic Portal Guide to Medical Work Experience
Medical School Work Experience Requirements
BMA Getting Medical Work Experience
Med Schools Council Work Experience
The Aspiring Medics Online Work Experience Guide
Posted by Nathan
