Tracy, specialist orthoptist, talks us through her amazing career as an AHP and has some words of advice if you want to become an AHP.
I'm Tracy Crowley, specialist orthoptist, outreach and audit lead. I first joined the Trust in 1997 as a Basic Grade Orthoptist, having qualified the year before from Liverpool University in 1996. Addenbrooke’s was the second post I held in my career, having spent the first 8 months of my career at the Leicester Royal Infirmary.
During my time here, I was promoted to Lead Clinical Tutor at around the time when the agenda for change pay scales came into effect, when I became a Band 6, with both a clinical role and a teaching / supervisory role.
At that time, I was seconded to job matching for the Trust for 1 day per week, and am therefore a trained job matcher and evaluator; a role which I very much enjoyed and have found invaluable through my career.
I left the Trust in 2015 in order to take up the position of head orthoptist at East and North Herts NHS Trust, where I spent 3 years. I then took up another head orthoptist post in Milton Keynes for 12 months, before a local head orthoptist vacancy became available at nearby Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Huntingdon.
I spent almost 10 years there, before returning to Milton Keynes (again as head orthoptist) for a further 2 years. During my time at Milton Keynes, I also held a Band 6 clinical role on the bank in Bedfordshire. I very much enjoyed the clinical workload in Bedfordshire, and so when my current post at Addenbrooke’s was advertised late in 2021, I jumped at the chance to return to a full time clinical position.
By far, I enjoy the patient contact in my role. It gives me great satisfaction to know that the treatment I have prescribed gives patients relief of symptoms and / or treats the condition they have.
Being able to help an adult patient who has double vision is very rewarding, enabling them to resume many of their everyday activities, including the ability to drive, once they have adapted to it.
With children, although patching treatment for a lazy eye can be difficult for some, it is equally as rewarding to see their vision improve from one visit to another if they are able to comply with treatment, enabling them to reach their full potential both at school and in their career as they age.
I also very much enjoy the teamwork aspect of my role. orthoptics is a profession which links with the wider ophthalmology team including optometrists, ophthalmologists, nurses, healthcare assistants and technicians, as well as external and other teams including GP’s, stroke teams, endocrinologists, visual impairment teams and many others, so that individual care can be effectively developed for each patient.
If you are someone who can interact well with people, and you enjoy making a positive difference to patients and their lives, then an AHP role is for you. Use all the opportunities you have to learn from others and learn by doing, as AHP roles are hands-on, vocational careers.
Don’t be afraid to get down to a child’s level and make the tests fun…. It’s how you’ll gain the most from them, and don’t be embarrassed about interacting with them in that way.
AHP roles are varied and wide, and there is scope to move into extended roles for more job variety, as well as management roles, so although they are specialist careers, there are lots of opportunities if you wish to take them as you develop.