Anne Smith has taken on apprentices for a number of years. She says the Oldham College team are ‘fantastic’ and the apprentices she has trained ‘amazing’
“Working with Oldham College just made sense,” says Anne. “I myself started at this practice in 1985 via Oldham College, and our Head Nurse – who has worked here for 21 years – also gained her qualification through the College.”
“Our apprentices go through a 12-week induction where they’re trained on reception, decontamination and surgery,” Anne says.
“{my}dentist also provides an online system, which supports the in-practice training. Our apprentices are supported by a mentor until they can demonstrate that they are confident and skilled enough to work alone.
“I also meet with apprentices weekly to review their progress at work and at College, to make sure they are happy.”
“The College has been fantastic. The team keeps me up to date with our apprentice’s work and progress, coming into the practice to assess them so we can discuss any training needs face-to-face. I receive feedback which I use to ensure the practice is supporting apprentices in the right way.”
The Apprenticeship and Employer Engagement team were Anne’s first point of contact and assisted Anne in selecting candidates for interview. The team then set up an Apprenticeship Service Levy account for Ripponden Road, and helped to liaise with the {my}dentist head office.
“Just do it,” Anne says.
“Working with apprentices has been a very positive experience. I love watching them grow and develop, gaining confidence and new skills. Apprentices have stayed with the practice after qualifying, which benefits us– and taking on apprentices has helped to build a team that learns and develops together and is more unified.”
Working with apprentices has been a very positive experience. I love watching them grow and develop, gaining confidence and new skills.
