Paediatric Nurse Charlotte McCulloch talks about the ‘immense satisfaction’ in her career so far with Prestige Nursing & Care.
Paediatric nurse Charlotte McCulloch has a lot to say about Prestige Nursing & Care. Having worked for Prestige for the past 5 years, beginning as a Health Care Assistant whilst a student and now as a Registered Children’s Nurse, Charlotte assesses her career to date and summarises that it’s the variety of work on offer that appeals to her most as a Prestige nurse.
“There’s huge scope with Prestige Nursing & Care for me to work as a paediatric nurse. I currently work full time as a nurse in a school for children with learning difficulties. My work finishes at 4pm and is Monday to Friday only, leaving with me the opportunity to work later shifts, weekends and nights during school holiday time. There is no typical day, which I love as I thrive on the daily challenges that paediatric nursing affords me. For example, on any given day I might be working for Prestige looking after children with special needs and challenging behaviour; and the next Prestige would typically have booked me a shift in a client’s home, where I might be expected to nurse a young adult with brain trauma who requires full physical and mental support. My day changes frequently, presenting many challenges as a result. I might have to administer emergency medication to a child with severe learning difficulties, or react quickly to and treat a young child having an epileptic fit. You never know what the day will bring.”
Charlotte’s local branch of Prestige Nursing & Care is Woking, who also book her frequent shifts with the children’s charity Whizz Kidz. The Whizz Kidz organisation run workshops and holiday camps for children with physical disabilities.
Such dedication to her career is evident, says Charlotte, “I love to see a child happy, seeing them achieve all the things you didn’t think were possible. The job satisfaction as a Prestige nurse is immense. And because I am offered a huge variety of work, I can be flexible with the rest of my life. It’s an enviable position to be in.” Continues Charlotte, “It’s so easy with Prestige. You submit your availability on-line with Webroster. It’s quick, easy and best of all my pay goes straight into my bank account every Wednesday. I also accrue holiday pay, and I can view all my hours and pay on the Prestige Members Portal. The Member Advantages Scheme is fantastic too: I can see why it’s a popular feature with many of your staff.”
Having worked for other nursing agencies throughout her career, Charlotte initially joined Prestige following a Google search for local nursing agencies (she was living in Leicester at the time). “Prestige came first in the Google rankings and after a little research I realised they were a national company. CQC results were good too, but best of all the Leicester office, and more recently Woking, were friendly, warm and open. In my experience other agencies have been a closed book, never meeting with their employees, but with Prestige I love the fact I can just pop in and say hello.” In addition, Charlotte adds, joining Prestige was a “quick and easy process.”
“There’s no doubt that working as a paediatric nurse requires you to be adaptable. A good sense of humour helps, and also the ability to work both autonomously and as part of a team. Empathy is also key – I have to remain strong when working with end of life patient’s. Putting emotion behind you isn’t always easy. But at the end of the day I have the support of the Prestige team. And a huge amount of job satisfaction.”
Charlotte McCulloch is a Paediatric Nurse who works in Surrey for the Woking branch of Prestige Nursing & Care. If you would like a career as a nurse with Prestige Nursing & Care, please call 0845 6000 949.
www.prestige-nursing.co.uk
