Healthcare Support Worker

These are the most common healthcare support worker duties:

• Being the primary caregiver for patients, making sure they feel relaxed and comforted. This may include making cups of tea and good conversation 

• Acting as a nurse's assistant, monitoring patients’ conditions by regularly checking their temperature, pulse, breathing, and weight  

• Helping patients move around, eat, wash, and dress 

• Sterilising equipment 

• Taking blood samples and processing lab samples 

Career progression

Working as a healthcare assistant in the NHS will help you develop the skills necessary to become a medical professional, such as a registered nurse. As an healthcare support worker, you'll have hands-on experience with patient care and receive advice for future roles from your experienced colleagues. You'll also learn many soft skills such as communicating effectively; managing work under time pressures; and teamwork, which are useful outside of the health and social care sector. Career opportunities from this role include:

• Being paid by the NHS to train to take a qualification and become a registered nurse (no previous educational qualifications are required) 

• Specialising in a health practice such as radiography, mental health care, or maternity care 

• Desk-based roles such as improving the health service, admin roles, or research 

• Transitioning to social care, such as working as a care assistant

Key information

• Typical salary: £18,500 to £21,700 (37.5 hours per week) 

• Often includes shift work (days, nights, weekends, bank holidays)

• No qualifications or prior experience needed, including GSCEs, A-Levels, or BTECs

• You must have the right to work in the UK 

• You must be willing to wear a face mask during shifts 

• Up to 27 days annual leave

• Eligible for NHS worker discounts