Louise
Before joining the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) in October 2011, I worked for the Legal Ombudsman and the Probation Service. I was attracted to the Caseworker role at PHSO because I had heard it was a good place to work and they had the Investors in People accreditation. I also wanted to help put things right for people and contribute to supporting improvements in the NHS.
My contact based work at the Probation Service has helped me in my role at PHSO, as I have learnt to deal with people from all walks of life.
When I joined I was allocated an Advisor who is always happy to help and support me. My team and manager are also really approachable; especially when I’m asking about the NHS, having not covered this area of casework before. It is good working in a culture where colleagues are so friendly and approachable things get sorted out quickly.
To take the role I also moved from Birmingham to Manchester. Flexible working was really helpful when I was looking for a flat. It’s also nice to sometimes leave earlier on a Friday when visiting family for the weekend.
The work is very structured and the processes are rigid. At first I found this took time to get used to, but I’ve been impressed with how that protects complainants and how fair that makes the outcomes. It’s nice to know that the service we offer is fair and accessible to a wide range of people from all areas of our society.
I’ve found that the information you require to assess a case is not always that easy to read or even obtain, but my training has already helped me improve how I identify and summarise key information, my report writing and general casework skills.
It’s good that I can use my skills to help someone. I can help people feel that they have been listened to, that I have shown fairness to all and right wrongs where they are found.
