We offer work experience placements at Darent Valley Hospital, we are unable to offer placements at Queen Mary's Hospital, Erith & District Hospital or Elm Court.
For work experience placements, please consider which of the following options most closely fits your needs and follow the instructions on how to express an interest. We will not be able to consider applications where you do not fit the criteria or do not follow the correct procedure. Work experience placements are, in the first instance available to students within the local area. Once placement has begun we are unable to move you to different departments.

Placements available

16 years and over applicants

  • Survey patients in the ward to find out what leads to a positive experience
  • Analysis of existing data, such as surveys
  • Update communications materials such as leaflets or noticeboards & distributing information to new patients
  • Reverse mentoring; to help senior colleagues with social media
  • General housekeeping; tea making, making beds, general tidying
  • Helping patient orientation in the ward
  • Shadowing a nurse or healthcare assistant as they take and record a patient’s blood pressure, temperature and heart rate and completing fluid charts under direct supervision
  • Observing routine procedures, investigations or minor surgical procedures
  • Assisting with meals, preparing over tables, cutting food, encouraging the patient to eat/drink and patient feeding
  • Making deliveries to other departments or collections
  • Talking to or escorting patients
  • Attending team meetings

17 years and over applicants

  • Clinical placements in a shadowing capacity are only available to students who are 17 years or over and must be requested directly with the Consultant (please see below for a list of consultants who take work experience students). Students are required to write to the Consultant enclosing their CV along with the dates they would like a placement.
  • Physiotherapy only accept students who wish to train at university and need the experience for their application (proof maybe required). Placement within the Physiotherapy environment will give students an insight into General Medicine, Trauma Orthopaedics, Stroke and MSK. Only 8 students will be offered a one day placement in either April or August (this may be subject to change). To find out more and to apply please visit the Physiotherapy section on the Darent Valley Hospital website.
  • Occupational Therapy offer placements for students applying to university - to find out more and to apply please visit the Occupational Therapy section on the Darent Valley Hospital website.
  • Nutrition and Dietetics offer placements for students applying to university - to find out more and to apply please visit the Nutrition and Dietetics sectionon the Darent Valley Hospital website.

18 years and over applicants

  • The Radiology Department accept students on a one day placement to assist with their university application.
  • The Microbiology Departments only accept students to assist with a university application.
  • The Pathology Laboratory only accept graduate students for a minimum of three months. Applications will go directly to the Microbiology Manager.
If you are interested in a work experience placement please complete the online application form remembering to attach your CV. Please do not complete this form if you are looking for a placement in Occupational Therapy, the Pathology Laboratory or to shadow a Consultant.
Another option is volunteering, helping to provide valuable support to patients and staff. This involves non-clinical care and other tasks, and is another way of getting an idea of what it is like to work in the health and social care sector.

Note:

  • Applications for work experience at Darent Valley Hospital will only be accepted via the online form (except shadowing Consultants). Please complete all sections of the form, area of interest is any department you would wish to be placed within the hospital except above where you are advised to apply direct (always give at least one area of interest). Once submitted the form is sent direct to the Work Experience Placement Facilitator.
  • Maternity, Pharmacy and Haemotology Departments do not accept placement.
  • All Paediatric placements must be sent for the attention of Dr Suresh Kumar.
Work experience is unpaid and we are unable to offer expenses. Unfortunately, we cannot offer feedback if you are unsuccessful in your application.

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