As a child I would watch an animation series called ‘Once upon a time…life’ which tells the story of the human body for children. It was a way of learning about the mechanisms of the human body with characters representing various organs, system’s such as red blood cells or viruses. Each series would feature a different part of the body like the heart or the circulatory system. To this day I still remember how much I loved it and how it got me interested in how the body works.
I have worked as a Medical Photographer for the NHS since 2006 as a student working my way up to a senior position. My career came to an end when I was finally offered a position as a trainee APT in September 2021 and I will never look back!!
During my time as a photographer, I would attend the mortuary for various clinical reasons to photograph and document requests from coroners or pathologists which I would find interesting and ask questions as you do when you are curious and want to learn about the process. I began to take more interest in the roles of the mortuary staff and learn more about the work carried out and why.
My role as a photographer would also allow me to work with various consultants on the wards and in theatres which made every day vary as you didn’t know what you would be called to. I would be documenting anything from a diabetic foot to aortic heart valve replacement, it gave me the chance to learn more about anatomy and what the body does to recover and heal.
It is early days for me here as I am still to start the RSPH Level 3 Diploma in Healthcare Science (Anatomical Pathology Technology), but I have learnt such a vast amount already, including how to care for the deceased, the importance of policies, HTA and other services that are customers to the mortuary such as Funeral services, Police services, coroners and most importantly families.
I am keen to learn and develop my skills to make the department run as sufficient as possible. I am also pleased to be part of the AAPT, the courses give me so much more scope on what is happening in other areas, how changes come into play and the chance of what I am learning the though the courses get implemented in my everyday working role.