To ask if anyone works in these careers?

[LM1970]

DD wants to go back to college- has a couple of ideas in mind and doesn’t know which way to go.

Her choices are:

Paramedic- problem is, she drives an adapted car. Do they hire paramedics who don’t drive? This is her “dream” career if you like

Midwife

Social worker- although she is worried about abusive clients etc who she may have to deal with on her own, and whether people will judge her as ‘someone who takes people’s children away’

No idea about any of them and she needs to make her mind up soon. Any advice?

I was a foster carer and now have adopted there are lots types of social workers just like their are lots of different nurses

So for example and adoption social deals with adopters only so in a way in a kind of happy job you get to make families not brake them up

If she could be on the fostering team and be a foster carers social worker and you pretty much deal with foster carers all day

I am a support worker and all my clients who are adults have a social worker

You would need to contact the trust of the area you are in. Here paramedics must have a C1 licence (vehicles over a certain weight) this allows them to drive the ambulances. This is a must have here. Some universities include time to do the C1 into their timetable.

However people will judge her for being a social worker and she will have to grow a thick skin most people’s Knowledge of child protection comes from watching Tracey beaker if I had a penny eveytime somone asks me about children’s homes

I am a midwife. When you say she drives an adapted car, does she have a disability?
Midwifery is physically and mentally hard work. If you don't drive, then you are usually hospital based.
Upside: loads of jobs. Good if you like caring for women.
Downside: Shift work and gruelling workload for modest pay packet.

A lot of people leave due to stress.

They are all very worthwhile careers. I don’t know anything about being a paramedic but social work isn’t just about child protection and removing children from parents. You can work with the elderly and vulnerable adults. Midwifery is physically and mentally hard but very rewarding most of the time. As a midwife you do sometimes have to do referrals to social care which can result in babies being taken into care. All of the careers mentioned can come in for abuse at times. Sounds like she needs to do a bit more research to work out what will suit her best. Good luck!

Why does she drive an adapted car? Being a paramedic isquite physical.

What is she good at? Can she evaluate evidence and argue her point? Thats quite important for a social worker. Not all socialworkers work with families, and not all that do remove children.

Any job meeting members of the public is likely to encounter people being abusive.

There are loads of social work jobs that don't involve making the sorts of assessments and decisions that can split families. It's also a less physical job than the other two which might perhaps work in her favour?

I'm a student midwife, were you looking for any advice in particular?

The course is massively oversubscribed so voluntary work and a good knowledge of the role is definitely needed.

You say 'back to college'. Has she already done a course?
Does she have the required qualifications for any of the courses mentioned?

I taught A levels and one of my students wanted to be a paramedic. He was studying Human Biology and was predicted an A/A* grade. He had worked for several years for St John's Ambulance - working at loads of events, had all the training etc. He was a carer in a nursing home at weekends and had a driving licence. He still couldn't get onto a paramedic degree course or onto the course run by the ambulance service (can't remember the name of it now.) He simply couldn't have had any more experience. If your daughter sets her heart on that it's very likely she'd be disappointed - apparently it's massively over-subscribed.

As someone else said, social workers don;t only work in the child protection field, but in many different areas, including forensic social work, for example. She could look into the wider opportunities in social work, not just child protection.

I know a few first responders, couple of paramedics. IME they are quite different to SWs and MWs. More A type, slightly risky people. And they do get abuse and physical harm is possible. More than SWs I would say.

SWs do all sorts of jobs, with adults as well as children. I used to say, "...but not child protection" very quickly after my job when I worked for SS because some people react badly to SWs.

What appeals to her? Caring? Racing around saving people? Relationship?

I'm a midwife. In theory I love the job. I have amazing colleagues and get to see amazing people become/add to their families.

However it's exhausting, pretty much no one can sustain working full time in the hospital I am at. We are constantly short staffed. The pay isn't great unless you do weekends and nights, which massively impacts on work life balance.

Physiological birth is on the decrease, women are complicated, obstetric team get involved. Expectations are high, so often women are disappointed and traumatised and it's rubbish not being able to change the situation.

If she drives an adapted car, is she disabled? I don't know if that would disqualify her from being a paramedic, but I do know that you have to demonstrate that you can lift heavy weights. It is also a degree course now.

What is it that appeals to her about those jobs? Or her ideas of what those jobs involve?

Social workers also work with adults as part of community mental health teams. She might want to narrow that one down a bit.

A paramedic has to pass a fitness test which she may not physically be able to pass.

Surely the best thing would be to contact the courses directly herself to answer all these questions straight from the horses mouth and not get her DM to ask random strangers MN.

You need to a certain level of maturity to undertake these courses and careers.

I would look at physio and occupational therapy. Physio is much more varied than people think and I know several OTs and PTs with disabilities. Also not much shift work.

I work with two paramedics - they both used to and may still do drive in ambulances. But now work in a GP surgery and are both absolutely amazing

Fairly certain that you have to be able to drive to be a paramedic. Otherwise one of the crew would be constantly driving.

Midwifery can be pretty physical, I know lots of midwives who do more 'desk job' now but you still have to go through the training. Depends on the disability as to whether it could be accommodated in an intrapartum acute setting.