To ask any health visitors if you like your job?

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I’m a currently a midwife but rapidly becoming a bit burnt out by the stresses of the job and thinking of retraining as a hv but I’m dithering about making the leap.

I really really love some aspects of my job but the low morale, dreadful staffing and constant worry about making an awful mistake when under pressure are getting to me.... any health visitors out there, how do you feel about your job? Would love a warts and all opinion to help me decide what to do!

I work in the NHS, but not a health visitor. My own health visitor told me (out of work time when i bumped into her)she couldn't take the stress anymore and was leaving to get a seasonal Xmas job - literally anything to get out.
Other Hv I've worked with professionally seem to spend a lot of time supporting families often with complex social issues. They seem to do the job a social worker once would have done then the Hv stuff on top. I personally would not want to do that job!

The stresses and strains and cutbacks of the last few years have left every healthcare profession feeling similar I think - less time, more complex patients and it is very easy to make a mistake in the current climate. It's not sustainable. I think midwives have it particularly tough though as the stakes are high with mistakes. Good luck with your future, sorry you are feeling this way x

I was just thinking what career move I would make in your shoes - probably a neonatal nurse in Scbu would be my first choice. Other than that something like specialist breastfeeding support etc

My HV has just had her area doubled and they are moving towards 0 -16yrs instead of 0-4/5

What about home birth team?

Can you look at a rotation to another area?

I know how you are feeling. Over 90% of our workforce are the same.

I’m an ex school nurse and majority of my friends are HV’s, one loves it the rest loathe it, it’s heavy in safeguarding, conference after conference report writing constantly it’s the same for school nurses as well and is the reason I left, I was involved in some horrendous cases and it got to the point where we couldn’t go and do the public health stuff with real live children which I loved, I went back to contraception and sexual health We have a good few midwives where I work, I love it x

HVs being made Band 7s in Scotland. Can’t answer your questIon though

Midwife here. I have a few HV friends who have moved from midwifery, they all love it. Maybe find some of it a bit boring but none hate it

I'm going into HV.
I've done a placement already and all the HV there loved their job.

I can't wait to start.

Thanks everyone, rather what I feared I’d hear - think my idea that there is a lower stress hcp option out there might be unrealistic :-( tough times for us all and suspect will only get tougher in the next few years...

Cross posted, nice to have some positives, thank you! Hoping it would give me some of the stuff I love (supporting women and families) without the acute clinical bits and all the stress that brings

I'm a HV, moved from midwifery for the reasons you mentioned. Have only been qualified for a few months but love it. Best decision I made, I can now sleep at night!

Another midwife here - have you thought about rotating to another area? I too felt burned out by the workload, staff morale etc. I’ve gone to the community and feel like I’m falling in love with midwifery again.

I have a HV friend who loves it but she does feel stretched by the workload.

I was a HV for 10+ years, but left for exactly the same reasons as you are worried about OP -stress, continually increasing workload, very little support and fear of making a mistake due to rushing. In addition cutbacks in Social Services led to more crisis visiting and very little support for vulnerable families until a crisis/safeguarding issue actually occurred. Think carefully, maybe shadow a HV for a while before you make the leap. The necessary post grad training is not easy either especially if you have family commitments too. HTH.

A friend who was a nurse went on to become a HV. She hated it due to all the safeguarding cases. She went back to her nursing job.

A relative who was previously a midwife went on to do her HV training. She worked in that role for 10+ years but took retirement at 55 due to the stress of the job. She now works on the 'bank' 3 days a week. So she obviously liked the actual work but not all the crap that went with it - which I assume she now manages to avoid a lot of by not beig an employee.

I am a hv - former midwife. Been doing the job for 5 yrs now. It was a real adjustment and I admit I didn’t have full understanding of the role when I started. It is more flexible and family friendly but I do way over my hours mainly in the way of record keeping, admin etc (am preparing a parenting workshop as I type - great on a Saturday night!). There are bits I hate - it can be v difficult to encourage and facilitate change - but bits I love, particularly mental health support. I am happier but it isn’t the easy option; the stress is just different from midwifery.

Again thank you to everyone, really helpful info - will think v carefully about the way forward and yes shadowing sounds like a good idea.

Have done stints in both community and hospital (community much better) but our trust is moving to a model of care that means midwives will have to do a mix of high risk hospital care alongside community as part of better births initiative so no option to be full community role in the long term sadly