My name is Sophie Glover, I’m an Occupational Therapist working in Care Direct Plus East.
When did you start at Devon County Council (DCC)?
I started working for Devon County Council in September 2019 after graduating at the University of West England in Bristol.
What made you choose to work for DCC?
I chose to work for Devon County Council as I had my final year of placement at Bristol City Council. I thoroughly enjoyed being a Student Occupational Therapist in Bristol City Council and found there were a lot of benefits for working for the council.
I really enjoyed the role there and therefore when I finished Uni, I returned home to Devon. So, I began applying for jobs within Devon County Council. I was quite familiar with working for a council, and I knew I enjoyed the variety of the role. So luckily a job became available when I was looking to start my career as an Occupational Therapist.
Can you give an overview of your role?
I assess the needs for people with a wide range of disabilities and health conditions. I was, pre-pandemic, assessing people face-to-face but since the pandemic we are assessing people via telephone or through video conferencing. I enable people to maximise their safety, independence and potential. As well as reducing risk to themselves or their Carers.
So, like I just touched upon, pre-pandemic we were visiting people in their own homes but now attempting to use technologies to assess people. So, the role’s changed slightly. We can still go visit people at home if the technology isn’t suitable or viable in the case, but we are trying to do as much as we can virtually or through telephone assessments at the moment.
How did you come to be in this role?
I came across this role, as I shadowed an Occupational Therapist in another team in DCC. I really enjoyed the job, I enjoyed what they did, I enjoyed the variety of the role and therefore I applied for a similar job when it became available.
What support did you receive when you joined as an Occupational Therapist?
When I first joined as an Occupational Therapist, I was required to undertake a preceptorship. So, I was supported by my preceptor and my manager who oversaw the process. I had to complete competencies, reflections and attended training to broaden my knowledge as an Occupational Therapist. And learn the ropes of the role and become comfortable and confident in my work. I also received supervision from both my supervisor and my manager, and I’ve got a really supportive team who, I feel like, I could go to if I needed anymore support.
What’s your favourite part of what you do?
My favourite part of the job is, I just enjoy meeting clients. Pre-pandemic I really enjoyed visiting clients in their own home, but I also enjoy meeting clients virtually. It’s really enjoyable to know you are making a difference to their lives.
We can do things such as providing equipment that makes activities of daily living easier or we can recommend major adaptations to enable them to live safely and independently at home. Along with many more interventions that we do.
I enjoy how varied the job role is, every case is different, every person is different. The job is really interesting, no day is the same; there is always something new to learn.
How you progressed through your role?
Well, I’ve progressed through my role after completing my preceptorship in September 2020. I’ve now recently been offered a secondment for a band 6 role in the team. So, this will be a really good learning opportunity for me as it requires more responsibility than the role, I’m in now, and I’ll be picking up more complex cases.
What benefits do you enjoy?
Some of the benefits for working for DCC are the flexible working. So, pre-pandemic, we could choose whether to work from the office or whether to work from home. Less so now, due to COVID, but it’s still one of the great benefits of working for the council.
I’ve also got a really supportive team who regularly catch up and keep in touch with each other, and the job also allows for a great work/life balance.
What do you enjoy about living and working in Devon?
I enjoy living in Devon because I love the mixture between the rural and the city life. So, I enjoy being able to visit the beach, but I also enjoy being able to quite quickly visit the city centre.
I enjoy working in Devon, as pre-COVID, we were all visiting people in their own homes, so I got to travel all over Devon and see the nice areas of Devon.