Casey Bilson, who is part of DHU Healthcare’s Primary Care team, recently celebrated a significant career milestone by completing her Assistant Practitioner degree. With six years' service at DHU, Casey has played a vital role, stationed at the Bowling Green Street GP Surgery in Leicester.
Regarding her recent achievement, Casey acknowledges the challenges and the help that the robust support system has given her at DHU. "It was hard work, but I had a lot of support from DHU. Zoe Hunt was my assessor, gave me any support that I needed, and my line manager was incredibly flexible, providing me with time away from clinics when I needed it. The whole of DHU has been the most supportive that they can be with me, even up to senior management level and the GPs I work with."
Casey's proudest moment goes beyond simply completing her degree. "Graduating is my biggest achievement and having my daughter there to see me graduate. I wouldn't have been able to do it without the continued support of DHU and Zoe in particular every step of the way."
Reflecting on her achievements, Casey explains, "I've stepped up from a Healthcare Assistant to an Assistant Practitioner, which means I'm now more skilled and qualified to do more clinical duties. Day to day, this can involve me performing blood tests, vaccinations, diabetic reviews and asthma assessments which I specialise in. It's incredibly fulfilling to make a positive impact on patients' lives."
Looking ahead, Casey would like to continue to develop her clinical career, telling us: "I look forward to progressing and training to become a nurse, and I hope to have the support of DHU throughout this journey."
In addition to her clinical role, Casey has embraced the responsibilities of Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) and Recall Manager, a new role she assumed in March. Reflecting on this role, she notes, "I have been promoted to be a QOF and Recall Manager half of the time. I'm learning new things every day. The role consists of ensuring our patient targets are met and that the right care is being given to the patient at the right time. It’s a new role and big task, as our three sites which it covers total around 20,000 patients”.
Zoe Hunt, Lead Clinical Mandatory Trainer, commended Casey for her outstanding achievements. "I would like to congratulate Casey on gaining a distinction in the assistant practitioner foundation degree. Casey has now passed all of the requirements for her assistant practitioner foundation degree, including all the apprenticeship standards. Casey has been a dedicated student and has excelled both clinically and academically and has been a pleasure to work with throughout the course. She is an asset to DHU and the GP surgery she works in."
Casey's dedication to primary care stems from the satisfaction of building rapport with patients and delivering impactful long-term care. Despite the busyness of primary care, she finds fulfilment in making a difference and looks forward to educating patients about their conditions in the future. Congratulations to Casey on her achievements, and we wish her continued success in her career with DHU.