A new start for Helen

By Clearing

At the age of 36 Helen Reeves was a divorced mother-of-three, unemployed and claiming benefits. However, a visit to her local Benefits Agency Office transformed her life, leading her to the New Deal for Lone Parents Scheme and then to an Access Course. This is turn led to a BSc (Hons) degree in Diagnostic Radiography at the University of Teesside. Helen has now graduated from the degree, and about to take up her first post as a Radiographer in the Breast Care Unit at the University Hospital of North Tees.

Helen, 40, from Darlington, originally qualified as a Secretary and worked for a local engineering firm for 10 years, before taking a break to bring up her children, Stephen, 14, Samantha, 12, and Peter, eight. When her marriage ended Helen found herself living on income support.

Helen said: “It was a bit of a shock. When I was in the Benefits Office I was told about the New Deal for Lone Parents Scheme. The adviser asked what I wanted to do, and I just shrugged my shoulders and said I’d like to work for the NHS. They then suggested an Access to Professions Allied to Medicine Course at Darlington College. I absolutely loved the course, and found out my strengths were Maths and Physics, which was strange as I hated Physics at school! The tutors suggested I looked at Diagnostic Radiography because of my subject strengths. I’d never heard of this before.”

After shadowing Radiography staff at Darlington Memorial Hospital, Helen was convinced she was aiming for the right career, and enrolled at Teesside. During the three-year course all of Helen’s placements were also at Darlington Memorial. She said: “I really enjoyed that, working with colleagues, and meeting patients and their families. I also enjoyed the academic side, being able to research subjects in depth, and other modules such as anatomy and physiology. The University’s lecturers are lovely, supportive and absolutely brilliant. And anything you need is available in the University’s Learning Resource Centre.”

Helen gained her new post at North Tees after only her first interview. She said: “I’m thrilled to have got this post. When I first had my New Deal appointment I thought I’d work in a care home, I never thought I’d get this far. Once I’ve completed a one-year post-graduate certificate in Mammography I’ll be able to work in the community. Eventually I’d like to do a Masters degree.

“Combining the degree with my family hasn’t been easy and sometimes I asked the children if they wanted me to leave the course, but they said ‘keep going mum’. Even when I was having what they term my ‘diva strop’ over their use of the home computer! They’ll all be coming to my graduation in November.”

---