An unexpected Journey of an Operating Department Practitioner (ODP)

Tune into the South west Allied Health Professions (AHPs) 2024 Podcast series, featuring 12 episodes. Recorded at Westonbirt Arboretum, the series includes 8 live campfire stories and 4 additional episodes. AHPs from across the South West share stories that connect, inspire, and elevate, showcasing how they implement the AHPs Deliver strategy for England. In this podcast Abigail Patrick an ODP working as a Specialist Research Practitioner & Neurology Research Team Leader at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust shares her alternative and unexpected career journey. From 1996 as a Project 2000 Nurse taking an agency shift in the operating theatre which inspired a love for theatres, to taking a job as a Nursing Auxiliary which led to starting operating department practitioner (ODP) training. Most ODP’s will concentrate their career within the operating theatre or perioperative environment. To be different, Abigail chose an alternative path; Anaesthetic ODP to pre-operative assessment and then into research. 10 years in Research and Abigail is now a Specialist Research Practitioner with expertise in Parkinson Disease Assessment. A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/ep8-an-unexpected-journey-of-an-odp-abigail-patrick/ Contact us: england.ahpwte.sw@nhs.net