Publish date: 2 April 2024
A Tameside Hospital worker has pursued her dream to become a Radiographer – and taken her own small piece of history in the process.
Tania Waqar recently became a fully qualified Diagnostic Radiographer following the completion of an apprenticeship she started after joining Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS FT in 2022.
The 31-year-old is the first Allied Health Professional (AHP) to have qualified via the apprenticeship route at the Trust.
Tania, who joined as an Assistant Practitioner, undertook a short bridging course to develop academic knowledge, skills and clinical experience prior to stepping on to the 18 month Diagnostic Radiographer apprenticeship.
During her apprenticeship, Tania combined on-the-job experience with additional lectures, exposing her to a range of working environments and changing patient needs, before being put to the test over a variety of practical and written assessments.
Since passing those tests with flying colours, Tania is now awaiting her professional registration to begin practising as a Diagnostic Radiographer.
Tania said: “I have been training towards becoming a Radiograpgher since 2018, so it feels amazing to finally say I am fully qualified!
“I am so grateful to the Radiology department for their support on the final step of my journey and allowing me to gain the experience I needed across lots of different areas.
“I hope this proves you can successfully take a less traditional route towards becoming fully qualified.”
AHPs, which represents 14 professions such as Physiotherapists & Podiatrists, are the third largest clinical workforce in the NHS, accounting for more than 185,000 roles nationally.
To tackle vacancies within Tameside Hospital, the Radiology team turned to apprenticeships and Tania is the first of three recruited as apprentices in 2022 to become fully qualified.
Keiron Sidebottom, Education and Training Lead in Radiology, said: “The Radiology department has been committed to growing its workforce and have innovated the way we teach and develop our own staff.
“The apprenticeship programme has been a success and we are celebrating the hard work and dedication that Tania has shown through working in the department and completing her degree.”
