Marianne completes her HCA care certificate
Congratulations to Ophthalmic technician Marianne Le Ray who has officially received her care certificate after qualifying as the MSG’s first Health Care Assistant (HCA) in Ophthalmology!
Having now achieved the qualification, Marianne will become a frontline member of the Ophthalmology care team, working closely with nurses, consultants and other clinicians to provide essential hands-on support to patients.
The HCA technician role combines technical expertise with compassionate, person-centred care, and the care certificate covers 15 standards that set out the knowledge, skills, and behaviours required to deliver safe, high-quality care. These standards include effective communication, safeguarding, maintaining privacy and dignity, and working in a person-centred way. As a result, Marianne is now able to treat patients holistically, recognising each individual’s needs, tailoring her communication appropriately, and consistently upholding privacy and dignity.
‘It took me six months to complete the certificate as it was done alongside my normal working week,’ said Marianne. ‘I really enjoyed working through the 15 standards and found the whole process a great learning experience. Although not all the standards directly impact me in my daily work, it was nice to learn the processes.
‘As the first one to undertake the course within Ophthalmology it was completely new learning for the whole team. I would stress that it wouldn’t have been possible without the fantastic support from my ophthalmology colleagues, Anna, Sue, and Cathy, and Helen and Helena at HSC. I thank you all for your encouragement and guidance along the way!’
Following completion of the course, Marianne has also completed the eye drop module, enabling her to run clinics independently. This development allows the wider ophthalmology team to focus on other clinical areas and helps improve overall clinic efficiency.
‘Looking to the future, I’m excited to keep building on my skills and start learning about ARMD (Age-Related Macular Degeneration) to support the consultants during retinal clinics.’
Anna Bowditch, Ophthalmic nurse who supported Marianne during the six months, said, 'Supporting Marianne to work through this care certificate has been incredibly useful to our nursing team - it's made us question our own practice and keeps us updated with evidence-based care. It has been a pleasure to support Marianne through this.'
A HSC staff member who assessed the care certificate programme said Marianne had completed it to a very high standard and praised Anna Bowditch, Sue Rushton and Cathy Wakely for the support they gave Marianne and the comprehensive and exemplary evidence they provided.
Chair of the MSG, Dr Steve Evans said, ‘I’m delighted for Marianne that she has completed her HCA qualification. It’s a great achievement and well deserved after all the hard work she’s put in for the last six months.
‘Having a HCA within Ophthalmology will help greatly to improve clinic efficiency, enhance the patient experience and provide invaluable support to the rest of the ophthalmic team.
‘I hope you’ll join me in congratulating Marianne on her achievement.’