April Update

Hi everyone.

Yes it's been a while. Ok quick update. I am unemployed. I was last employed as a Disability Assessor with a company called Capita. It was a move born of an extreme desire to leave the NHS. I'm sure that if you are living in the UK you will be aware of the problems that the NHS is having retaining it's staff. I'm not going to go into details but apart from one remarkable exception in the last 3 years management is under too much pressure and this is leading to a cascade of pressure onto other staff. The cause of this is lack of funding, a reduction in pay in real terms and the disastrous continuing privatisation of the service.

As for the Disability Assessors role, I went into it to help people but was unable to gain approval which is required from the Department of Work and Pensions(DWP). This on top of working 60 plus hours per week, and confusing feed back about the reports. Of the 20 people that started only one was Approved by the DWP. I'm sad to say I was relieved to leave. Prior to starting this job it was in the full realisation that I would not return to the NHS.

So why not go back to the NHS? The answer is that people are continuing to leave putting more pressure on those remaining. Given my brush with depression it would not be a good environment for me to expose myself to. Going back is not an option. So what to do?

To start I am restless, I'm doing housework, hoovering, washing up, cleaning the cooker and it isn't enough. I need more exercise and I need more money coming in. I have applied for the New enterprise allowance which I will be having a good look at at a meeting on Monday. I am also planning to restart my previous business with Utility Warehouse and have a few other things in mind as well.

One of the things I have in mind is starting a Youtube channel from the point of view of a 50 year old getting fit, 60 hours per week sitting in front of a computer screen, writing reports doesn't leave a lot of time or motivation to exercise.

Thanks for reading
Kind regards

St.John

Catch up

Feeling a little sheepish. No update for 10 months.

To say that 2107 was a difficult year is an understatement. The ward in which I worked was closed down and after a short time on a ward with a similar respiratory speciality I was again moved. This time it was to a renal ward dealing with kidney disease. The staff on this ward were brilliant and hard working, but I felt like a fish out of water. Within a couple of weeks I had decided that it was not for me and the Universe obviously had similar thoughts. I was contacted by a recruitment firm and started the process of moving into the private sector with a company called Capita in the role of a Disability Assessor for PIP.

So after nearly 22 years in the NHS I left, beginning my training for my new role. The training went on for the month of August and while it was great to meet new people the training was intense. Eventually we went off into probation and assessing people for real. It was hard made more so by personal circumstances more of which later. We had 45 minutes to assess people and then write up the reports in the afternoon, this was supposed to take 90 minutes but we had been told that this would be longer at the beginning. As time went by I found that the assessments did indeed become easier, however I found that whenever I got anywhere near the 90 minutes I'd get the reports back. I found myself sitting at the computer from 7am until going out to do the assessments around 8:30am returning at between 1:45pm and 2:40pm, I would then sit at the computer writing reports until after 8pm. The report writing simply wasn't getting any easier, each one was taking over the expected 90 minutes and was usually between 2 and 3 hours. On top of this were the reports that were sent back to be amended which also took an hour or more.

I had to have some time off due to the personal issues mentioned earlier and when I got back I had 26 reports left to get 5 acceptable reports in a row in order to be approved. It was apparent that by following the method taught on training this was not going to happen. I would have probably found this out earlier however, there was a problem that arose just after the group that I was in completed out training. In this the coaches that were usually available to us for advice were taken away to support the quality department. It took time for others to fill this position. Just after 2018 hit us I decided that enough was enough and walked away. I simply did not have any time with my family and this was putting a strain on us.

The above was compounded by my mother being diagnosed with inoperable cancer in early 2017. She was in and out of hospital, initially for chemotherapy but then had several bouts of sepsis which led to her being admitted and being in a very bad state. Eventually she came out but was readmitted to hospital in October and deteriorated and died at the end of October. She was 81. I miss her.

So that is the event of the last 10 or so months. I am now looking for a job, but I am concentrating on my business which you can find at Saving Money Will Make You Smile. If you would have a look I would really appreciate it.

Thank you for reading
Kind regards
St.John

The Weightloss fitness programme

Hello everyone. Yes it has been a while.

Since the new year I have been feeling more and more tired after work. Not sleeping well and generally feeling grotty. I had lost some wieght at the beginning of last year and could tell that that had all gone back on plus some as the belt had to go to the last hole.

The gym summoned!

Today marks the first visit of many to Firewalker Gym on Sailsbury street Wolverhampton. The people there are friendly and happy to help. Also it is only costing me  £9.99 a month which is excellent value.

I am shocked to say that my BMI is a bit high. Oh ok it's bloody ridiculous and I need to halve it.

I have a goal - loose 5 stone. Will keep you updated.

Thank you for reading
Kind regards
St.John

PTSD awareness day 1

I have been nominated to do the PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) challenge by an old School friend. The challenge is to do 22 press ups every day for 22 days. The reason for this challenge is that 22 service people take their own lives every day.Something needs to be done about this.

You will find the video on YouTube

Thank you for reading
Kind Regards
St.John

Difficult times

Have had a torrid couple of months. I learned in May that a good friend had suddenly passed away. Liz was a bright spirit, she spoke her mind but would always seek to do you good. I am told that she had a temper but I am fortunate never to have witnessed it. I will always remember at the one meeting her encounter with my wife which resulted in a big hug. Yes she was a hugger, of both people and trees. If you were down she could usually get you laughing. It was a shock to hear of her passing and then seven days later another shock.

I have been very active in seeking out the spirituality that feels right to me and in this searching I came into contact with a guy called Owen. Seven days after hearing of Liz I saw a Facebook message that filled me with dread. It was a message of support for Owen's family. I immediately messaged a mutual friend to find out the awful truth. Owen had died that morning following post surgical complication. He was 42.

It is a huge regret that I feel that I had not spoken with him for years. Increasing time required with my family and him becoming a father and struggling with work and spending time with his partner, well just life really. A week became a month and then a year.

I still recall our last conversation on the phone. I was at work and gave him a call and we shared stories of how things were in our lives. After that I took comfort that he was out there doing his thing. The truth is I owed him. When we lost our little girl Dannielle in 2000 he was the one that called and kept me going. He'd usually get me laughing and helped me and my wife through that time. For that I am forever grateful.

This has made me consider things. There are people that I consider family out there that I have not spoken with for far too long. It is high time that I changed this.

As always thank you for reading
Kind regards
St.John

Update

Hi all. It's been a while! his is a general update. Following my illness that saw me being off work for several months, I have returned to work. I've been back for two months but have moved. I'm in a different place in a new job. It is taking a while to get up to speed with the new role but I am getting there.

I will be updating this blog much more regularly.

In the mean time if you are into sci-fi then check out my friend's reaction to the up coming Star Wars film Rogue One

Thanks for reading

Kind Regards
St.John

Rising from the ashes

As I posted yesterday there haven't been any posts from me for a while. I think it was an allergic reaction to January, iand a general lack of motivation due to my illness. 

The last five months have seen a thining of the celebrity heard. It is odd that you never realise the effect that some of these people have on you. Both David Bowie and Lemmy Kilmister played a significant part in the soundtrack of my youth, and it would be remiss to say that Prince also had an influence. Terry Wogan deserves a mention for making my mother incapable of anything due to the sudden mirth he was able to impart on those mornings when she was packing us off to school. It is very sad that these people are no longer here.

So I am back at work. There has been a scary learning curve and I think it is safe to say that I am still learning. It is enjoyable though, however given the attitude of HMG to the public sector I wonder how long it will remain so.I am being helped in this return to work by a gentleman by the name of John C. Parkin. I have recently bought his book "F**k It! It is the most profound, profane and entertaining philosophy I have ever read. My wife is sick of my sudden outbursts of laughter and the quotes... oh the quotes! I highly recommend this work. It is available from good book shops and online the ISBN is 978-1-78180-296-0.

Well that's  all for now.

Thanks for reading.
Kind regards
St.John