Steven Brown

Prior to being an Operating Department Practitioner (ODP) I worked in industry, but found what I was doing was unfulfilling and wanted a career change that involved working in healthcare. Like most people I had never heard of ODP but the link between patient care, working as part of a team, being an integral part of the whole surgical experience and the challenge of working in a critical care setting appealed to me. I worked for ten years as a practitioner developing my clinical skills and worked in a number of specialities including vascular, trauma/orthopaedics, general surgery and obstetrics. Every day was challenging as each patient and procedure demanded different skills but it was very rewarding and I enhanced my qualifications and skills to work in all areas of perioperative practice.

I have been an academic for 12 years and after working at Sheffield Hallam for 6 years where I was course leader and admissions tutor, and I have been at the University of Huddersfield for 6 years. I was the admissions tutor for 4 years, and for the last 2 years I have been course leader, in that time we have validated the ODP course to a degree which is very exciting and a great development for the profession. I have also developed a number of post qualification courses for ODPs and theatre nurses, including a distance learning top up degree and clinical skills modules.

• The use of problem based learning and simulation techniques to aid the development of clinical skills
• The development of a distance learning pathway for ODP/Perioperative practice Degree and CPD pathway
• Professional socialisation of ODPs
• The role of clinical placements in the development of students