Peer Support Worker uses lived experience to support mothers’ in the community
My name is Debbie Purvis and I am the Peer Support Worker for the Worcestershire Perinatal Mental Health Team. I started my career in the NHS just over a year ago in June 2022.
As a former service user, I found the Perinatal Team an incredible group of people who do amazing work every day of their lives. I was so thrilled to be offered a role to work with them. They helped me through one of the most difficult times in my life and I was truly inspired by the work this team does and I wanted to help other women who were in the same position that I had been in.
I previously worked in a corporate role with very little flexibility and a lot of pressure, and I wanted a change that would fit my life and my new role as a mum. Having taken a career break after having a child, I had time to reflect on myself and knew that I wanted to do something totally different; something that made a real difference in people’s lives. The Perinatal Mental Health Team helps women at their most vulnerable and the team can help transform a mother’s experience from grief and despair to joy and fulfilment. This role proved to be everything that I was looking for in a career.
The culture of the NHS is so supportive and caring of its staff. The clinical supervision and peer support supervision I receive is excellent. It really makes you feel valued and supported and helps me on my personal learning and development journey.
The Perinatal Mental Health team is just incredible. I have never worked with such caring, kind, and passionate people. They work tirelessly to improve our patient’s lives and wellbeing. The team is so motivated to help women in our community and the wonderful feedback they receive shows what a difference they are making.
I got my university degree and spent 15 years working in hospitality management. Moving to the NHS was undoubtedly the best career decision of my life. The NHS has offered me a job which fits perfectly with my life, allowing a work-life balance and it gives me such a purpose and sense of joy in the work I do day to day. I am so inspired by the team I work with and feel privileged to be able to work and learn from my team and help in a small way to change the lives of the mums that I support.
For more information on becoming a Peer Support Worker, please visit the NHS Health Careers website - you can also view our live vacancies on the NHS Jobs website.