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There are no set entry requirements for MSWs. Employers expect a good standard of numeracy and literacy and may ask for GCSEs or equivalent and a qualification in health and social care, nursery nursing or childcare such as CACHE, NNEB, BTEC or NVQ. They usually ask for experience of working with children and families. This can be either or paid or voluntary work. There are often posts advertised for midwifery assistants and maternity healthcare assistants which could enable you to gain experience to apply for positions as an MSW. You will get the training you need to do the job and may be offered the chance to study for qualifications such as an apprenticeship as a healthcare support worker, the NCFE CACHE level 2 Certificate in Healthcare Support Services or the NCFE CACHE level 3 Diploma in Healthcare Support.

Clinical support staff working in the NHS are paid on the Agenda for Change (AfC) pay system. As a maternity healthcare assistant, you will typically start on AfC band 2 or 3. With experience and further training, you can apply for posts as a maternity support worker at band 4. MSWs in the NHS work standard hours of around 37.5 a week. They often work shifts, which could involve nights, early starts, evenings and weekends. Terms and conditions will usually be different for clinical support staff working outside of the NHS.

You'll need to be caring and patient, able to work with people from all walks of life, accepting of other peoples lifestyles, physically fit, flexible and adaptable to deal with unpredictable situations, able to follow instructions and procedures, willing to be present at childbirth, able to work under pressure, able to deal with other people’s emotions. You'll also need excellent communication and organisational skills.

With experience you could become a senior support worker. You could apply for other jobs in the wider healthcare team or apply to train as an assistant practitioner, midwife or nurse.

Training usually starts with a five year first degree in medicine and two years of foundation training. You'll then do three years of core training (CT1-CT3), followed by three years of specialist training (ST3-ST6). This period of training will include completing your royal college exams. Length of training can vary according to your circumstances.

Doctors may work up to 48 hours a week. The working hours may sometimes extend beyond the normal working day to include early mornings, evenings and weekends. You’ll first earn a salary when you start your foundation training after medical school. The basic salary ranges from £29,384 to £34,012. Once you start your specialty training as a intellectual disability psychiatrist employed by the NHS, you can expect to earn a salary of at least £40,257, which can increase to between £84,559 and £114,003 as a consultant.

You'll need compassion, empathy and the ability to understand and respect people with intellectual disability. Excellent listening skills, patience and the willingness to build relationship with patients and carers are essential. You'll also need emotional resilience and good problem solving and decision making skills. Excellent communication skills and good team working are also needed with the. ability to lead and manage others effectively.

In 2021, there were 254 consultants in psychiatry of intellectual disability working in the NHS in England. In 2020, there were 30 applications for 52 training places. You could specialise or conduct research, teach medical students or postgraduate students in training or get involved in research at universities, the NHS or private sector.