After the health care assistant (HCA) Just the Job, a number of readers have contacted News Shopper for advice on entering the field.

Cynthia Joseph-Lewis, the education facilitator at Queen Mary's Hospital Sidcup advises: HCAs support nursing staff to provide the best possible care for patients. It's an ideal job for someone who wants to assist in delivering care and can be a stepping-stone towards becoming a nurse.

HCAs are trained to the required NVQ level 2 in care. This is a nationally recognised vocational qualification which covers the basic fundamentals such as hygiene, health and safety, communication skills and patient and manual handling.

The training and assessment is practical and ward-based, with the final assessment undertaken by a trained NVQ assessor.

Some HCAs receive additional specialist training depending on the wards in which they work, so they can undertake tasks such as taking blood (phlebotomy) and electrocardiograms, which screen the heart for cardiovascular diseases.

Queen Mary's provides for further progression to higher levels for those who wish to undertake more clinical tasks.

HCAs with the higher level NVQ 3 take on more responsibility and NVQ level 3 staff might supervise new HCAs.

For more information, call 020 8302 2678.