Rick Smith

When did you start working for GHC?

2013

Your role:

Rick is our Head of Operations and Quality.  This role is a strategic role within the business, working as part of our Senior Management Team.  As Head of Operations, Rick is responsible for ensuring we deliver the best level of care and support to the people we support, whilst ensuring we are managing our commissioned contracts effectively.  Rick also leads our Quality Assurance Team, who are responsible for ensuring that we are working to achieve outstanding standards across the business.

Before joining Gray Healthcare:

Rick has enjoyed a varied career, including working as a horse-riding instructor. He first became interested in healthcare when he worked in finance and procurement for the NHS.  As part of this role, he used to buy equipment for the hospital theatre teams and was able to witness various operative procedures.  He enjoyed visiting patients following their operations to see how they were progressing and this made him realise he wanted to move into a caring role that was more people-focussed than office-based.  He joined Gray Healthcare as a Support Worker in 2013.

What do you like about working at Gray Healthcare?

‘The best thing are the people we support.  Every day is different, and you never know what the day will bring.  In my time at Gray Healthcare I have seen so many people successfully move out of hospital environments to live independently in their chosen communities.  There is one gentleman who springs to mind.  All his life he had lived in children’s homes and various care homes and he had never managed to live in the community for more than six months.  When he joined us at Gray Healthcare he was in his early 50s and he needed round the clock one-to-one support. Since Gray Healthcare have supported this gentleman he has had no further hospital admissions and is still happily living his best life in his own home.’

Gray Healthcare in three words:

‘Unique, passionate, person-centred’