Social interaction was so stressful and exhausting for Bradley Evans that he would fall asleep afterwards.
So the idea of working in a busy hospital as a porter and laboratory assistant seemed beyond him.
But that’s exactly what he did.
And the turnaround for him and fellow Ninewells Hospital interns Kyle Findlay and Lennan Egan has been remarkable.
All three have autism and learning disabilities and were given among eight young people given work placements at the Dundee hospital on a programme led by Dundee and Angus College.
Finding meaningful work can be difficult for those with autism and learning disabilities. According to the programme – DFN Project SEARCH – only 4.1% of people in Scotland with a learning disability who are known to local authorities secure paid employment.
Kyle, 24, said his Ninewells internship had made him a different person, and hopes to soon find work.
Lennan, 25, has been employed permanently in the hospital’s medical records department.
Unable to attend even the initial interview, Bradley, 26, very nearly missed out on a place on the supported internship programme.
Diagnosed with autism at the age of 18, the concentration required for social situations tired him he so much he would have to go to his bed afterwards.
Bradley’s talents shone through in the lab
His mother feared that working five days a week would simply be too much for him.
But his talents shone when he put on his lab coat and got to work in the blood science and immunology labs.
He grew more comfortable chatting to his colleagues.
And he processed bowel screening tests and blood samples with 100% accuracy – a success rate rarely seen by his bosses.
His confidence has grown so much that felt able to give a speech to an audience of more than 100 people at his graduation.
Bradley, from Dundee, hopes to be employed by the lab when a vacancy arises.
Ninewells internship boosted self-esteem
He said: “It was a good boost for my self-esteem and I really enjoyed it.
“I’m better at holding conversations now. I struggled with that before and people thought I was quiet.”
Among Kyle’s jobs during his Ninewells internship was being a porter – both for patients and clinical waste – and working in the laundry.
He said: “It’s helped me a lot, I almost feel like a different person.
“It has given me a wider world view.”
Kyle, from Carnoustie, was unemployed after doing a horticultural course at college.
He said: “I was hoping to get a job after college but I didn’t have a clear path of how I was going to do it.”
‘It got my life back on track’
Lennan, from Dundee, struggled with depression during Covid. His world started falling down around him and he lost his job.
He’s now back in work, in a role he never dreamed of.
His work as an intern in the Ninewells Hospital medical records department impressed his colleagues so much that he was hired when a vacancy rose.
He said: “This has helped me get my life back on track.
“It’s quite amazing the amount that can change in a year. I feel like my confidence has improved massively.
“I’m financially stable again, I have a job I like and I have a support circle.”
On the fast-track desk, his job is deal with urgent requests for medical records, such as when a patient is admitted to A&E.
Jobs can be hard to find for those with autism
He said: “There’s a degree of satisfaction in knowing the role your job plays in the grander scheme of things.”
For young people with autism and learning disabilities meaningful employment can seem out of reach.
But Bradley, Kyle and Lennan are among eight to graduate from this year’s DFN Project SEARCH programme.
The programme gives young adults with learning disabilities or autism spectrum conditions valuable work experience with NHS Tayside or Dundee Health and Social Care Partnership.
Supported learning lecturer Leanne Macdonald: “Bradley processed 7,000 samples a month and he didn’t make one mistake.
“The accuracy of his work was phenomenal.
“All of them are so capable of doing a job, it’s just a slightly different approach needed.
“People are often wary of employing people with learning disabilities but they make absolutely great employees.”
Lennan is a success story
The project’s aim, she said, is to help young people into sustainable employment. It will continue to support Bradley and Kyle as they seek employment.
Lennon, she said, had been a real success story.
“He’s what Project Search is about; he’s someone with learning disabilities who wants to work but struggles to either get or maintain employment.
“With the right support network and the right department, we’ve seen him flourish.
“Kyle probably made the biggest personal progress we’ve ever seen in DFN Project SEARCH.”
Kyle is a ‘very employable young man’
Each intern works in three different departments, and she said the hurdles for him became smaller in each one.
“At the end of our 36-week course, Kyle is a very employable young man. We’re now at the stage of getting him into and settling him into employment.
“Ultimately, we want to make employment sustainable for the rest of their lives.”
DFN Project SEARCH programmes are run across the UK to help young adults with a learning disability, autism or both transition to work.
On average 60% of its graduates move into full-time permanent jobs.
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