Name Leigh McGowan
Job head of communications
Salary £40,000- £50,000

Leigh McGowan worked as a management trainee in the printing industry, in the motor trade, and in events organisation for an advertising agency before his first public relations job, at East Lindsey district council in Lincolnshire.

He moved to Nottinghamshire county council, where he became head of publicity, before joining Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre University hospital trust (QMC) in 1993.

His first big task came a year later when the world's media descended on Nottingham to cover the Abbie Humphries story. Abbie was the baby abducted from QMC's maternity unit by a woman impersonating a nurse. She was eventually reunited with her family, but not before 250 journalists and camera crews had set up camp at the hospital.

The experience is "deeply ingrained" on his memory. "I recall at the final press conference, when Abbie's mother walked in holding her baby, the whole room exploded into applause and you had hardbitten journalists standing there with tears running down their faces."

"One of the great things about this job," he adds, "is you never have time to get bored. If you are an adrenalin junkie, it's a job for you. If not, don't bother."

What qualities make a good NHS PR? "I look for a bright personality, the ability to think on your feet, self-confidence and a sense of humour," says McGowan.

The rewards are good, adds McGowan. "I have only been in health for seven years but it's the most enjoyable and exciting job I have ever had."