CC Medical have been a specialised Medical Recruitment Agency for over 30-years. The changes that we have seen in recruitment over the past 2-years with the Pandemic has been concerning, with many healthcare workers burning out or leaving the industry all together due to a lack of flexibility and support.
Joe Ndaira – General Manager CC Medical
“We have a unique perspective as a
Healthcare Recruitment Agency, seeing the workforce challenges from both the perspective of staff and health services, particularly in the nursing industry when you consider that there is a global shortage of 5.9 million nurses! It breaks my heart when I hear of patients that don’t receive the level of care they need, due to hospitals being short staffed. Women don’t have access to specialists or simple birthing plans. ED departments struggle to get staff round the clock. We are even hearing that some Midwives pulled from retirement have forgotten how to take bloods and refresher training has not been provided.
We are being approached by hospitals on a daily basis to assist them in sourcing qualified staff. Initially we found a hesitance of hospital staff to mobilise to areas of need due to fears of not being able to return to family. But now we are experiencing an all-round shortage of staff due to burnout and leave backlog. We admire how our hospitals can continue to operate but are very cognisant of the pressures they face daily to maintain an adequate roster.”
As a Medical Recruitment Agency, we work with Healthcare workers on a daily basis and we hear their stories first hand. ICU Nurse Alexandra shared her story of going from a full-time department worker to the flexibility of Agency Work.
Alexandra – ICU Nurse
At CC Medical we want to see healthcare workers look at the option of agency work before giving up their jobs. We have observed a noticeable decline in available staff, particularly in the last two years.
Joe Ndaira – General Manager CC Medical
“To play our part in supporting the industry we want to encourage healthcare staff to go back to the jobs they once loved, and they can do that through a recruitment agency that can give them more control over the hours they work and the positions they take. If they stay with us for 12 months and continue to work to support the industry, we will match the Government’s payment of $3,000. Continuity of care is vital, and we hope this incentive helps, and keep staff in essential roles for longer.”
RCSA’s Head of Advocacy and Policy, Brooke Lord, says that throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and even today, staffing firms and agency work have acted as a safety net, not just for the hospitals, but for the workers themselves.
“Agency work offers nurses and carers a level of control and flexibility over their work that is not always accessible in permanent employment. It provides many with an opportunity to earn higher hourly wages while choosing their own hours, without fear of reprisal.”
“During a pandemic that saw record cases of burnout for workers in the health sector, agency work offered them an attractive, flexible alternative which allowed them to stay within the sector rather than look for work in another industry altogether.”
This July CC Medical are celebrating 30 years as a Medical Recruitment Agency and we’d like to see our candidates and the healthcare system thrive once again. In our 30 years never have we seen such an unprecedented crisis. We extend their full support to health services, offering our assistance with staffing pressures as and when required.
