We want to help Locums and Practices find one another better. This is the core purpose of Locum Hub Wales.

Since the launch of the system in April 2020, we've been able to highlight some key trends and opportunities which Practices may wish to bear in mind when posting shifts.

Here are our ‘top tips’ for maximising fill rates

Make sure your Practice Profile is complete and up to date (click ‘Edit Practice Profile’ in the ‘Practice Tools’ menu
  1. Including a colourful photo and description of the Practice will help the Practice stand out.
  2. Ensuring the clinical system is entered means locums filtering by clinical practice will be able to see your shifts.
  3. Parking on site, number of other staff etc is reassuring.
When posting a new shift;
  1. Use the benchmarking functionality to ensure the guide fee is in a legitimate range for your area.
  2. Guide Fees which are obviously incorrect (£1 or 0.01p etc) put off Locums as they think the shift is already lined up for someone else.
  3. We’d be mindful about the combination of Telephone appointments, Face to Face and Home Visits. In recent months, telephone appointments have dominated in Primary Care and fill rates rapidly drop off (to less than 5% fill rate) if telephone appointments are less than 10 minutes in duration.
  4. Using the ‘notes’ section of new shifts being posted to give locums a bit more information, particularly for new locums, what possible barriers to working can be broken down – Explaining how much autonomy the Locum has, if admin/letters/referrals are required within the shift, or who can be approached/asked for when they arrive or are working, if start/end times are flexible providing they fulfil the appointments etc all help clarify information for the Locum. The fewer unknowns the more confidently Locums can apply. If you’re willing for people to contact you ahead of time express that and how they should contact you/the Practice.
  5. The optimal fill rate for shifts seems to currently be entering shifts for 2-5 weeks in advance.
While obvious and likely to already occur, when locums arrive - treat them fairly.
  1. A new (or recurring) Locum being greeted at the door by someone who smiles at them, knows their name and that they are coming/which room they’ll be in goes a long way to build trust.
  2. Other feedback includes having info normally contained in ‘inductions’ – i.e. layout of the building, where toilets are, any work processes they should be aware of, who to contact if in need, any codes, logins or passwords they’ll need etc.
  3. For those doing admin, having an idea of if letters are pre-templated, who and contact numbers for referrals etc is a big help for those unfamiliar with your area.

Ask the Locums who have favourited the Practice their thoughts,

  1. you can see the times they are normally available for shifts and how to contact them (if they have allowed this) by clicking ‘My Locums’ in the ‘Practice Tools’ menu.

 

Have Feedback on what works or doesn't work for you? 

Please share it with us to help others in a similar situation.

 

 

 

Have we missed something you want to know? Have any feedback or still confused? 

Get in touch with our Support Team: support@gpwales.co.uk or 0333 0111 899