Series 5 | Episode 7 | What if you recruit a squad, rather than a squad member?

Over a decade ago, a regional hospital, with a struggling emergency department, reliant on FIFO locums, with unfilled junior shifts and stretched nursing staff, took a gamble on a group of young consultants with a plan. When a “squad” of clinicians with a ready-made culture of trust, accountability and camaraderie came to town, they transformed the service in under two years and many of them have become permanent fixtures in the hospital and the regional community.

Does our current model of recruiting individuals miss the opportunity derived from a BYO squad model? What if recruitment took more of a team approach? What if spouse employment was also considered a critical part of the recruitment strategy? Let’s talk about what happened and if it should happen again in a town near you?

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