RIG Locums has been praised by the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo), as well as their candidates, for their recent confirmation as sponsors of the General Medical Council’s (GMC) ‘Welcome to the UK’ practice program.
As RIG Locums is a specialist supplier of locum doctors to the NHS, a large majority of the doctors we supply have been trained from outside of the UK, therefore there was a natural synergy that connected RIG to the GMC’s program. The half-day event, which will continue to be offered completely free of charge to Doctors, thanks to RIG Locums sponsorship, will allow new doctors from abroad to understand the professional standards expected of them in the UK. It will also give them invaluable insights into the ethical issues that will affect their practice on a daily basis.
Reacting to the news, Ann Swain, CEO of APSCo said:
“This is just the sort of added value service that has become a hallmark of recruitment firms in the professional sector. This initiative is a fantastic example of how RIG Locums is demonstrating its commitment to providing the highest principles of professionalism, integrity, fair practice and ethics. It is great to see a firm investing resources into ensuring that their candidates are of the very highest quality”
Through years of experience, RIG Locums has developed its own unique ‘ethical recruitment’ principles that specifically seeks to remedy the issues caused by skills shortages in the UK workforce. With RIG Locums being one of the key specialist suppliers to the NHS, it was crucial that they were able to source the best talent without depleting the existing supply within the UK. An impressive 85% of all locums placed through RIG Locums had received their training in a country outside the UK, meaning RIG were able to add to the resource pool of its clients without depleting resource from a neighbouring trust.
After sharing the news of the sponsorship with doctors, RIG’s own candidates had the following to say:
“Congratulations, you are all doing a terrific job! Happy to be part of the great service you are providing. Well done.” – Dr Olagbegi
“Excellent, it is a very good idea, retrospectively thinking, I wish I have been offered such a program 6-7 years ago. Well done, keep it up.” – Dr Kasim
“I am very pleased for RIG Locums. It is a well-deserved recognition for the quality of service you provide. Please accept my sincere congratulations.” – Dr Devendra
RIG Locums innovative and ethical approach actually increases the supply of doctors to the NHS and helps fill niche, high skill roles with the most appropriately qualified individuals from around the world. In fact, around 60% of candidates placed originated from Europe or Asia and just over 20% from Africa, demonstrating just how diverse RIG Locums talent pool is.
Notes to the Editors:
About the GMC’s Welcome to UK Practice programme
Since it was set up in 2013, over 1,500 doctors have taken part in Welcome to UK practice events across the UK. From a sample of doctors attending the programme:
98% of doctors said it helped them to reflect on their practice
99% said they would change their practice as a result of attending the course
To read the full article detailing RIG Locums sponsorship of the GMC’s W2UKP program, please visit http://www.gmc-uk.org/news/28680.asp
About the General Medical Council
The General Medical Council (GMC) is an independent organisation that helps to protect patients and improve medical education and practice across the UK.
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We decide which doctors are qualified to work here and we oversee UK medical education and training.
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We set the standards that doctors need to follow and make sure that they continue to meet these standards throughout their careers.
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We take action when we believe a doctor may be putting the safety of patients, or the public’s confidence in doctors, at risk.
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We are not here to protect doctors – their interests are protected by others. Our job is to protect the public.
We are independent of government and the medical profession and accountable to Parliament. Our powers are given to us by Parliament through the Medical Act 1983.
We are a registered charity (number 1089278 with the Charity Commission for England and Wales, and number SC037750 with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator), we have to show that our aims are for public benefit.
About RIG Locums
RIG Locums is the leading specialist recruiter in the Locum Doctors market in the UK. We focus on incrementing the supply of doctors into the NHS by focusing on recruiting internationally to find candidates that are needed in key demand areas across the UK.
With over 10 years’ experience placing locum doctors, we are the ‘go to’ choice for NHS Hospitals across the UK to supply specialist and hard to find locum doctors.
For more information contact Deborah Hunter on 0800 690 6044 or email Deborah.hunter@riglocums.com
To find out more visit www.riglocums.com
