Doctors and nurses called to arms

Medical recruitment companies Medworld and MedRecruit have joined forces to launch a campaign to help find the workforce needed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

With offices in Australia and New Zealand, Medworld has contacted all its registered doctors to ask who is willing and available to help — more than 500 answered the immediate call.

“We are facing the biggest crisis of our time and we need to mobilise additional doctors and nurses as soon as possible to keep pace with the unprecedented demand,” Medworld Founder and Managing Director Dr Sam Hazledine said.

The recruitment company has specialised in doctor recruitment since 2002 and has teamed up with a nursing recruitment agency to call for additional doctors and nurses to register their willingness to help.

Medworld is developing a register of medical professionals who are ready to fill roles in telehealth, the new coronavirus fever clinics as well as back-filling vacant roles in hospitals across Australia to ensure non-coronavirus healthcare demand is equally and appropriately met.

“How many more doctors and nurses do we need? More — as many as we can find and fast,” Dr Hazledine said.

“This is an extremely challenging time for our frontline staff. Normal winter illnesses and its flow-on demand will start soon, and this will place additional pressure on an already pressured health system.”

Both recruitment agencies will guide medical professionals through the normal registration processes for locum work and match the availability and skills of each professional to roles needing to be filled. Dr Hazledine said although the process will be fast and efficient, due care will still be taken to ensure all qualifications, CVs and references are appropriately checked and that all those recruited are fit for purpose and work ready.

Dr Hazledine stressed that the roles are paid and do not have to be full-time.

“We’re asking doctors and nurses to contribute what they can — if we know what skills and time they are able to offer, Medworld, MedRecruit and our partners can provide an organised approach to matching gaps in hospital and clinic rosters with skilled medical professionals. Together, we can fight this thing.

“This is the time for entrepreneurial companies such as ours to step up in a public service sense to provide any assistance we can — we have the infrastructure and experience to make a difference and we’re determined to do that,” he said.

Qualified doctors and nurses interested in answering the recruitment call are encouraged to go to the Medworld website — www.medworld.com — to register.

“This is the biggest challenge our generation has been handed,” Dr Hazledine said.

“It’s our job to rise to that challenge in these unprecedented times for medicine. We need to rally, act and be better together.”

Image caption: MedWorld Founder and Managing Director Dr Sam Hazledine. Image credit: James Allan.