Challenges and Opportunities in

Recruitment and Retentionof Rural General Practitioners

16th March 2013

Wesley Henderson

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Recruit and Retain

• 8 partner regions: Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Norway, Scotland and Sweden

• Aim “ to identify solutions to difficulties in recruiting and retaining high quality personnel to work in the public sector in remote rural areas of Northern Europe”

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Catchment Area (Ireland / Northern Ireland)

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Status Report Compilation•Geography•Demographics•Health care systems•Education•Challenged Areas in recruitment and retention

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Surveys•Purpose•Contents•Circulation of Surveys•Challenges•Key Findings

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Semi Structured Interviews•Purpose•Categories•Format of interviews•Key Findings

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Negative Perceptions of Rural Practice

• city view of country• teaching hospital view of

medicine• “learned helplessness”• isolation of rural practice• good rural practice impossible• fear of being “trapped”

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Challenges of Recruiting for Single

Handed Practice• Bureaucracy in activity reporting

• Work – Life Balance

• Business Management skills

• Spouse/ family factor

• Lack of Investment in Facilities8

Challenges of Recruiting for Single

Handed Practice• Rural allowances not weighted

highly enough• Work-life balance• Diseconomies of scale• Locum cover for holiday periods

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“VICIOUS CIRCLE” of Rural Practice

Heavy workloadand responsibility

New graduatesstay in the city

Family & financialdisadvantages

Negative perceptionsof rural practice

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Attractions of Rural Practice

• environment & lifestyle• variety of practice• independence/responsibility• whole patient/family/ community care• role in community

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Rural Practitioners

• wide range of services• high level of clinical

responsibility• relative professional

isolation• specific community health

role

“Extended Generalists”

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Recruitment & Retention Strategies

• education and training

• financial incentives & rewards

• personal & professional support

• sustainable service models

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Recruitment Facilitators

for Rural Practice • rural upbringing• positive undergraduate rural clinical

experiences• targeted postgraduate training for rural practice

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Professional and Personal Support

• better living conditions• supportive work

environment• outreach support• career development• professional networks

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Other Support Factors in Rural Health Care

•specialists’ support role

•partnership not putdown

•Technology to bridge distance

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Australian and Canadian Initiatives

• Rural and Remote GP Program

- Rural Workforce Agencies

• Retention Payments

• Rural medical family network• Rural medical school 19

NorwayRecruitment strategies:

•Recruit those with Local attachment or who like aspects of life.

•Additional holidays.

•Action Zone to promote settlement.

•Exchange system between primary and specialist health care.

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Recruit and Retain

We aim to develop co-ordinated packages which will support the:

•Training of health care personnel

•Skills development

•Effects of isolation

•Welfare of families

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