WHAT IS A LOCUM?
A locum is a suitably qualified doctor with adequate GMC registration, who will fill a post on a temporary basis for a period of anything from a few hours to three months or a year. Locum work arises from vacancies caused by holidays, illness, unfilled posts etc.
Longer vacancies normally come in the week before they are due to start but sometimes there is a longer notice period. If you are looking to work as a full time locum doctor, you may need to be flexible regarding location to be fully employed.
Short term work by its very nature, comes in with little notice; weekend work normally on a Thursday or Friday and evening work the same or previous day. Hospitals anticipate doctors undertaking this type of work may need some flexibility in the start/end times. Please indicate, when considering a locum position, the time you would be able to arrive and leave. You are paid for the hours that you actually work.
DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED FOR SUCCESSFUL REGISTRATION
As market leader we are proud to have built our reputation by offering high quality services to both doctors and clients. This has been achieved through rigorous vetting procedures which offer peace of mind to our clients and in return offers continuation of job opportunities to our doctors. By completing registration with Medacs you can be confident that we will meet your requirements. Our dedicated Resourcing Team is available to support you throughout the registration process if required. The registration process is however, only a small part of your long-term life with Medacs. Once completed and returned it's never been easier!
COMPLETED REGISTRATION & HEALTH STATEMENT FORM
Curriculum Vitae
Your CV must include the start and finish dates of each post you have undertaken. Hospitals assume your CV is complete unless you inform them. If there are any gaps in your CV, you should include all details of what you did during that time. Medacs must be notified immediately of any amendments. These will be confirmed to you in writing and will be included in your file for submission to hospitals. The layout of your CV may be reworked by your Placement Officer to maximise your chances of securing positions.
If you are a Specialist Registrar please provide gradings of any Record of In-Training Assessments (RITAs) obtained in the past five years.
Two Current References
We will request new references every 6 months to ensure we hold a copy from your most recent substantive post on file, at least one of which must be your current post. We will also request reports/references on locums in line with the Code of Practice. If you wish to work at Consultant grade we will require a supporting letter from your Clinical or Medical Director.
Two Passport Photographs for your Medacs identification badge
Copy of GMC Certificate
Proof of Eligibility to Work in the UK
Original documentation will be required in line with the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996.
Criminal Records Bureau - Disclosures
All public and private organisations request that an Enhanced Disclosure be obtained for all healthcare personnel which is acquired from the Criminal Records Bureau or Disclosure Scotland.
Medacs can assist you at all stages of the Disclosure process. You are required to inform Medacs if you have been subject to a prosecution by the police after the CRB check was undertaken.
Police Check
If you currently reside outside of the UK, please forward your original police check. Doctors who have resided in the UK for two weeks can start their application process, providing satisfactory police checks from their country of origin are no more than 3 calendar months old.
Criminal Convictions
Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, applicants for locum medical posts are not entitled to withhold information about convictions which for other purposes are 'spent'.
Doctors are expected to provide Medacs with a statement of any criminal convictions, police investigations or cautions and written permission to disclose this information to clients.
Professional Misconduct
We need to know if you are currently subject to any Fitness to Practice proceedings by an appropriate licensing or regulatory body in the UK or any other country.
We will require details of the nature of the proceedings undertaken, or contemplated, including approximate date of proceedings, country where proceedings were undertaken and the name and address of the licensing or regulatory body concerned. We also need written permission to disclose this information to clients.
IMMUNISATION EVIDENCE
Hepatitis B
The Department of Health insists on protecting doctors and patients from acquiring and/or infecting others with Hepatitis B. Hospitals insist on locum doctors providing evidence of their UK Hepatitis B status which must be an identified validated sample, and require a photocopy of an original UK pathology report including your;
- Full Name
- Date of Birth
- Date of Test
- Specific surface antibody levels or surface antigen status if you are a non-responder to the vaccine, or naturally immune.
A Hepatitis B surface antibody level of over 100 iu/l from a test carried out in the UK within the last 5 years will be accepted. Non responders to the vaccine will need to show evidence of a negative surface antigen to prove non-infectivity to the virus.
Your GP or Occupational Health Department will be able to assist you in obtaining the above samples. In the absence of these, Medacs can help arrange a blood test to comply with these requirements which will provide a result within 24 hours. For all doctors undertaking Exposure Prone Procedures a 5-year surface antigen testing is required in addition to antibody results.
Hand-written evidence will not be accepted. Under the new DOH guidelines, individuals who are surface antigen positive and HbeAg negative and are performing exposure prone procedures, must also provide evidence of Hepatitis B virus DNA test showing the current viral load, as there is now evidence that some of these individuals are capable of transmitting infection to patients. Your GP or Occupational Health Department will also be able to assist you in obtaining these samples.
Hepatitis C
The Department of Health now requires all doctors performing Exposure Prone Procedures to provide written evidence of a negative Hepatitis C result which must be an identified validated sample.
Rubella and Varicella
Evidence of immunity to Rubella and Varicella, preferably on a pathology report, is required. Most hospitals will accept an official Occupational Health Department immunisation record showing immunity.
Tuberculosis
Hospitals are now insisting on seeing documented evidence from an Occupational Health Department or GP practice, showing immunity to Tuberculosis. Written evidence of a visible and palpable BCG scar and/or a positive Heaf/Mantoux test will be accepted as proof of immunity to Tuberculosis. We require an Occupational Health/GP Certificate of a positive scar or a record of a positive skin test result and notification if you have worked in a TB prevalent area, where HIV is also prevalent in the last 3 years.
Medacs has an Occupational Health department who may be contacted for advice on any of the above.
Telephone 01756 703000 .
TRAINING AND RECOGNITION FOR LOCUM WORK
If a position is normally recognised for training it may also, in certain circumstances, be recognised if you do the same job as a locum. To check whether you may receive recognition, you should consult the appropriate Royal College for advice before taking up the locum post.
GENERAL MEDICAL COUNCIL'S PERFORMANCE MONITORING PROCESS
You are required to maintain a written portfolio of your professional experience and attendance at professional development courses, which should also include a written and agreed Personal Development Plan.
SUBSTANTIVE PLACEMENTS
If required Medacs will act on your behalf to locate a suitable substantive placement for you. This service is free and the process is simple. We are able to negotiate on your behalf and assist you wherever we can. Once we have located a position for you and you are successful in the recruitment process, you will become an employee of the respective Trust.
JOB OFFERS/ACCEPTANCES
Medacs works hard to match you to a number of vacancies and we will be in contact with you regularly to discuss your options. We receive a high volume of jobs every week and we therefore ask you to keep us updated with your whereabouts or any changes in contact details. We would ask that you remain in regular communication with Medacs to ensure that you are the first choice for all positions we submit you for.
You can visit our interactive website where you can submit yourself for work, however we would also advise you to telephone your Placement Officer to discuss all options.
Once you have given us a firm commitment we will forward your details to the Medical Staffing Department.
We will not compromise you professionally by submitting you for work without obtaining your consent unless by prior arrangement. Upon submission, your details will be passed to the Consultant. This process sometimes takes one or two days and you should inform us immediately if you become unavailable for the job to enable us to withdraw your CV.
If you are successful we will inform you immediately and you should confirm your acceptance. You are then firmly committed to complete the placement and we will send a confirmation to the hospital. Occasionally, another agency may offer you the same jobs that we have and vice versa. You should only allow yourself to be put forward by one agency and if we have put you forward, we will expect you to complete the placement through us.
Doctors are reminded of their responsibility not to put patients or themselves at risk and must not declare themselves fit to work if they are suffering from diarrhoea, a rash or vomiting. Doctors must also inform Placement Officers if they become injured or diagnosed with any condition. A pregnant doctor should inform both the Placement Officer at Medacs and the Client of their condition so that adequate safeguards can be taken.
PAYMENT PROCESS
For every week or part week of the post you cover, you will receive a timesheet which should be carefully completed giving clear details of all hours worked and travel details where travel is to be reimbursed. These timesheets need to be signed by an authorised person as indicated in your confirmation letter; duplicate copies left with the signatory and originals to be sent back to us as soon as possible.
Prompt submission of timesheets is advisable to avoid problems with invoicing the Clients, which in turn could result in delayed payment to yourselves. We are unable to make payment if timesheets are unauthorised or incorrectly authorised.
Payment will be transferred directly to your bank or building society via our BACS system. Once you have
submitted your timesheets and the hours have been approved, you will be paid within 7 days. Each timesheet carries a unique number. Please ensure that you use the one assigned to the correct job to ensure payment is not delayed. Payments are made to the nearest quarter hour and rounded down.
If you have any questions you can contact our payroll department at payroll@medacs.com or on
01756 703000 . You will be advised as to whether or not your travel expenses are covered before you are put forward for a position. In such cases, please retain receipts such as bus/train fares. Mileage is verified via the website link www.theaa.com
LOCUM WORK AS YOUR SECOND JOB
Tax
When you commence working with Medacs, you will be sent a P46 form which you need to complete and return to our Accounts department. This enables the tax office to inform us of the appropriate tax code for you. If you have a break of 3 months or more, it is a legal requirement that we send you a further P46 for us
to reapply for your tax code. Should you decide to leave Medacs, please request a P45, which should then be passed to your full time employer.
National Insurance
If you are already working in a full time position, you may be exempt from further contributions on any locum work undertaken. To ensure your payments are accurate, please request a CA72 form from us.
Upon completion, this form needs to be sent to the Contributions Agency for assessment. If applicable, a Deferment Certificate will be sent to us, which will allow us to refund any contributions already deducted and to stop further deductions.
SELF EMPLOYMENT
You may be considered self-employed if you are a Consultant or GP only. Any other grade is considered as supervised and as such, cannot be self-employed. To be paid gross, we need you to supply verification from your tax office that they consider you self-employed to ensure we do not deduct tax and National Insurance.
If you are interested in working for us through a Limited Company, you will need to agree and sign a contract.
Further information is available from our payroll department at payroll@medacs.com or on 01756 703000 .
REPORTING AND IDENTIFICATION
On arrival at the hospital, you should take your current GMC certificate or renewal notice to the Medical Staffing Officer together with another means of identification, such as your passport and your confirmation letter from Medacs*. Outside of office hours you may be asked to show these to a designated person and, if you are unable to identify yourself as a locum, you may be turned away. When working with Medacs, you will be expected to wear/show an identity badge, which we will supply. In addition, occasionally, the hospital may require that prior to commencement of each or any assignment that you produce a copy of your immunisation/ vaccination record, and/or test results.
* if enough time between the job offer and job start
When arriving at the hospital you are to seek information from your line manager on fire procedures, manual handling, crash call mechanism, 'hot spots' and 'violent episode' policies. At the start of your first shift you should report to your line manager to become familiar with and omply with the hospital's general policies including, without limitation, those relating to training and health and safety.
LEGAL CONTEXT FOR MEDICAL PRACTICE
You are expected to have an understanding and experience of the legal context for medical practice appropriate to the posts you undertake (e.g. the application of the Mental Health Act 1983 or the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1984 in psychiatric practice). For further information, the BMA publication 'Rights and Responsibilities of Doctors' (ISGN 0-7279-0753-0) is recommended.
CONFIDENTIALITY
Information concerning patients, their treatment and their affairs is strictly confidential and must not be disclosed to any unauthorised persons. The confidentiality of employer/client must be maintained. You are reminded that any breach of confidentiality will result in the termination of your engagement with the employer/client and could result in civil action for damages.
SECURITY
You are expected to comply with all security measures implemented by the hospital in respect of personnel and other persons attending those premises. All doctors are to observe the hospital's computer security instructions in respect of the proper use and protection of any password used in connection with such computer systems and if there is a need to use or insert into any computer any floppy disk, CD ROM disk, removable hard drive or any other device for the storage and transfer of data or programs, please observe the following;
- Do not load any program into any computer via disk, typing, electronic data transfer or any other means
- Do not access any other computer or bulletin board or information service (including, without limitation, the Internet) except with specific prior consent of the hospital
- Do not download any files or connect any piece of computer equipment to any network or other item of computer equipment except with the prior consent of the hospital.
MAINTAINING MEDICAL EXCELLENCE
All doctors are advised to read carefully the General Medical Council's 'Duties of a Doctor'; the requirements are clearly laid out in the 'Good Medical Practice' booklet. Many Trusts will either have their own procedures in place or will expect you to be aware of the GMC's recommendations. We recommend you make yourself aware of the Trust's policy before commencing your engagement.
WORKING TIME REGULATIONS
The Working Time Regulations 1998 ('the regulations') require Medacs Healthcare Services plc, trading as Medacs, to limit your average weekly working time to 48hrs unless you agree with Medacs that the limit shall not apply to you. Please sign and return the enclosed waiver form. Under the working time regulations you may be entitled to paid holiday.
You should ensure that working with Medacs will not cause you to breach the controls on hours set out in the New Deal on Junior Doctors' Hours. Working to excess may negate the benefits of Crown Indemnity and should tiredness be blamed if a mishap occurs, it could have serious implications. Your acceptance of work is taken as evidence that you will not breach these controls.
CANCELLATION OF LOCUMS BY DOCTORS
Please do not accept any booking if you do not have every intention of working it. It causes tremendous frustration if you cancel after accepting.
We know that unexpected circumstances can arise where you are unable to complete a booking. In these instances, you should complete as much of the booking as possible, even if it is only a day or two, to enable a replacement to be located and the hospital to make alternative arrangements. If unexpected circumstances arise, you should ensure that Medacs are informed at the earliest opportunity by telephone, making a note of the full name of the person you informed, together with the time and date. You must also inform the hospital but you must always notify us in the first instance. Hospitals take cancellations very seriously and have in the past taken further action in cases of cancellation without good reason (e.g. informing the GMC and contacting referees).
The reason cancellations are taken so seriously is that when a hospital selects you for a position, they may forego several other doctors. If you cancel after accepting a position, other doctors may no longer be available and the hospital may incur unnecessary financial loss through cancelled clinics.
CANCELLATION OF APPOINTMENTS BY CLIENTS
As there may be occasions when our doctors have reason to cancel their locums, this can also be replicated from the hospitals' perspective. Again this is taken very seriously. Medacs have a policy of not supplying doctors to hospitals who habitually do this. In instances such as this, financial compensation will not be paid, we will endeavour to offer you alternative work and do our best to ensure you do not lose out.
PERSONAL BELONGINGS INSURANCE
Some hospitals advise that you should have personal belongings insurance to cover you when working on their premises.