Developing a strong workforce
The expansion of facilities at the Hermitage Medical Clinic in Lucan, West Dublin will bring exciting new career prospects for qualified nurses and radiographers in the new year
“The Hermitage Medical Clinic was founded just over 10 years ago, and our services and staff have grown significantly since then,” says Keith McCarthy, Head of Talent Management and HR at Hermitage Medical Clinic. “We have around 600 staff members and with patient numbers rising and new facilities being built, this figure will continue to grow.”
With specialists in medical, surgical and advanced radiotherapy care, the Hermitage Medical Clinic is a 112-bed private hospital in Lucan. The clinic has recently opened a new operating theatre and expanded its Day Care Department, which offers services such as endoscopy, day case and minor surgery procedures and its Radiology facilities to include state of the art CT and MR (1.5 & 3T) scanners.
“We’re currently looking for newly qualified and senior staff nurses and radiographers to facilitate the extension of the theatre, day care and radiology departments,” says McCarthy. “We place a lot of focus on developing our nursing and clinical staff at the Hermitage Medical Clinic. We have Graduate Development Programmes, dedicated to newly qualified clinical staff where we help them to develop not only their clinical skills, but their skills in areas such as patient management and team communication, over the stage of about 6-12 months.”
PROGRESSION
McCarthy highlights the importance of continuous support and development of staff in the clinic, particularly with how often medical care, and the way it is delivered, is changing.
“We strive to be at the forefront of changes in medical technology. For example, our CyberKnife System, a non-invasive alternative to surgery for the treatment of cancerous and non-cancerous tumours, is the first one in Ireland. Recent investment in state-of-the-art CT and MR equipment means we are also the first in Ireland to offer this technology for patients, all in one place.
“Training is critical here. We have an education and development programme in place to support our staff and to help them progress in their career at the Hermitage Medical Clinic. Following on from the graduate training programmes, we support staff in achieving postgraduate training to masters level across a variety of specialties.
“We recently trained our staff for the white belt and yellow belt on the Lean Six Sigma organisation system, which helps eliminate business defects. We make sure the team understand what the Lean concepts are and they get a recognised qualification as part of the process. We also focus on how that development can improve the service that we offer to our patients.”
There’s no doubt that the relationship between patients and staff members is vital at the Hermitage Medical Clinic, but the relationship between the team is just as important.
“When we’re looking at candidates, we look at three main elements: can they do the job? Will they do the job? And, will they fit in?” says McCarthy. “We operate on a very collaborative approach across the hospital. We have a team-based ethos and we’re looking for people who can come and be a part of our team.
“When we are going through the application review and interviewing process, we seek people who are technically-proficient and have the skills to be a good contributor to the service they provide. But, they also need to be able to demonstrate good leadership and interpersonal skills.”
TEAM BUILDING
The clinic has a variety of structures in place which helps build on communication and interaction between staff members.
“There are two types of teams that operate in the hospital here,” explains McCarthy. “Firstly, there’s your team on the ward or in the department, which is the direct team you work with. Then, there’s the multidisciplinary team, which involves operating with other services across the hospital. We have an established communication structure which helps with the basics of operating as part of a team, but we also do team dynamic exercises. This could simply be team-building activities, nights out with team-development programmes, or the annual Christmas party.”
The health and wellbeing of staff members is another important focus for the clinic, says McCarthy. “We have a yoga and running club, as well as meditation once a month. This again reinforces the importance of team bonding, but it is also good for the staff to have a clear and focused mind.”
Employees at the Hermitage Medical Clinic can expect many other benefits including a competitive salary, pension scheme, flexible working arrangements and free staff car parking.
“Our people are a critical part of this hospital,” says McCarthy. “Our employee engagement survey 2017 showed that people here are highly engaged in their roles and feel they have had necessary training and development. 75pc of those surveyed said they would recommend us as an employer.”
McCarthy adds that 2018 is a good time to move home and consider a career with the Hermitage.
“We are very open to people with experience from other areas. We want people to use any experience or knowledge that they have acquired from different locations around the world, and bring that with them to the Hermitage. We have a robust action plan for 2018 to work on improving and enhancing engagement. This organisation recognises the talent and people, and that’s critical for anyone who is joining us.”
For more information on working with the Hermitage Medical Clinic, visit www.hermitageclinic.ie