CELEBRATIONS Recruitment work recognised

AN NHS manager has been recognised for her work in recruiting overseas healthcare workers, in a move estimated to have saved the health service more than £3m.

Hilary Sharp, senior medical workforce manager at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, has been leading an initiative designed to fill a large number of NHS vacancies with doctors of Indian origin.

She was presented with an AllWales award for her work with the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO), held at the Senedd.

Hilary first went to India in 2016 to offer her extensive experience in the recruitment of doctors and dentists as part of a new drive.

The initiative has been designed to fill a large number of vacancies across NHS Wales as well as creating a network supporting doctors, staff, and the NHS as a whole to bring cost-effectiveness and savings into the health service where it’s most needed.

Hilary and her collaborative team overcame challenges such as a lastminute currency change by the Indian Prime Minister that made their money obsolete overnight, and last year a monsoon swept through the area they were travelling through.

The 2016 initiative found 94 candidates who were deemed appointable. Of those, 40 doctors were allocated to health boards across Wales and, to date, 24 have taken up their posts.

The following year another initiative took place in Mumbai and Delhi, this time with 158 doctors deemed appointable, of which 139 were allocated to health boards across Wales, and 93 were then offered a post as a result.

Over the initial two-year period the initiative has saved NHS Wales £3.5m.

Hilary said: “It’s been a fantastic experience, both professionally and culturally.

“I am proud of what has been achieved through the work of the BAPIO / Medical Training Initiatives.

“As well as the considerable savings achieved, we have established valuable links and relationships between Wales and India with a view to bringing more emerging talent into the NHS.”