Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Email | RSS

One in four GPs is a locum. A local locum GP chambers can be incredibly effective in recruiting and retaining locum GPs into an area and in this podcast we hear from Richard Fieldhouse, a locum GP who developed the first Locum GP Chambers and helped set up the National Association of Sessional GPs. He tells Ben what a Chambers is, how it works and how it benefits practices and sessional GPs.

This is the first in a short series of podcasts devoted to locum GP chambers; how they work and how they benefit the GPs who join them. In future episodes we will be hearing three very different GP stories from locum GPs and in the final episode we discuss the pros and the cons of chambers. You can contribute to this final episode by sending your questions to Ben at ben@ockham.healthcare

Show Notes

Richard explains the history of his decision to become a locum GP for 20 years (1mins 07secs)

The isolation of being a locum in an established practice turns Richard on to the idea of locum GP chambers (2mins 17secs)

The creation of the NASGP or National Association of Sessional GPs (3mins 11secs)

A groups of locums get together and develop the detail of a GP locum chambers (4mins 21secs)

How a GP locum chambers operates (4mins 55secs)

The model expands and rolls out across the country (6mins 03secs)

The chambers have a local focus (6mins 35secs)

The size of a living room dictates the size of the chambers! (7mins 06secs)

The number of practices covered by a chambers (7mins 22secs)

The benefits to practices of using a locum chambers (7mins 36secs)

Having a chambers attracts and retains GPs (8mins 48secs)

Chambers only work if the locums have control (9mins 51secs)

How the locum GPs set the charges (10mins 25secs)

The difference between chambers and a pool of salaried GPs (11mins 09secs)

CCGs and federations can support setting up a chambers (11mins 50secs)

Interested parties can contact Richard via e-mail at Richard.fieldhouse@pallantmedical.org.uk or via the Pallant Medical Chambers website at www.pallantmedical.org.uk (13mins 43secs)

Chambers can ensure the more effective use of locums (14mins 06secs)

Ben outlines the rest of the series of podcasts on GP locum chambers (15mins 44secs)