Created: 20/08/2012
Last update: 20/08/2012
Author: Regional Medical Locum Service Group
Welcome to the HSC Regional Medical Locum Service (hereafter referred to as the RMLS). This system is used by all HSC Trusts in Northern Ireland for the engagement of locum medical staff to fill adhoc locum shifts / very short term cover (normally less than 3 months) for those areas currently live on the system i.e. Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Paediatrics (it is anticipated that other areas will be added to this in early 2013).
Each of the participating organisations is committed to using this service as ‘first port of call’ to fill their short term locum requirements. All locums registered on this system will therefore have their ‘first pick’ of available locum work. Participation will therefore enable you to work additional shifts within the Trusts of your choice, enabling you to earn extra income, build on your experience and develop your career. Our fully managed regional service will give you access to an unrivalled range of opportunities in the area, specialism and level that suits you best.
Once you are fully registered with the RMLS this demonstrates that you have complied with all of our safeguarding checks as well as our scrutiny of your skills and experience. Joining this regional service therefore opens opportunities for locum work in the areas for which you are registered. Furthermore by joining this service you will be guaranteed competitive rates which have been regionally agreed to ensure that you are appropriately rewarded and recognised for the additional work that you undertake. We have also built in the payment and associated approval processes into this system to ensure prompt payment. To this end most a number of Trusts (Northern, Southern and South Eastern) will ensure that locums are paid on a weekly basis for their workfollowing submission and authorisation of claims on the system for work undertaken (it should be noted that where this is operational the first payment may take up to one month but future payments will be made on a weekly basis). Any Trusts not operating a weekly system will ensure payment at the end of the month in which a claim is made and duly authorised.
We hope you will be encouraged by these developments and we look forward to your participation in this HSC regional service.
The remainder of this document will provide you with practical advice and guidance on participating in the RMLS
To be registered for work through the Regional Medical Locum Service you must complete the online application form.
During the registration phase you will be asked to provide personal details, your employment history and appropriate referees who can validate your work history, skills and experience but you will also be asked to state your preferences for work.
Please use this guide to support you in the registration process.
There is no need for interview, however once you have submitted your registration details, a number of safeguarding and verification checks will be carried out. These are akin to the types of checks carried out on accepting any regular post in the HSC. If you are not working in the HSC at the time of registration you will be required to have a number of documents verified. You will receive instructions at the time of registration on how to do this.
This overall process will take in or around 2 weeks to complete. Only when this is completed will your registration ‘go live’ on the system. You will be able to keep a track of progress on the system by logging in to check your registration status. You will also receive an email confirmation from the system when the checks are complete and your registration is live.
You will be issued with a Locum Bank contract of engagement. This in essence confirms that you have completed all the necessary checks and that you are live on the RMLS register. This Locum Bank contract of engagement does not guarantee any set number of hours not does it require you to work a set number of hours. However it provides the underlying base contract of engagement which creates a relationship to allow you to undertake locum work across the HSC.
Once you are registered on the system you will be able to update your profile at any time. This will allow you to update your personal details / employment history as well as your work preferences.
As the system will operate on the basis of the information you have provided it is vital that you keep your profile updated including your contact details, mobile phone number, and your work preferences in terms of the geographical location and specialty areas you are prepared / qualified to work in up to date. This is your responsibility. The HSC cannot accept any responsibility for your failure to pick up work due to incorrect information.
Any updates to your employment history will be verified each time. If this update means you are now eligible to work at a higher level or in a different speciality and you have indicated that you wish to be contacted about such work this too will require verification before you will be live for the newly requested areas or levels of locum work. In the interim however, you will be able to continue to pick up shifts for the levels you are already cleared to work at.
If you simply want to update the locations that you are willing to accept shifts from then your record will be updated instantaneously.
If there are any changes to the following areas you will not receive shift invites until any necessary verifications are completed;
| Area | Details |
|---|---|
| Employment details | You will remain in service for details previously verified but will not recieve shift invites against new details until these are verified. Updates to an employment record will lock out invites from this grade until re-verified. |
| Personal Details | No verification required |
| GMC Registration | Updating these details will then require verification, you will not recieve shift invites until verification takes place. |
| Training | No verification required |
| Membership Details | No verification required |
| Medical History | Adding a new record or Updating a record will then require verification, you will not recieve shift invites until verification takes place. |
| Disability Information | No verification required |
| ANI Check | If you are charged with or convicted with any offences or have any charges pending you MUST declare this immediately. The circumstances will dictate whether or not you are locked out of the system until further review is undertaken. |
| References | You should ensure your references can verify your most recently added employment record. |
| Fitness to Practice | Updating these details will then require verification, you will not recieve shift invites until verification takes place. |
Please follow the on screen instructions, however should you experience any difficulties or require any advice please contact the System Administrator.
As part of your registration form you are asked to identify where you are prepared to undertake shifts and you will also be asked for information on the specialities you are qualified to work within. This information will be captured on the system as part of the registration process.
When a Trust needs to book a locum they will log onto the system and register their locum requirements. The system will automatically search for persons matching these requirements and generate a text message to all parties who ‘match’ the request providing the contact name and number if you are interested in the work. All locum work will then be allocated by acceptance on a ‘first come first served’ basis.
Please note that the system will only select those individuals who have preferences matching the requirements of the locum shift to be covered, it is therefore important that you include all geographical areas and specialities that you are prepared to accept work within. Anyone already booked for a shift will be excluded from any subsequent system searches until the shift they are booked for has passed.
All work accepted through the RMLS is covered under the ‘Good Medical Practice’ guidance documents. All medical professionals engaging in the Regional Medical Locum Service must therefore realise their responsibilities to provide the cover they have been booked for. You may be removed from the register of those available for locum work if you fail to undertake work you have accepted.
Once you have completed a shift you will be required to complete a claim form on the system. This will be verified by the Trust adminstrators and processed for payment to the relevant Trusts Payroll Department.
The Southern and South Eastern Trusts will make payment to you in the next available pay week following submission of your claim to the payroll Department. Doctors should note that the first payment may take up to one month for administrative reasons, however thereafter all payments will be received in the next available pay week.
The Northern, Belfast and Western Trusts will make payment to you in the next available pay month following submission of your claim to the payroll Department. It is therefore important that you submit your claim promptly on completion of your shift.
All payments will be made in accordance with the regionally agreed rates, details of which can be seen in section 09 of this guide.
Please follow the on screen instructions to make your claim on completion of shifts worked. If you experience any problems you should contact the Trust Administrator whom you booked the shift with.
It may be that your circumstances could change and either for a short period of time or possibly for the foreseeable future you may not wish to undertake locum work.
If you are not available for short periods of time (one month or less) perhaps due to holidays or other personal circumstances then you do not need to do anything. You will continue to receive text invitations but you can choose not to respond.
If you do not expect to be available for a period of longer than one month or you do not wish to receive shift invites for any reason you can update your availability against each employment record to reflect that you are not available. This will ensure the system does not return your name in any searches for availability.
If for any reason you wish to have your login completely de-activated you will need to contact the System Administrator.
| FY1 | St1/2, FY2, CT1/2 | Middle Grade, St3+ and above, Staff Grade, Speciality Doctor, Associate Specialist | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Hourly Rate* | Gross Hourly Rate* | Gross Hourly Rate* | |
| Full Shift (all specialties excluding ED) | £25.00 | £33.00 | £40.00 |
| On – Call Availability (Non Resident on Call) | N/A | £23.93** | £27.60** |
| Emergency Department (Full Shifts only) | N/A | £33.00 | £46.00 |
*Statutory holiday rate is time and a half.
** On-call availability rate payable per hour – this rate can be enhanced to the higher rate (full shift rate):
Clearly you are required to maintain your GMC registration and license to practice to allow you to continue practicing as a medical locum. Any change in your registration status MUST be reported immediately through the updating of your profile on the system. Failure to do this WILL result in the HSC immediately withdrawing you from live registration on the system until a full investigation is completed.
All persons registered on the RMLS have a responsibility to ensure that they are not in breach of their obligations under the EWTD.
In undertaking additional hours, doctors understand that unless they agree otherwise, Regulation 4(1) of the Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998 limits the average number of hours they work each week to 48 hours, as calculated over a reference period of 26 weeks. Doctors should be aware that if by undertaking additional locum work that this means that their average weekly hours exceed 48 then it is their responsibility to ensure that they complete a EWTD opt-out form. All persons who hold an EWTD opt-out form should understand that there is no opt-out from the rest and leave requirements of the EWTD.
By accepting additional work for any HSC body, doctors are confirming that in doing so that the additional
hours do not conflict with:
a) their personal health and safety,
b) their fitness to practise
c) the interests of both their substantive and locum employer,
d) or with the rest requirements of the WTR
In addition doctors remain personally responsible for complying with the GMC’s ‘Good Medical Practice’ and that they are responsible for ensuring that they remain fit for work and do not put themselves or patients at risk. Doctors must not accept any extra hours that threaten safety.
Doctors should be aware that HSC employers are required to keep an up to date record of all workers who have opted out of the WTR and in order to facilitate this requirement doctors are required to keep a record of all additional locum hours worked, and if requested at any time, will produce the record to their substantive employer, the RMLS administrator or to any Health and Safety Official.
Despite agreeing to opt out of the 48 hour limit imposed by the EWTD, doctors should be aware that they are still bound to comply with the control of hours stipulated in paragraphs 20, 111a and 111b my Terms and Conditions of Service and in line with their Contract of Employment
All persons registered on the RMLS have a responsibility to ensure that they are up to date on all mandatory training.
All medical professionals are required to abide by the GMC regulations on Good Medical Practice. Supervising Consultants are responsible for confirming at the end of each shift undertaken that the individual’s performance was satisfactory. The employing Trust should ensure that appropriate feedback is provided on a locum doctor’s assignment when it is concluded.
Assessing the performance of locum doctors is an important element in ensuring patient safety. Locum doctors will be advised by the respective Trust Administrator if a supervising consultant reports any concerns regarding their clinical performance or conduct. In these circumstances the respective Trust Administrator will raise the matter with the Trusts Medical HR team and notify the System Administrator. As a precautionary safeguard, the System Administrator will put an immediate suspension on the person’s registration for the RMLS service pending advice from the Medical HR Team. The individual doctor will be advised and their comments and views sought which will also be considered in evaluating if further action is necessary. The Trusts Medical HR Team in collaboration with the relevant clinical manager will undertake preliminary enquiries if required, in line with the Maintaining High Professional Standards Framework. The purpose of this will be to verify or refute the substance and accuracy of any concerns or complaints and assess the seriousness of the issues on the information available. Where significant shortcomings are identified and it is not possible to conclude performance proceedings due to a locum assignment finishing, the employing Trust will be responsible for making a judgement based on the evidence available as to whether allegations are upheld and take the necessary appropriate action such as (in cases of doctors currently in training), informing the postgraduate dean and/or if appropriate their substantive employer. In addition, the employing Trust will be required to report any serious issue or concern to the GMC and, where appropriate, under the alert notice system.