The economic uncertainty arising from the UK’s decision to leave the European Union three years ago shows no sign of abating as politicians continue to wrangle about the best exit deal. The full impact on all organisations, especially those in the healthcare sector, remains to be seen. That and other challenges – the demand for high-quality healthcare in the context of workforce shortages, the need for innovation, an ageing workforce, rapid staff turnover and the high cost of recruitment – means that healthcare organisations face mounting pressure to be more agile, efficient and responsive and, above all, resilient. For all these reasons it’s never been more important to get the right people in place – and retain them.
Effective recruitment in healthcare is far from being straightforward. So, Work Psychology Group (WPG) is proud to be contributing to the sector’s understanding with the publication of a new book, ‘Selection and Recruitment in the Healthcare Professions’. Edited by WPG Director Fiona Patterson, a leading international expert in selection and assessment, and Dr Lara Zibarras, a senior lecturer in Organisational Psychology at City, University of London, the book draws on many years’ experience of researching, designing and evaluating healthcare selection systems to provide a comprehensive overview of the latest research and evidence surrounding recruitment and selection in these professions.
Such roles are high stakes, given the challenges and pressures facing those working in the sector but, most importantly, because the skills, attribute and values of heathcare staff has a direct and major impact on the quality of patient care.. “This is why we need to understand the most effective and efficient ways to select for roles in healthcare and ensure that how we choose our future clinicians is sound and fair to everyone who applies,” says WPG’s Fiona Patterson.
“We hope this book creates the platform needed to stimulate further debate on these important issues among professionals, educators, and students, whether they are experienced in the field of selection and recruitment globally, or completely new to it. But we are confident that they will find the content, which has been authored by leading experts in their field, a valuable resource for understanding key activities and contemporary issues in this area, both within and outside healthcare education.”
‘Selection and Recruitment in the Healthcare Professions’ presents the latest evidence in relation to all elements of effective selection and recruitment practice, including international case studies, and presents some ground-breaking thinking in areas such as widening access, the role of technology and coaching issues. It also questions existing evidence regarding how best to select those most suited to a career in healthcare, ensuring that approaches are both relevant and fair to all applicants.
Each of the chapters is authored by leading selection experts, including members of the WPG team, and focuses on a different topic. These cover selection tools and processes as well as broader issues, such as values-based recruitment, using international case material to bring the evidence to light. The final chapter – ‘Reflections on the Future Challenges for Researchers and Practitioners in Selection for Healthcare’ – focuses on how our thinking in this area will be shaped by future advancements and challenges in the field.
Published by Palgrave Macmillan, ‘Selection and Recruitment in the Healthcare Professions, Research, Theory and Practice’, is available as a printed hardcover book for £99.99 or an eBook for £79.50.
