What is it really like to work as a locum doctor in the NHS? In this episode of Voices for Safety, we explore the challenges, opportunities, and patient safety implications of locum working with researchers Dr Jane Ferguson and Prof Kieran Walshe. From professional isolation to clinical governance, induction, and integration—this episode dives into the realities facing temporary medical staff and the organisations that rely on them.

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Meet the guests

Professor Kieran Walshe

Prof Kieran Walshe is Professor of Health Policy and Management at the University of Manchester.  He has around 40 years experience in health policy, health management and health services research. He often works at the interface between research, policy and practice and values the opportunities it offers to engage with the policy and practitioner communities and to put ideas into action. He has particular interests and expertise in quality and performance in healthcare organisations; the regulation, governance, accountability and performance of public services; and the use of evidence in policy evaluation and learning. He has led a wide range of research projects funded by the ESRC, Department of Health, NIHR, EU and other government departments and NHS organisations. His current research is mainly focused on the healthcare workforce, organisational and professional regulation, and quality and safety at the interface between the NHS and the independent healthcare sector.

Dr Jane Ferguson

Dr Jane Ferguson is Associate Professor at the Health Services Management Centre at the University of Birmingham. Jane has an interest in the healthcare workforce and the sociology of the healthcare professions. Jane’s research focusses on the nature of modern professionalism in healthcare organisations, and its interaction with contemporary issues such as professional governance and regulation, the changing nature of the professional workforce, and the impact of workforce reforms and other changes on the quality and safety of care. Jane collaborates with health economists, health policy specialists, doctors and other healthcare professionals on a number of research projects related to the healthcare workforce. 

Related publications:

What seems to be “the problem”? Locum doctors, liminality and concerns about performance. Gemma Stringer, Jane Ferguson, Kieran Walshe, Thomas Allen, Christos Grigoroglou, Evangelos Kontopantelis, Darren M. Ashcroft (Social Science & Medicine)

Locum doctor working and quality and safety: a qualitative study in English primary and secondary care. Jane Ferguson, Gemma Stringer, Kieran Walshe, Thomas Allen, Christos Grigoroglou, Darren M Ashcroft, Evangelos Kontopantelis (BMJ Quality & Safety)

The quality and safety of locum doctors: a narrative review. Jane Ferguson and Kieran Walshe (Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine)

Locum doctors – curse or blessing for hospitals? Caroline Ruiner, Birgit Apitzsch, Vera Hagemann, Sabine Salloch, Laura Marie Edinger-Schons, Maximiliane Wilkesmann ( International Journal of Employment Studies)

Locums: threat or opportunity. Richard Lilford (BMJ Quality & Safety)

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