Health Care Assistant Recruitment and Retention Initiative

The aim of this innovative project, introduced by York Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, was to review the way Health Care Assistants were recruited to the Trust. Prior to the introduction of the project the Trust had experienced a low retention rate for this staff group. Since the introduction of the project turnover and sickness absence rates for this particular staff group have both fallen.The initiative has attracted national recognition winning a Healthcare People Management Association (HPMA) award for Innovation in Human Resources (HR) in 2011 and the Workforce category of the 2012 Health Service Journal (HSJ) awards.The HPMA judges:“Liked the way the project was highly focused on patient care and the quality of staff.  They thought the compulsory elements were a great innovation, educating applicants and focusing on values and attitudes of people as key qualities for patient care and experience.”