Estimated reading time at 200 wpm: 3 minutes
In June I wrote about the recurrent onboarding failures that locum doctors may encounter across NHS Trusts. The problems I described—delays in IT access, missing ID badges, absent supervision—remain common. The article diagnosed the issue. This post offers a practical tool.
Whether or not you agree our Fat Disclaimer applies
From article to document
The people who most need to act on onboarding failures are are least likely to pay attention to it. That’s what I have seen. I speak it as I find it.
I needed something different: a document that could be sent to a service before arrival, reviewed quickly, and used as a working reference. Not an argument, but a checklist with enough context to be useful.
The result is attached below as a PDF. This is something that should be of interest not only to places of employment. Locum Agencies should be interested as they have natural commercial interests in locums delivering good quality work and staying longer in jobs.
What the document contains
The front page is designed for a thirty-second scan. It identifies who should read it, states the core requirement (single ownership of the process), and outlines what the checklist covers. No history. No grievance. Just function.
The checklist itself runs through Day 1, Week 1, and Week 2. It specifies what needs to happen, when, and in enough detail to prevent the ambiguities that cause delays. “Meet at reception” is not sufficient when a site has five buildings. The checklist reflects that.
The explanatory notes at the end provide rationale for readers who want it. Most will not read them. That’s fine. The notes exist so that no one can claim the reasoning was withheld.
Using the document
Adapt it as needed. Some items will not apply to every setting. The timelines allow flexibility.
If you send it and receive a thoughtful response—questions, a named coordinator, confirmation that items are in hand—that’s a good sign. If it vanishes, take note and expect stress.
The document as diagnostic
I used this document for the first time in earlier in 2025. I offered to send it directly to an Associate Medical Director during our initial conversation. She declined: “Everything has to go through the agency.” No rationale. I sent it via the agency. They passed it to HR.
When I arrived, operational and ground-level staff were unaware of it. The AMD had not seen it—or claimed not to have. Supervision had not been arranged. When I requested it, the AMD was too busy.
I left that post in quick time – not specifically about onboarding – but many other dysfunctional cultural issues..
The document did not fix the service, nor was it meant to. But it revealed the service. How an organisation responds to a reasonable, practical onboarding checklist tells something about how it functions. If a document disappears into a bureaucratic void before the locum arrives, expect the same to happen to clinical concerns.
