Last week the Eligo Medical team attended the Best Practice Show at the NEC in Birmingham, an event Keynote speaker Jeremy Hunt, the Secretary of State for Health, labelled “the most important primary care conference in the year”.
Amongst the other messages in his address, Hunt called Primary Care the “most exciting place to be in the NHS, both today and over the coming years”. After 2 days spent meeting hundreds of GPs, Nurses, and Practice Managers from all over the country, we can most definitely say that both of these statements ring true.
As specialists in Primary Care Recruitment and Locum Jobs we loved the opportunity to engage with the medical professionals we work with daily on a personal level and further understand their problems, needs, and what we can do to help.
For us, the event started the night before the conference with the set-up of our stand, which, being only 4 foot 9, was eventful to say the least! Luckily I had the rest of the lovely Eligo Medical team there to help and we successfully prepared for the conference ahead.
Located on stand K80, close to GP Theatre A and Theatre 1, it was great to be able to chat with the growing crowds of GPs gathering for the mass of excellent lectures, seminars, and talks that had been arranged. We were also excited about some new additions to our stand including sweet dispensers, and a raffle we were running to win Apple Watches, Phone Chargers, Hand Sanitiser and more.
Throughout the 2 days which Best Practice ran, the importance of the Primary Care workforce was continually emphasised along with how GPs can be central to the transformation of our healthcare system. This was particularly relevant as the conference fell on the same date as Fab Change Day, a day for collective action by NHS staff to demonstrate the difference they can make.
Meeting so many passionate GPs and Nurses, we’d definitely agree with this sentiment. We spoke to so many new and existing clients and candidates that Christina actually had almost lost her voice by the end of the show.
With all the talks taking place, our Eligo sweets including classic retro love hearts were proving especially popular, with the Eligo goodie bags we had made up also a hit as they included something everyone within the Medical industry could do with!
We gave away many prizes during our raffle, but we came back with one more Apple Watch that we didn’t manage to give away. As such we’ve decided that if you register with us as a Locum GP or get in touch with your session requirements for Locums before the end of November you’ll be put in the final draw for the Apple Watch. We’ll also give you an extra £100 on your first timesheet or a free hour off your booking for Locums. Simply get in touch quoting Best Practice Offer or click here to upload your CV now.
Overall, our time at the Best Practice show was an amazing experience, so much so that we have already booked a spot at next year’s show where we hope to meet all those that we met this year and hopefully some new faces too. Jeremy Hunt said in his keynote speech that we all need to “bang the drum for primary care” and that is something we will keep on doing for a long time.