Beyond the job ad: a practical guide to hiring GPs

This session is brought to you in partnership with NWMPHN and Avant Practice Solutions. This session is designed for practice managers, business managers, practice owners and team leaders working in general practice and primary care settings who are involved in recruiting and onboarding staff. NWMPHN is bringing experienced Avant consultants to deliver this practical workshop, providing expert guidance to support practices in attracting, recruiting and retaining GPs.

Recruitment success starts long before a vacancy is advertised. Join us as we explore the end-to-end GP recruitment process, including workforce planning, employer branding, overseas-qualified GP pathways, interviewing, onboarding and retention strategies that help practices secure the right talent.

Speakers:

Julie Hawkins is an experienced people leader and HR consultant with a strong foundation in healthcare and human resources, specialising in recruitment and talent development across the Asia-Pacific region. She holds a Bachelor of Nursing from the University of Technology Sydney and a Master of Commerce in Human Resources and Industrial Relations from Western Sydney University.

Julie has held senior HR roles at global biopharmaceutical companies, where she led initiatives in talent acquisition, learning and development, and organisational transformation. Her work has supported clinical and medical teams across APAC, giving her deep insight into the unique challenges faced by healthcare professionals.

Gemma Gough is a senior practice advisor with Avant Practice Solutions, bringing more than 23 years of healthcare experience across Australia and overseas.

A former practice manager, Gemma has worked across general practice, specialist healthcare, recruitment and business management. She is passionate about strong leadership, sustainable practice management and helping healthcare businesses build thriving, high-performing workplaces.

Gemma now partners with practice owners and managers to provide practical advice, support and solutions that help strengthen operations, navigate people challenges and plan confidently for the future.

Laura Gass is a senior HR consultant with extensive experience partnering with healthcare organisations to deliver practical, people-focused HR solutions. Her expertise spans recruitment, workforce planning, employee relations, performance management, leadership coaching and workforce compliance.

Before joining Avant Practice Solutions, Laura worked with Healthscope, supporting executive and clinical leaders across a workforce of more than 2,500 employees. With over seven years’ HR experience across healthcare and large-scale organisations, she helps practices build engaged, high-performing and compliant workplaces.

At the end of this session, you will have access to a toolkit to assist with the process.

Learning outcomes:

• Identify the key stages of a structured recruitment process and apply them to future hiring activities.
• Develop at least three behavioural interview questions to effectively assess candidate suitability and cultural fit.
• Evaluate candidate responses using a consistent assessment framework to support evidence-based hiring decisions