Cassidy, Laureen (SEN)
From:	Benjamin.Stock@defence.gov.au
Sent:	Thursday, 17 May 2001 3:29 PM
To:	fadt.sen@aph.gov.au
Subject:	SEC: UNCLASSIFIED:-Personnel retention / recruitment issues RAN Medical Branch

To Whom It May Concern,

I spoke to a friend of mine last night who stated that he had presented a
submission on retention of RAN medical sailors to you as a result of an email he
had received.  I had not received any such email and I am probably too late but
would like to put forward my views in any case.

Recruitment

The RAN is suffering a shortage of trained Medical sailors and is finding it
difficult to find personnel for postings to sea.   The bottom line, I believe,
is that over the past 5 - 10 years we have not trained and recruited enough
personnel, and have not provided the suitable level of employment and
satisfaction to retain a lot of our personnel.

Recent years have seen a large change in the way the ADF and Navy have
approached medical training.  In the earlier 1990's we saw Triservice training
of initial medics (Portsea), reversion to single service training (Cerberus),
revision and recommencement of triservice training (Albury) and now triservice
training at single service establishment (Cerberus).  This has lead to a great
deal of confusion, and to some, disappointment, in the direction of training,
and the quality of the end product.

Wastage rates of medical sailors is traditionally high and it has been a general
consensus that the Navy needs to train 10 initial medical sailors to grow 2-3
Phase 4 medical sailors (MA5).  We have over the last decade not been training
enough personnel.  This is obviously due to manpower forecasts from Workforce
Planning however, the result is now we are posting personnel to sea at short
notice because there is no trained personnel to fall back on.  This is leading
to frustration of personnel who have fulfilled their sea service obligation and
are then forced back to sea at short notice.  End result, personnel who are
disgruntled, can see no reasonable end in sight and invariably discharge.  It
should be pointed out that any person who leaves the ADF unhappy is potentially
a negative recruitment tool.  What I mean is that if they are asked about what
the Navy is like by a potential recruit they are likely to give a negative
comment based on their own experiences.

Recommendation:  Recruit more realistic numbers of personnel in future to allow
for our future requirements.  Targeting figures that are based on MRU figures
are not realistic at present.

I am sure that the Manpower bean counters can show numerous models and matrix's
for personnel numbers but at the end of the day they are not right.  I suggest
talking to Medical sailor Career Manager at DSCM and ask him how difficult it
has been to get people to sea.

Retention

We need to keep our trained people.  Many Navy medics leave because they are
jaded with career prospects.  Why would someone stay in the Navy in what appears
to them as a dead end job when they can seek what they perceive as better
employment in the civilian sector.  We need to make employment more attractive.
How

We are already giving civilian accreditation in a lot of areas but we could do
more.  Qualifications that are tangible outside are attractive.  We need to
tailor these so that the medical sailor can progress through their can and be
qualified for further employment out of the Navy.  By supplying accreditation at
different phases of the career, we can keep personnel in longer as they will
know that after they put a reasonable amount of time in the Navy they can move
toward civil employment.  A lot of the Navy medical accreditation is meaningless
to most employers.  The credit towards degrees currently offered is good (I have
already received one such degree) however the sailor is required to devote too
much of their own time and money to make this truly attractive.  One way of
achieving better qualification is at a set stage i.e. completing of Phase 4
training (MA5) and a sea posting (2 years) medical sailors can be offered full
time schooling paid for by defence to attain their degrees (Prehospital or
Nursing).  Of course a return of service obligation would ensure that these
trained personnel would be retained.

Civilianisation of our Defence hospitals and health centres is taking its toll.
There are now less uniformed positions.  This results in personnel returning
from sea to a reduced number of posting options.  As shore time in the Navy is a
respite from sea service, personnel may become happy with limited options for
posting with family support networks.  The Defence Force requires people to live
in areas where they would not normally consider, however with limited posting
options ashore, a lot of personnel just leave the navy and live where they want.

Civilianisation of positions also leads to uniformed personnel being required to
"do more with less".  Minimum manning has been in vogue for a number of years
but people are starting to get sick of this.

Jobs ashore for medics can be frustrating as there is a high administrative
workload and a low patient contact.  An avenue should be considered to rotate
medical sailors through civilian hospitals to maintain their valuable medical
skills

Recommendations:
1.   Structured training and educational opportunities to provide sailors with
accreditation thus providing incentive for the medical sailor to remain with the
Navy and known periods of return of service to allow Navy to retain these
sailors.

2.   A long hard look at the effect of civilianisation on medical personnel

3.   A program of clinical rotations.  These must be formal arrangements.  There
are some adhoc agreements in place, but the high workload of personnel leads to
these falling by the wayside.

Financial Recognition

Medical sailors are on Pay Group Four (4).  Whilst at sea, a Phase for medic
gets an additional $4.40 (approx) per day when a doctor is not on board.

The Phase 4 medical sailor is responsible for the health care of the entire
ships company and is the Medical Subject matter expert on board.  The Phase 4
medic possesses skills that, in some cases, only a Doctor can perform in the
civilian sector.  The medical sailor has no other person they can turn to for
advice on medical matters other than a satellite phonecall to a MO if the
operational environment permits.  Essentially they make life saving decisions
with no support.  Medical sailors are regarded as unskilled labour and are paid
accordingly .

An Engineering Petty Officer (SGT E) is paid 2 pay groups higher than the medic.
This PO has other PO's, a CPO and numerous Officers for advice on Engineering
matters.  Why is the medic paid lower?  Surely the Medical sailor has a higher
responsibility?  If the engine fails or seizes, it is only a machine yet if a
human being becomes seriously ill or injured, there is a potential fatality
waiting to happen.

Medical sailors are not nurses or ambulance officers and trying to tier pay to
these personnel may not be a reasonable benchmark.  Medical sailors should be
one of the highest paid members of the ADF given the requirement to look after
personnel and their health.  One must look realistically at the situation and
decide just what dollar value we are placing on human life.  We have high tech
electrical and mechanical equipment and pay these maintainers accordingly.  Why,
if our people are our most valuable asset, do we paid their maintainers a
pittance.

The $4.40 per day allowance is an insult.  It is paid for the responsibility
when there is no Doctor on board.  Yet the medical sailor does not relinquish
his/her knowledge base or shirk responsibility when the Doctor is embarked.  It
would be more realistic to review the pay grading of medics.

Recommendation

Review medical sailor pay levels and substantially increase it.  Junior skill
levels would reflect less money and senior skilled pay levels will reflect the
advanced skills and responsibilities of that member.

Money may not be a prime motivator, but personnel who are undecided about
leaving the Navy are more likely to stay if the money is good.

I do not be a retention bonus would be of any real value as it is likely that we
would be retaining personnel for the wrong reasons and that it would not fix
anything other than short term problems.

Conclusion

We need to act now for retention of medical sailors.  I am not qualified to
write about other categories in the Navy but I am sure they are suffering as
much as we are.

The Navy (and ADF) is not a normal job.  It is a lifestyle and an experience
that people voluntarily commit to.  To keep people in we have to make this
commitment seem attractive.  The best recruiters we have are the people who are
in the ADF doing the job, giving potential recruits a positive picture of
service life.

I have been in the Navy for 20 yrs and know nothing else (joined at 15).
Although I still enjoy the life, sometimes I feel I'm hanging around just for
the sheer curiosity

Ben Stock
Chief Petty Officer Medic (Phase 4) Submariner

HMAS STIRLING

08 9553 5337