GP recruitment hasn’t just become harder; it has fundamentally changed.
At the RACGP Practice Owners Conference masterclass, Claire Ponsford and Max Drakeley shared what they are seeing every day in conversations with practices and GPs across Australia. What emerged wasn’t just a discussion about workforce pressure, but a clearer picture of how decisions are now being made, and why many practices are still approaching recruitment in ways that no longer reflect the reality of medical careers.
The central idea was simple, but important. The practices that are consistently attracting and retaining GPs are not necessarily doing more; they are doing things differently. They are removing friction from the process, communicating with far greater clarity, and building trust long before a formal conversation begins.
While workforce constraints continue to shape the market, the more significant shift lies in how GPs approach career decisions.
Doctors are increasingly exploring opportunities well before they make contact, often comparing multiple options quietly in the background. Flexibility, autonomy, and the ability to build a career that reflects individual interests have become central considerations rather than secondary benefits. At the same time, there is far less tolerance for slow responses or unclear processes.
This means GPs are no longer behaving like traditional applicants. They are observing, assessing and forming impressions early, often without a practice realising it. And that subtle shift has a profound impact on how recruitment needs to be approached.
One of the most noticeable changes is the way GPs evaluate practices. The process is no longer limited to a job advertisement or a single interaction. Instead, the entire experience, from first impression through to communication style, shapes perception.
GPs are paying close attention to how responsive a practice is, how clearly it communicates, and whether the organisation feels structured and well run. Small delays or gaps in messaging can easily be interpreted as signs of something deeper, while vague or generic information often creates uncertainty rather than interest.
In this environment, remuneration is still important, but it has become an expected baseline rather than a defining factor. What increasingly differentiates one practice from another is the overall experience it creates.
A question raised during the session captured this shift particularly well:
Can a GP understand your opportunity in under five minutes?
Because in practice, that is exactly what they are trying to do. Before reaching out, they are scanning your website, reviewing your digital presence, and forming a view on what working in your clinic would actually feel like.
Many practices fall short at this point, not because the opportunity isn’t strong, but because it isn’t expressed clearly enough. The practices that stand out take a more considered approach. They make it easy for a GP to understand the essentials, what they are likely to earn, what the patient demand looks like, what support is available, and how the clinic actually operates day to day.
This level of clarity creates something far more valuable than interest. It creates confidence. And in a competitive market, confidence is what drives engagement.
Another consistent theme was the growing importance of digital presence, not as a marketing add-on, but as a core part of the recruitment experience.
A practice’s website is no longer just there to support patient acquisition. Increasingly, it also serves as a space where potential candidates form their first impression. The most effective practices recognise this and treat their online presence as both a healthcare brand and a careers platform.
Rather than relying on a single “join us” page, they build out content that reflects how GPs actually search and think about opportunities, making it easier to explore and understand what is on offer.
LinkedIn plays a complementary role here. It has become a place where GPs observe, connect, and build familiarity over time. Even relatively simple activity, such as maintaining an up-to-date profile, sharing occasional insights, or engaging with peers, contributes to a sense of credibility and presence that can influence future decisions.
One of the quieter but more important insights from the session was that success in recruitment is rarely about effort alone. Instead, it often comes down to how well the process is structured.
Practices that perform consistently well tend to have clearer systems in place. They keep track of conversations, follow up in a timely way, and make it easy for candidates to progress through each stage without unnecessary friction.
This doesn’t necessarily require complex technology, but it does require intention.
Without that structure, even strong opportunities can lose momentum. And in a market where good candidates are making decisions quickly, that can make a material difference.
Technology, including AI, was discussed as part of this broader shift, but in a very practical way. The focus was not on replacing human judgement, but on supporting it.
Used thoughtfully, technology can help standardise processes, improve consistency in how candidates are assessed, and reduce the administrative load that often slows things down. It can make it easier to create clear role descriptions, compare candidates fairly, and maintain continuity across conversations.
Importantly, though, the underlying principle remains unchanged. Recruitment is still a human process. Technology simply creates the space to do that part better.
Perhaps the most important idea explored was the link between recruitment and retention.
There is a tendency to think of retention as something that begins once a GP has started. In reality, many of the factors that lead to disengagement are established much earlier.
When expectations are unclear, whether around workload, patient mix, flexibility or support, it becomes difficult for the day-to-day experience to fully align with what was anticipated. Over time, even small gaps can grow into larger sources of frustration.
The practices that navigate this well tend to focus less on “selling” the role and more on explaining it accurately. By building a shared understanding early, they create a stronger foundation for longer-term engagement.
Taken together, the shifts discussed point to a more deliberate and thoughtful approach to recruitment.
It is less about reacting quickly when a vacancy arises, and more about building visibility, clarity and trust over time. It is about creating processes that feel simple and consistent, and presenting opportunities in a way that allow GPs to make informed decisions confidently.
Most importantly, it is about recognising that recruitment and retention are not separate challenges, but part of the same continuum.
Practices that embrace this way of thinking are not just responding to a tougher market. They are positioning themselves to navigate it more effectively, both now and in the years ahead.
If you are a practice owner looking for a more future ready approach to GP recruitment and retention, our team is here to help. Get in touch.