RVH hosts job fair hoping to fill 'unprecedented' health care gaps

Hundreds of people attended the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre's (RVH) first job fair since the pandemic on Tuesday, as officials with the Barrie hospital seek to fill several job gaps.

Sharon Ramagnano, RVH operations director for the emergency department, said the rise in the number of people in need of care has led to an unprecedented job vacancy rate.

Officials seek to hire in several positions, including nursing, patient support, allied health (recreation therapist, physiotherapist, respiratory therapist), laboratory (medical laboratory technologist, pathology assistant, charge technologist), and medical imaging.

Ashley Tizzard and Emma Frank both graduated from the nursing program at Georgian College and hope for employment with RVH.

"I'm applying for the RN position on the respiratory unit. I used to consolidate there during my school year, and I wanted to go back because I really liked it there," said Frank.

"I really like how they help out in the community, and they are actually community involved and community-driven," Tizzard said.

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Applicants from across the region with various experience levels attended the job fair on Bell Farm Road.

"We're asking about their clinical experience, work experience. Asking behaviour-based questions to align with the RVH values to ensure that people are a good fit for the organization and bring their clinical expertise here to RVH," noted Stephanie Crampton, RVH professional practice and education manager.

Officials say some successful applicants left with job offers to start employment in October.

"There's definite ability to move up and to grow and to learn and to expand your career here at RVH," Ramagnano said.

Officials say anyone unable to attend the job fair on Tuesday can still apply for positions on the RVH website.