Social care job vacancies in Moray
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More than one in ten jobs within Moray's social care sector are not being filled at present.
Vacancy rates are currently running at 12.2%, leading Simon Bokor-Ingram, who's in charge of the sector, to describe the situation as "difficult".
The figures were revealed at a meeting of the Moray Integration Joint Board.
The same meeting also heard that recruitment problems extend to Dr Gray's Hospital, where it had been "near on impossible" to attract more consultants.
Councillor Scott Lawrence (Forres, SNP) asked what vacancy level would pose no risk to the social care service.
Mr Bokor-Ingram replied: "If I was to put a figure on it I would say running with a 5% vacancy rate would feel much more manageable.
"It potentially gives you some room around some of the redesigns.
"But 12.2% feels difficult."
As regards Dr Gray's, Mr Booker-Ingram said: "We know it’s been near on impossible to recruit further for our consultant physicians.
"We’ve got one permanent and the rest are locums."
He added the cost of using locum doctors had an impact on the rest of the health and social care system.
Mr Bokor-Ingram continued: "We’re very aware we have this recruitment challenge.
"We know the further north and the more rural you get in Scotland the more difficult it can be to recruit.
"We know people have turned jobs down because they can’t find suitable accommodation.
"At the end of the day we still need people."
Fiona Robertson, the chief nurse for Moray, told the meeting that interviews were under way with the aim of recruiting 10 nurses from Kenya to work at Dr Gray’s.
Also, as part of what's called the assistant practitioners initiative, a few third year student nurses had started on the wards.
This scheme allows nurses in their last year of their training to work 15 hours a week developing their practical skills.
