Healthcare and nursing agency Ocean Healthcare has unveiled plans to employ an extra 200 nurses and carers over the next 18 months.
The business provides essential support and resources to private nursing homes, hospices, hospitals, and residential homes across Devon, Cornwall, and Somerset.
With an expanding complex care services division and a reputation for delivering exceptional care, the agency has grown by over 40 per cent in the past two years.
Ocean Healthcare – celebrating its tenth year – supports more than 300 nurses and carers with flexible working hours, opportunities for professional development, and pays at least seven per cent above the national living wage.
Last year, the agency introduced an innovative ‘Live Happy Care Well’ initiative, to empower its staff to lead fulfilling lives both inside and outside of work and promote a positive work culture, which earned recognition in the recent HSJ Partnership Awards 2023, where they were shortlisted as a finalist.
Paul Insley, commercial director at Ocean Healthcare, said: “We are proud of the high level of care and support we provide and are now able to do more to meet the growing need for care services by expanding our team.
“Our ‘Live Happy Care Well’ philosophy means we are committed to providing our staff with flexible working hours tailored to their needs and lifestyle and supporting their health and wellbeing.”
As part of their initiative, Ocean Healthcare has made significant changes to its onboarding process and introduced mental health first aid training for support staff, as well as providing a wide range of resources to support staff wellbeing and work-life balance. These efforts have resulted in significant improvements in staff retention and satisfaction.
To further support its staff, in 2022, Ocean Healthcare invested around £25,000 in opening a dedicated training centre in Newton Abbot.
The facility offers industry-leading training to its staff, as well as other nursing and healthcare individuals, health-focused organisations, and community groups.
The training centre is expected to have a positive impact on the improvement and expansion of healthcare services across the region and will have its official opening at the end of April.
