Pennygate Medical Centre · Prepared 30 June 2026 · Data source: Rota-CC API
60
Understaffed Days
46
Critical Days
212
Leave Days Booked
123
Total Days Analysed
Assumptions
John Morgan
Unavailable throughout (long-term sick leave)
Sarah Chugati
Starts 3 August 2026 · Mon/Wed/Fri · 0.6 WTE
Locums (ET, OA, OM, SY)
All contracts end 2 August 2026
Analysis period
1 July – 31 October 2026 (123 days)
1. Current Baseline — No Sarah, No Locums
JM off sick. 8 partners + 5 salaried clinicians. Wednesday is at breaking point.
⚠ Wednesday at Breaking Point
Zero surplus means any leave on a Wednesday takes us below minimum staffing. This is the critical bottleneck that recruitment must solve.
2. Post-August Baseline — Sarah Onboard, Locums Gone
Sarah Chugati adds Mon/Wed/Fri. Locums depart 2 Aug. Wednesday improves but remains tight.
Day
Available
Required
Surplus
Status
Monday
12
9
+3
OK
Tuesday
11
7
+4
Comfortable
Wednesday
9
8
+1
TIGHT
Thursday
8
6
+2
TIGHT
Friday
11
6
+5
Comfortable
3. Leave Pressure (Jul–Oct 2026)
212 approved leave-days already booked. Friday has the most leave but also the most surplus. Wednesday's 37 leave-days hit the tightest day.
Worst Simultaneous Days
Date
Day
Off
Who
28 Aug
Friday
6
JG, JT, KS, SW, SC, VH
30 Jul
Thursday
5
CM, JG, JT, MP, SC
31 Jul
Friday
5
CM, JG, JT, LS, SC
14 Aug
Friday
5
FB, KW, LS, MH, VH
18 Aug
Tuesday
5
FB, KW, LS, MH, SW
4. Recruitment Priority Ranking
5. Recommended Day Patterns for New Recruits
Core rule: Every new recruit must include Wednesday. Patterns without it don't solve the bottleneck.
Mon + Wed + Thu
MonWedThu
★★★ Ideal
Hits all three tightest days. Maximum impact per session.
Mon + Wed + Fri
MonWedFri
★★★ Strong
Same as Sarah's pattern. Adds resilience on Mon/Wed.
Wed + Thu + Fri
WedThuFri
★★☆ Good
Covers Wed + Thu. Good complement to Sarah's Mon/Wed/Fri.
Wed + Thu
WedThu
★★☆ Minimum viable
Hits both tight days. Works if other recruits cover Monday.
Mon + Wed
MonWed
★★☆ Good
Covers Wed + Mon. Needs someone else on Thursday.
Mon+Tue+Wed+Thu
MonTueWedThu
★★★ Maximum impact
4-day pattern. Covers all tight days plus Tuesday.
❌ Patterns to Avoid
Any pattern without Wednesday — doesn't address the bottleneck. Tue+Fri only, Thu+Fri only, Mon+Tue only — these add capacity where we already have surplus while leaving Wednesday exposed.
6. Recommended Combinations
With 2 New Recruits — Best Option
Mon+Wed+Thu + Mon+Wed+Fri
Wednesday goes from +1 → +3. Both Wednesday and Thursday now meet the 3-off policy target. This is the sweet spot.
With 3 New Recruits — Maximum Resilience
Mon+Wed+Thu + Mon+Wed+Fri + Wed+Thu
Day
Surplus
Status
Monday
+5
Comfortable
Tuesday
+4
Comfortable
Wednesday
+4
Comfortable
Thursday
+4
Comfortable
Friday
+6
Comfortable
Minimum surplus +4 across all days. Very comfortable. Allows the 3-off policy on every day with room to spare.
7. The July Danger Zone ⚠
A 4-week critical period before Sarah starts and before locums leave.
4
Weeks without Sarah
3/4
July weeks SC on leave
2/4
July weeks CM on leave
2 Aug
All 4 locums depart
⚠ Recommendation
If Sarah Chugati can start in late July rather than 3 August, push for it. Every extra week of coverage before the locums leave makes a difference. The combination of heavy partner leave + no Sarah + locum departure on 2 August creates a genuine risk of uncovered sessions.
8. Summary
Wednesday is the #1 recruitment priority — it's the bottleneck day and remains tight even after Sarah starts (surplus +1)
Thursday is #2 — tight at +2 surplus
Every new recruit must work Wednesday — patterns without it don't help the core problem
Ideal offer: Mon+Wed+Thu (3 days) — hits all three tightest days with maximum impact per session
With 2 recruits on Mon+Wed+Thu + Mon+Wed+Fri, Wednesday goes from +1 to +3 — this meets the 3-off policy target and is the minimum viable outcome
The July gap is real — 4 weeks of heavy leave before Sarah starts, with all locums departing 2 August
If Sarah can start late July instead of 3 August, take it