Case Study: Regis Aged Care – Appointing a National Wound Care & Prevention Lead
The Challenge
Our client, Regis Aged Care, is one of Australia’s largest aged care providers with 70+ homes nationally and a workforce of more than 13,000 employees.
Regis engaged us to appoint a National Wound Care & Prevention Lead – a critical and highly specialised role responsible for elevating clinical practice and improving outcomes across a geographically dispersed network.
Adding further complexity, wound care remains a key priority across aged care providers, with strong weighting in quality indicators, compliance frameworks, and accreditation outcomes. This heightened focus meant the role was not only difficult to fill but also business-critical, requiring a candidate who could directly influence clinical quality, mitigate risk, and drive organisational performance.
One of the key challenges with this search was the specialised experience required.
The organisation required a candidate who could demonstrate:
- Deep clinical expertise in wound care, ideally at a Clinical Nurse Consultant (CNC) or equivalent specialist level
- A minimum of 5+ years’ experience in aged care nursing, with a strong focus on wound prevention and management
- The ability to operate as a Subject Matter Expert — leading evidence-based programs and driving best practice across multiple sites
- Strong data literacy, with the ability to analyse trends and implement preventative strategies at scale
- Experience influencing and educating multidisciplinary teams across both metro and regional locations
- A genuine passion for innovation, particularly in leveraging technology to improve wound care outcomes in rural and remote communities
- Willingness and capacity to travel across Australia
Adding further complexity, the available talent pool was extremely limited.
Based on market mapping and industry insights, we identified that the talent pool for true wound care specialists remained extremely limited nationally. We estimated there to be approximately:
- NSW: 40–60 nurses operating at a true wound care CNC/specialist level
- QLD: 35–50 specialists
- VIC: 30–45 specialists
- WA: 15–25 specialists
- SA: 10–15 specialists
- TAS/ACT/NT: fewer than 10 combined
Of this already niche cohort, only a significantly smaller proportion were considered realistically to have:
- Experience working across multi-site aged care environments
- The capability to operate in a strategic, influencing role (as opposed to purely clinical/bedside functions)
- The flexibility and willingness to travel extensively across regional and remote locations
This meant the brief required not simply a wound care clinician, but a highly specialised combination of subject matter expert, educator, influencer, and practice leader.
Our Approach
Using a retained model allowed us to move beyond reactive recruitment and take a proactive, market-led approach.
We:
- Conducted a full market mapping exercise, identifying not only active candidates but also passive talent across hospitals, community health, aged care providers, and specialist wound clinics
- Targeted individuals working in Clinical Nurse Consultant (CNC), Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS), Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Educator, and Quality/Practice roles with exposure to wound care specialisation
- Assessed candidates not only on technical capability, but on their ability to influence, lead change, and operate across complex service environments
- Positioned the opportunity as a sector-impact role, appealing to clinicians motivated by improving outcomes at scale rather than remaining in site-based roles
- Provided ongoing weekly reporting and market insights, helping the client refine expectations around location, travel, and remuneration
Expanding the Talent Pool – Identifying “CNC-Ready” Clinicians
Given the scarcity of experienced CNC-level wound care specialists, we also broadened the search to include:
- Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS) and senior clinicians who were on the trajectory toward CNC-level roles
- Individuals already demonstrating advanced wound care capability, leadership, and informal influence within their teams, but who had not yet formally stepped into a CNC title
- Candidates with strong clinical credibility and stakeholder engagement skills, who could be supported into a more strategic, state-wide practice role
This approach allowed us to access a previously untapped segment of the market — high-potential clinicians who were ready for progression and aligned with the organisation’s long-term vision.
We also worked closely with the client to reframe the role from a purely clinical hire to a practice leadership and innovation position, which significantly broadened engagement with high-calibre candidates.
The Outcome
Through this structured and targeted approach, we were able to:
- Engage a shortlist of highly relevant candidates from an otherwise constrained talent pool
- Successfully appoint a National Wound Care & Prevention Lead with the right balance of clinical expertise, strategic thinking, and stakeholder influence
- Support the client in securing a candidate aligned not only to the technical requirements, but to the broader vision of driving innovation and consistency in wound care practices across their network
The Impact
The successful appointment has enabled the organisation to:
- Strengthen clinical governance and consistency in wound care practices
- Implement evidence-based prevention and management strategies, reducing risk and improving resident outcomes
- Enhance capability across frontline teams through education, coaching, and structured programs
- Drive innovation in wound care delivery, particularly across regional and remote communities
This assignment was led by Claire-Ann Leo: [email protected]
