The medical staffing agency came close to collapse last year after discovering serious accounting irregularities, which saw its net assets reduced by 26 per cent.

Madrigal worked for 10 years in a human resources staffing agency run by his family.

A team from the staffing agency serves as a representative of the client facility during the hiring process for clinical staffing positions.

Eventually recruitment reverted to staffing agencies but not before furniture started going missing.

Even the most junior doctors are earning up to 1,000 a day while tens of millions of pounds are paid out as commission to staffing agencies, the study reveals.