Today’s shortage of skilled practitioners in the healthcare industry is causing significant challenges for healthcare organizations, and it’s not going to get easier anytime soon. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the industry needs 275,000 additional nurses in the next few years. The American Nurses Association says more RNs are needed in 2022 than in any other profession.
With labor shortages and increased competition for qualified professionals, effective recruitment in healthcare requires a different strategy.
What Are Recruitment Strategies in Healthcare?
Recruitment strategies in healthcare include how you approach the recruiting process from start to finish. From attracting potential hires, job boards and outreach, interviewing, compensation packages, background screenings, and onboarding.
Why Are Healthcare Recruitment Strategies Important?
Recruitment strategies for healthcare organizations are essential to maintain proper staffing levels to provide high-quality patient care. In a letter to Congress in March, the American Hospital Association said today’s workforce shortage is a “national emergency” and should be one of the nation’s top concerns.
The Downsides of Current Healthcare Recruitment Strategies
Current recruitment strategies in healthcare still likely resemble how things have always been done. However, you’re facing significantly increased competition. That means fewer applicants, no matter how prestigious your organization is or what you offer.
You’ll need to evaluate current pay and benefits to ensure you are in line with your competitors.
Your analysis requires a careful review of your recruitment and retention strategies in healthcare.
New Recruitment Strategies in Healthcare
With that backdrop, here are some of the top recruitment ideas for healthcare that organizations are adopting to find and hire qualified candidates.
Execute a Flawless Candidate Experience
From the first contact to the offer, the candidate’s experience must be exceptional. The more hoops candidates have to jump through, the more likely they are to move on. Specific strategies include:
- Reviewing your website: Is it easy for candidates to find job openings and apply?
- Processing applications: Do they get an immediate — and personalized — follow-up?
- Explaining the recruitment process: Are you transparent about the process, how long it takes, and what is involved?
- Dealing with candidates: Do you respect their time?
- Managing every touchpoint: Do you strive to make a personal connection at every touchpoint?
- Following up: Are you communicating and thanking job seekers often?
- Demonstrating Your Culture: Are you establishing your organization’s culture, and what sets you apart from your competitors?
Develop a Strong Employee Value Proposition
In today’s competitive environment, you need to sell candidates on why they should work for you. This requires you to create a strong employee value proposition (EVP), which includes things such as:
- Competitive compensation and benefits
- Opportunities for development and advancement
- Contribution to meaningful work
- Vision for the organization’s future
- Diverse, equitable, and inclusive experiences
Contributing to today’s talent shortage are high levels of burnout. In the wake of COVID, more than half of frontline medical workers report symptoms of burnout. Today’s job seekers will want to know upfront how you deal with this issue and what you offer in terms of employee wellness options.
Once you have developed your EVP, you also need to ensure you are communicating it effectively.
Improve Job Descriptions
When creating job descriptions, list only the essential qualifications that you require. A wish list may exclude potentially qualified candidates. At the same time, stop focusing on what you need and instead frame job descriptions for what you offer when recruiting in healthcare.
Shorten Hiring Processes
One of a job seeker’s biggest complaints is the length of the hiring process. According to Glassdoor, the average length of time in the interview process is 23.8 days. In healthcare, studies show that it can take nearly twice as long as the average. During that time, candidates have plenty of opportunities to lose interest or pursue other opportunities.
You must examine your current practices and find ways to accelerate the process at each step. For example, KarmaCheck can help speed up your process by delivering healthcare background checks faster than competitors, even as soon as the day of.
Involve Hiring Managers
With so many healthcare jobs available, it’s important to connect personally with the people a recruit will be working with. Don’t just rely on HR to fill positions. Involve the hiring managers and key staff members in the recruiting process.
Successful healthcare organizations are also providing coaching to managers and team teams, which leads to being more effective in the interviewing and recruiting process.
Use Recruiting Software
Recruiting software can help streamline the process, track applicants through the system, and help manage your outreach and communication. The proper software keeps recruitment in healthcare organized and helps move candidates through the hiring process efficiently.
Engage Healthcare Recruitment Agencies
You can’t afford to wait around for high-quality candidates to apply for jobs anymore. You must be proactive in your outreach. Competitive recruitment means engaging students at the university level, being active in industry groups and forums, and bringing in healthcare recruitment agencies to help surface top candidates.
Partnering with a healthcare recruitment agency will give you access to passive job seekers and a larger talent pool than you might find on your own. You can also lean on staffing agencies for contingent hiring to hire pre-qualified staff members.
Pay Attention to Retention
Every other healthcare organization is looking for qualified professionals, which means they may be recruiting your team members. Ensure that you are taking care of your current workforce rather than giving them reasons to look elsewhere.
A formal program that provides training and development opportunities so that they can advance within the organization can be a big selling point.
Recruiting Top Healthcare Candidates
Recruiting top healthcare candidates requires a proactive strategy and a change of mindset. Evaluate your systems and processes for peak efficiency and design employment packages that meet the needs of today’s job seekers.
KarmaCheck can help accelerate your hiring process by providing instant background checks. Contact us to schedule a demo.
