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Some physician openings have always been hard to fill, but with a and many , it can be especially difficult to recruit the clinicians in the specialties you need. Despite these challenges, two rural healthcare systems have found success in recruiting for hard-to-fill positions by thinking creatively and taking advantage of changes in the recruiting landscape. Here are seven strategies for recruiting hard-to-fill physician specialties.
1. Educate providers about life in your community
and are both located in rural areas 鈥� a fact that can be a negative for some physicians who鈥檝e trained in big cities. Recognizing that many candidates have misperceptions about rural life has been the first step in showing them what it can be like living in a smaller city or town.
鈥淚 think there鈥檚 a misconception that because we鈥檙e rural, we鈥檙e too small,鈥� says Mary Jo Burkman, FASPR, senior director of physician recruitment at Sanford Health, which operates in the Dakotas and Minnesota. 鈥淲e are smaller in size, but we have cultural diversity, entertainment, restaurants, and our schools are outstanding.鈥�
The same is true for many of Marshfield鈥檚 locations in Wisconsin, says Jennifer Waters-Plemon, physician and APC recruiter and onboarding team lead. 鈥淚n a town of 20,000, we have 300 physicians, and they all have kids, so it鈥檚 really a true melting pot of people from all over the world,鈥� she says.
2. Showcase your facility
It鈥檚 essential to pique your candidates鈥� interest right away, especially if your organization isn鈥檛 well known. By visually showing them what your facility looks like, it can help break stereotypes they have about rural healthcare.
鈥淲e do a good job of sending videos and links to our physicians when they first apply so they can get a visual of what the site looks like,鈥� says Waters-Plemon. 鈥淲e send them aerial footage of the institution so they can walk through it. I think giving them as much of that information up front as possible really draws them to be interested in the opportunity.鈥�
3. Mention other career opportunities
When physicians think of practicing in a new community, they might not know about other opportunities such as research or teaching that may be available to them.
At Marshfield, there are several options for physicians, says Waters-Plemon. 鈥淲e have our own residency programs and we have a huge research institute. If research is something a physician is interested in, they can do this while practicing at any of our locations.鈥�
Waters-Plemon also highlights the ability of Marshfield鈥檚 clinicians to teach and practice medicine while balancing family life: 鈥淭hey can teach, they can have a practice, and then be home in 10 minutes and not have a one-hour commute. It鈥檚 the best of both worlds, they can practice and be teaching, but then be home in time for family things.鈥�
4. Use your own physicians for referrals
Recruiters at Marshfield use a variety of , including search firms, outreach to program directors, emails, and their own internal referral program.
鈥淲e have over 700 physicians,鈥� says Waters-Plemon, 鈥渟o we send them the list of openings and ask, 鈥業s there anyone that you know?鈥� It works because each specialty has their own area, whether they go to their own career site or through word of mouth.鈥�
At Sanford, they also reach out to their physicians to advertise openings. 鈥淯sing your own physicians as recruiters is a great idea,鈥� says Burkman. 鈥淎sk them to reach out to their programs or their colleagues, especially if they鈥檙e fresh out of residency.鈥�
5. Take advantage of virtual recruiting
Many facilities have taken advantage of the wide acceptance of virtual tools to draw interest from a wider range of candidates.
Sanford鈥檚 recruiters have attended multiple , and Burkman has noticed they鈥檝e been more successful recruiting candidates this way than in the past. 鈥淎s a resident or fellow, I think it鈥檚 easier to go home and put on a pair of sweatpants and sit in front of the computer and be talking to three or four recruiters at the same time,鈥� she says.
While Burkman concedes she prefers speaking with potential recruits in person, by going virtual it has allowed candidates to attend career fairs all over the country, not just in their local community.
has also helped Marshfield bring in more candidates. 鈥淲e鈥檝e gotten more candidates that are at least interested, because there鈥檚 less commitment on their part to fly out here to check it out,鈥� says Waters-Plemon. 鈥淪o we kind of get them on the hook a little bit sooner and then they come and see the facility and the community and say, 鈥榯his is something I could see myself doing.鈥欌��
6. Use a contingent staffing agency
When recruiting for a hard-to-fill specialty, a contingent staffing agency can extend your reach without adding to your workload. And because you only pay for the service when a position is successfully filled, there鈥檚 little risk incurred.
All three recruiters said they use staffing agencies when they have a , or when they have a position that they haven鈥檛 been able to fill on their own.
鈥淔or some of those tougher searches, a contingent staffing agency is another sourcing tool within our toolbox. Maybe they have a different database of candidates that they can touch base with. We as recruiters have over 30 openings apiece, so our time is spread thin to begin with, and if we can have someone else helping on our behalf, that鈥檚 great,鈥� says Waters-Plemon.
Waters-Plemon says they鈥檝e used staffing agencies to help fill openings that are less desirable and don鈥檛 draw as many candidates, such as an orthopedist position in a small town. 鈥淚鈥檝e had the position open for two years and didn鈥檛 have any candidates until I reached out to CompHealth,鈥� she says.
7. Think outside the box
When recruiting for hard-to-fill positions, says Waters-Plemon, 鈥測ou can鈥檛 just post and pray. You have to keep pounding the pavement and trying everything and keeping at it. You鈥檝e got to think outside the box. I鈥檓 actually doing a podcast ad for SRNA students letting them know about our CRNA opportunities.鈥� Whether it鈥檚 a virtual tour, reaching out to residency programs, or partnering with a staffing agency, every step you take to reach out to new candidates will get you that much closer to finding the right hire.
This article first appeared on . CompHealth is a division of 博亚国际娱乐城. Let us know how we can support your facility鈥檚 staffing needs. Give us a call at 866.588.5996 or email ecs.contact@chghealthcare.com to learn more.
