Healthcare retention and recruitment: challenges and tips

Recruitment is a key concern for the NHS and private practices today.

This is because our aging population is putting added pressure on the industry, as there are more people to look after for longer periods of time.

As such, it’s important for NHS organizations as well as private establishments to have the right recruitment strategy to help create a figurative conveyor belt of potential staff.

So, how do you achieve such a high level of quality recruitment?

Recruitment challenges for healthcare organizations

When it comes to recruitment, there are most definitely challenges that are unique to the healthcare industry.

The amount of patients requiring healthcare is dramatically increasing due to advancements in medicine and science, allowing people to live longer than humans have ever lived before.

So demand isn’t just increasing in relation to volume, it’s growing in relation to duration too.

This isn’t just an issue for healthcare recruitment in the UK; this is a problem being felt elsewhere in the world too. In the US, for example, it’s thought that the country will be short of 90,000 physicians by 2025. This became worse for the UK post Brexit and the recruitment of healthcare workers became a big challenge.

The challenges only increase when healthcare firms start to assess their recruitment options in an attempt to plug this gap.

Finances are constantly restraining healthcare organizations, as they don’t have the funds to hire the number of professionals they need to meet this demand.

There are also employee-specific issues such as engagement and retention. If professionals are feeling overworked, how do you keep them dedicated to their job? This is where healthcare training can prove its worth.

If employees feel like they are progressing in their current role, they will not be tempted to look for another job.

Checkout healthcare training courses that would make you attractive for recruitment

You need to start by retaining your current talent

Before you can begin perfecting your recruitment strategy, you need to focus on holding onto your best talent.

After all, you are only going to cause even more upheaval if your best staff members keep leaving.

With such budget limitations in the healthcare industry, tempting people to stay in their job by offering them more money is not feasible for most organizations.

However, there are other ways you can tempt them, for example, with non-monetary perks.

In addition to this, it is important to provide clinical training opportunities for those who work for your firm. One of the main reasons why people end up leaving the job they are in is because they feel like they have hit a brick wall.

One of our courses, CHAPS Training help your business bridge the gap between your seniors and your nurses. When implemented correctly they relieve pressure from the nursing team resulting in improvements of care delivery.

By providing training and retraining staff, not only do you ensure your practice continues to meet the unique needs and challenges you face, but you also increase employee satisfaction and improve your retention rates in the process.

But what about taking on new healthcare professionals?

Ultimately, the healthcare industry is facing the same challenges as many other high-growth industries that are desperate for talent, such as technology, mobile platforms, construction, and social media.

But it’s important to remember that each industry has its own unique challenges when it comes to recruitment and retention – and therefore you need specialist recruitment agencies that work specifically with healthcare professionals.

For example, many industries, such as construction, can go through periods where there is high unemployment and little competition when securing talent, but then there is sudden growth and thus need for extra talent.

Within the healthcare profession, this sort of cycle does not exist – at all times the ‘speed of hire’ very much matters for you to get talent ahead of other healthcare organisations.

However, internal recruitment is difficult, particularly when considering the volatility of the healthcare profession in both the private and public sphere.

This is why it is always a good idea to look into using the services of a healthcare recruitment agency.

Unlike other recruiters, healthcare recruiters have specialist knowledge, and they understand that they play an important role.

After all, having the right medical professionals in place can be the difference between the life and death of a patient, and so recruiters within the industry are motivated to make sure that those lives are saved by the right professionals.

They also understand your organization a lot better than a typical recruiter could. They understand what you are looking for and what you need.

This not only relates to the qualifications of your desired candidate but also the soft skills and other qualities the individual needs to possess to work in your practice.

They will also be able to inform you if the person requires any extra training, allowing you to organize this with a provider so that they can get to grips with their new role as soon as possible.

Checkout healthcare training courses that would make you attractive for recruitment

Choosing a recruiter with care

It’s important to appreciate the quality of the recruiter. You have to remember that when it comes to medical professionals, the demand is currently outstripping the supply.

Therefore, when choosing a recruitment agency to help fill your talent pool, you need to look at their credentials.

Not only do you need to make sure that the company has a lot of experience and a good reputation, but they should also have a good database of existing healthcare professionals.

They should also have a connection with their candidates. These people should be more than just a face and a name.

They should be able to recognise when someone has the potential to do the job you require, and do it well, or when they simply require a bit more formal training.

Hopefully, you now have a better understanding of some of the most common recruitment issues that are faced by healthcare organizations.

After all, it is likely that you have already experienced a number of these hurdles yourself. Nevertheless, if you follow the advice that has been provided above, you should get on the right track.

For assistance with health care training specifically, please do not hesitate to contact Caring For Care for more information.