Changing Role of Nurses Recruitment

Changing Role of Nurses

Recruitment of new nurses: Three strategies

Despite the recent economic downturn, one segment of the economy still exhibits a strong and growing demand for new workers -- that of the healthcare field. Nurses are needed to fulfill roles once performed by doctors, given recent cost-cutting measures by healthcare organizations. Also, nurses with specialized expertise in certain fields, like gerontology and nutrition have increased the demand for nurses who have additional qualifications, as well as are RNs. To recruit and retain new nurses, human resource divisions at hospitals, doctor's offices, and other healthcare facilities have adopted a variety of innovative and aggressive techniques to encourage new employees to become a part of their organization.

Recruitment method 1: using new media

Using radio and television advertising and the Internet to attract new nurses reflects a shift in recruitment venues. The pros of such methods are that they reach a wide audience -- but perhaps too wide, including individuals out of the commuting or likely relocating distance for the facility. Advertising that is too slick may also alienate rather than attract nurses, and these media are more apt to draw younger, less experienced nurses than older professionals who are more likely to stay for a longer length of time. These methods also may not be effective in reaching nurses -- unlike traditional office workers, nurses do not spend a large portion of their working day surfing the web, or listening to radio on the computer at work.

Deploying email can be more effective if done in a personalized manner. Sending short, customized emails to target candidates who have posted their resume on the web can narrow the target range of a personnel search and increase the candidate's level of interest, according to one healthcare recruitment firm (Healthcare recruiting strategies that work - and others that don't, 2002, MedZilla).

Recruitment method 2: Loan forgiveness programs

While obviously this strategy is more likely to attract new nurses, it may also be of value for nurses seeking additional support in training and obtaining additional certification to enhance their qualifications. "According to the NAHCR [National Association of Healthcare Recruitment] survey, loan forgiveness was the most effective financial recruiting incentive for the recruitment of nurses" (Healthcare recruiting strategies that work - and others that don't, 2002, MedZilla). Given the recent 'credit crunch' and the difficulty in obtaining student loans at reasonable rates for many students, the effectiveness of this recruiting technique is likely to increase.

Another, corollary strategy is tuition support for nurses employed at an organization. Even if demand for nurses is high now, nurses may also be more interested in certification pay and tuition support for additional education, to give themselves added assurance of staying employed in the future and also to explore new subfields of nursing they find interesting. If an organization needs nurses in a specific subspecialty, providing tuition assistance for education to current staff rather than recruiting new staff is an option, and many increase organizational loyalty and retention.

Recruitment method 3: Provide financial incentives