Hiring and Recruiting Physicians POST COVID-19

Hiring and recruiting physicians has been an ongoing challenge for medical organizations. 

Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, the healthcare industry was already experiencing a physician shortage. In fact by 2030, the nation is ought to face a shortage of between 41,000 and 105,000 physicians.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has affected recruiting across multiple industries, but nothing like the healthcare industry. 

Once the pandemic broke out, healthcare organizations were in urgent need of extra physicians, which most likely caused your traditional recruiting strategy to be put on hold and focus on “hiring during a crisis”. 

So how can you continue your physician recruiting efforts post COVID-19?

Here are 5 tips to successfully hire and recruit during COVID-19 times:

1. Continue to showcase your brand! Just because we are undergoing “uncertain times”, it doesn’t mean you stop promoting your brand. Highlight your healthcare organizations mission, how your practice is different than others, why it’s a good place to work, what steps you’ve taken to protect the health of your staff and patients during COVID-19, show employer reviews, and your social media accounts to showcase your organizations culture and story.

2. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, healthcare organizations have faced new operational and business challenges – one being financial losses. With this in mind, many healthcare organizations have decided not to make formal employment offers. Instead, healthcare providers are being presented with a “contingent letter of employment offer“. This is one way to act in good faith and recruit while keeping in mind your finances. 

3. Work with a locum tenens recruiter to find the right locum tenens physician for your healthcare organization – easing your physician search. A few benefits of working with a locum tenens physician is that they fill immediate openings and are ok with working under a short-term contract. 

4. As the nation continues to practice social distancing, its best to eliminate in-person face-to-face interviews and focus on phone or virtual interviews using video conference platforms such as Skype, Zoom or Google Hangouts. As this becomes the new norm, you can still engage with candidates with the use of technology.

5. Protect your healthcare organization and the health of your staff by testing potential candidates for COVID-19. To best do this, make sure to review the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guide on testing potential candidates for coronavirus. In addition to the EEOC, your practice should also follow the federal, state and local public health guidelines. Here are a few of your rights when hiring during COVID-19 – as an employer you may:
   • Delay the start date of a candidate with COVID-19 or its symptoms
   • Withdraw job offers to candidates who have COVID-19 or its symptoms if they need the candidate to start immediately
   • Decline to hire candidates who refuse to work at the company’s designated work location (onsite or remote)

If you’re a Healthcare Provider looking for crisis response opportunities AND/OR a Healthcare Organization with urgent staffing needs, connect with us.