What Do Physician Recruiters Do?
Who are physician recruiters and what do they do?
This is a question asked by many within the healthcare industry as they are still getting familiar with what a physician recruiter actually does.
In fact, many believe their jobs are similar to headhunters, matchmakers, telemarketers, or human resource specialists. But that’s not the case.
So, what exactly do physician recruiters do?
Physician recruiters help both healthcare providers and organizations with all aspects of medical staffing and recruiting.
More specifically, they establish and develop long-term relationships with healthcare organizations, helping them find qualified physicians to fill vacant positions. As for healthcare providers, they assist them in finding the right physician job and/or practice opportunity.
To help fulfill vacant positions long-term, they seek, screen, interview, hire/onboard and help retain qualified physicians. Other responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Managing and understanding clinical requirements (policies, procedures etc.)
- Developing staff development plans
- Managing budgets
- Preparing job descriptions
- Drafting and negotiating candidate contracts, compensation and benefits (sign-on bonuses, relocation assistance)
- Credentialing (verifying identity, education), running background checks (practice history, malpractice history, professional and malpractice sanctions), licensing etc.
- Maintaining ongoing communication with candidates and their potential employer
- Developing and executing long-term recruiting strategies (website, branding, marketing/advertising, etc.)
- Participating in conferences, job fairs and other recruitment opportunity events
A successful physician recruiter constantly learns and stays on top of the legal, professional and technical aspects of the healthcare industry. This includes everything from:
- Compliance to HIPPA
- The healthcare reform
- Hiring models
- News and trends
- Healthcare systems and more
Above all, not only do these insights give physician recruiters a competitive edge but it’s also beneficial when developing solutions to the growing number of recruiting challenges.
So, the next time someone asks you what a physician recruiter does, let’s remember they are more than just “recruiters”. They help people.
Meanwhile, if you’d like to learn more about physician recruiters, browse our free online resource, physician recruiter 101.