Effective Ways for Healthcare Facilities to Recruit Nurses

Across our nation, healthcare facilities are dealing with the most severe deficiency of qualified nurses in over 50 years. All types of agencies are now involved with their attempts to infuse nurses into the system, be it funding, legislation or volunteerism. While the recent efforts have move things in the right direction with a 2% increase in the number of working nurses last year, the reality is that hospitals need to hire 95% more nurses over the next 15 years to fill the demand.

When ads for nurses are in trade magazines and newspapers, you have the first signs of a regional shortage. When salaries rise, this is indicative of a larger shortage, following the rules of supply and demand. However, today's economy has nurses being laid off, and overstaffing is driving nurses out of the work force as a consequence of dissatisfaction.

The recent recession has had a negative impact on funding for recruitment as well. Money spent on advertising and wage increases has diminished, which limits recruitment to some of the lesser effective forms of recruitment.

Support for pro-nurse legislation is an effective means of recruiting nurses to your hospital. Showing that you care about nurse-to-patient ratios intimates care for the nurses, as both a group of workers, and as individuals.

Hospitals that provide sign-on bonuses for specialized nursing, like labor and delivery, or undesirable positions, like night shifts, do well in attracting applicants. Because studies are showing that specialized nursing fields are getting the worst of the nursing shortage, some hospitals are offering the nurses already on staff scholarships and other opportunities to be trained in these areas, like emergency room and critical care.

Billboards, commercials, website ads and other means of advertisements have continued to be proven method for nurse recruitment. Public service announcements provide valuable information about one of the only remaining American industries experiencing growth. One of the biggest untapped resources in the nursing field is man. Advertisements that appeal to men, rather than women, can help bring in both jobs and diversity in the workplace.

Increased salaries is a significant factor in advertising for applicants. Yet wage increases and increases in non-wage benefits, like health club memberships, benefits currently employed nurses more than the new nurses. Over time, the nation will experience the challenge of nursing shortages as the baby boomer generation reaches retirement age.

International recruitment provides short-term relief of the nursing shortage. International advertising for nursing roles has increased recently hoping that qualified applicants will make the move and immigrate to America knowing that there are many openings. While this is often the case, the long-term benefit is not there since these nurses will eventually go back to their country of citizenship, leaving the hospital with the same vacancies.

Increased focus on programs that offer financial aid for nursing degree programs can have a positive impact on the number of healthcare workers that can feel these vacancies in the near future. As more financial aid is available for prospective nursing students, the number of graduates will increase and fill the open roles in the heathcare facilities across the country. Affordable schooling can open a lot of doors for hospitals.

Lastly, a hospital's ability to retain their staff for long periods of time can be their best asset when recruiting nurses. Offering benefits and education opportunities makes for a happier staff, and one that would be more likely to advertise your hospital by word of mouth.

Labels: Nursing Shortage