How To Hire And Retain Medical And Healthcare Support Staff In Your Private Practice

The post pandemic job market is pandemonium with employers facing mass resignation and an inability to find suitable candidates to fill their spots.

Even candidates that may be truly great fitting the requirements for a job 90% may find it hard to land a job.

Conversely employers who may be looking for a receptionist who has some experience with data entry may be getting no matches.

In such a competitive environment, what can you be doing to improve your hiring and retention practices?

Symbiosis can advise you on how to start a medical practice, whether you are going it alone for the first time or looking to make a move to join a medical coworking space.

Let’s start by looking at some tips on finding the support staff you need to run a successful medical practice.

1. Make It Easy To Apply

The best candidates will find themselves with plenty of jobs to choose from, so you need to be competitive right from the get go.

How clearly and concise is your job listing?

Don’t list your perfect candidate, because you’ll never find them.

No human is perfect, but all humans can grow.

Do you have your job application listed on your website in a spot that’s easy to find?

Does the application open on all devices, including tablets and smartphones?

Consider the application itself and look for ways to simplify it.

Also, consider where your applicants will be searching for job listings.

Try posting on job boards and schools in the health industry, where recent graduates are searching for jobs just like the one you have to offer.

You need to make it as easy as possible for your candidates to find you and to apply to the jobs you desperately need to fill.

2. Make this a human process

Resumes are meant to be easy to glance through, so take a minute to read through each one.

It might be tempting to let a computer do the work for you, but most algorithms fail to recognize human potential.

Reach out to the candidates in person and use the interview as an opportunity to talk to them as another human being instead of an abstract persona.

Look for potential growth in a candidate.

If you’re looking for someone to stay for a longer term in their position then you have to factor in their growth potential.

Keep in mind as well that you’ll have to spend a lot of time with this person.

Will they be able to support your work?

Will they be able to serve as a loyal opposition?

Or will they be tiring and frustrating to deal with?

3. Get Your Reputation In Order

The reputation of your business is not just a tool to attract new clients.

You also want to attract the best employees, and your reputation will be one of the first things new recruits will check before they apply.

A strong online presence, positive reviews on Google and Facebook, and a good level of engagement with your clientele goes a long way when it comes to attracting talent.

If your private practice website looks like garbage, this will reflect in your reputation.

Before you begin your search for support staff, ask yourself the following questions:

• What makes me stand out from the competition?
• Why would a potential recruit choose to work for me?
• Can I be doing more to build my online presence?

Building a good reputation and online presence takes time, so start by reviewing the pages you currently manage.

Keep things up to date – there’s nothing worse than Googling a business and finding pages that have not been updated in years.

What impression does that give a potential new hire of how they will be treated when working for you?

4. Make Your Offer Compelling

In the ever more challenging healthcare industry, workers are increasingly concerned with good work-life balance and finding an employer who cares.

Offer incentives to join your company, such as flexible schedules, opportunities to develop skills, and programs for your employees to participate in that show you care about their health and well being.

Healthcare is a stressful industry to work in, and the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t made that any easier.

Let your future employees know that you will look out for them in this new post-pandemic world.

5. Ask Your Employees For Feedback

One of best proven ways to find new employees is to look to your current employees for feedback and referrals.

Target talent from within your industry by asking your employees to spread the word that you are hiring.

Ask your employees what they like best about working for you and have them write a recommendation on your website or job board.

Offer an incentive program for employees that encourages and rewards their feedback.

6. …And Actually Listen To It

Giving your employees a voice goes both ways.

Most of us have been in situations where our employers solicit our feedback on how to improve working conditions, and then proceed to ignore those suggestions.

Make sure you respond to negative feedback promptly and thank them for helping you to become a better employer.

Use anonymous surveys to encourage your employees to address their concerns.

An open door policy promotes a happier work environment, allows you to grow as a business, and prevents the frustrations that may prompt employees to leave.

The best employees are the ones who care enough to serve as a loyal opposition .

6. Reward Hard Work

Once you have enticed your employees to accept the job, don’t let your – and their – hard work go to waste.

Employee retention is an overlooked part of running a business and applies more to the healthcare industry than any other industry.

Offering a competitive salary and benefits is just the start.

Check your local jurisdictions minimum wage, Even if your practice is in a less developed region such as Alabama or Mississippi, remember that highly qualified candidates have access to the internet and can choose to move.

Employees thrive in a healthy work environment and there are many things you can do to promote this:

• Offer a collaborative scheduling model, where employees work with you to create their schedules.
• Create a sound onboarding policy with proper training and mentorship programs to encourage employees right from the start.
• Set productivity targets and offer bonuses to those who complete them.
• Establish strong professional boundaries.
• Offer a wellness program for employees that shows you care about their quality of life.

Workplace culture is what really sets you apart from your competitors and what will keep your support staff engaged in the job you ask them to do.

Commit to your employees and you will reap the benefits.

How Can Symbiosis Help?

Now, you can go through all that.

You can go through the effort of hiring and retaining your own medical staff.

That, on top of having to worry about choosing your clinic location, looking after your clinic’s finances, improving patient retention, and more, all while avoiding the hidden costs of starting your own clinic.

Or you can let Symbiosis take care of it.

Here at Symbiosis, we operate a medical coworking model.

That means you have a receptionist and back office administrative staff such as an office manager with experience and institutional knowledge supporting your practice from the day you open your doors.

We’ll take care of all of it, from hiring to retaining, so you don’t have to.

If you want to go through the process of hiring your own medical support staff and strike out on your own, that’s okay.

But if you’d rather focus on what you’re best at – practicing medicine – talk to us first.

Questions? Ask Symbiosis!

If you are curious about the coworking model, we are here to answer all your questions.

When you come on board with Symbiosis you gain access to support staff who are already working in a healthy environment.

Contact us today to find out more.