Signs Your Hospital Needs a Top Medical Staffing Agency

The Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting phenomenon have caused a rampage among workforces across the globe and healthcare systems haven’t been spared either. With healthcare institutions facing a rampant shortage of healthcare staff, hospitals are on the receiving end of rather disastrous consequences with reference to increased expenses, nurse staff shortage, alarming number of layoffs and severe burnout because of increased burden on surviving staff.

Here are top five reasons a hospital must urgently hire a medical staffing agency

Surge in in-patient intake

An unexpected increase in in-patient intake can result in pandemonium if a healthcare institute is unprepared to handle the increased load. In such situations, healthcare institutions need to urgently bring in temporary staff that can handle emergency situations. A medical staffing agency can provide access to temporary or contractual staff in such situations and thereby ensure negligible interruptions in patient care.

Shortage of staff

The United States along with several other countries is facing an acute shortage of nursing staff in some States and a surplus of nursing staff in some States. As of 2023, the United States employs over 5.3 million healthcare professionals serving as nurses. But the demand for nursing staff is expected to exponentially increase by 2030; so much so that several States will witness a severe shortage. A staffing agency can help healthcare institutions by building a database of healthcare professionals. They can also help source healthcare professionals from out of State to fill in vacant positions.

Temporary staffing needs

While an increase in in-patient intake can lead to a hospital needing more manpower, it might not be the only reason. Sometimes hospitals require temporary staff to cover for full-time employees who might be on annual leave. Similarly, hospitals might need extra manpower during specific periods of the year as patient intake might increase seasonally. A medical staffing agency can not only predict such times, it can be prepared to source temporary staff and ensure uninterrupted operations in such a time.

Specialized positions

Because healthcare is extremely diverse, some hospital departments cannot make do with general physicians. They need medical professionals specializing in specific types of healthcare. It can be challenging as well as extremely time consuming to find such specialty staff through traditional means of recruitment. A medical staffing agency can come in handy in such cases. They can put hospitals in touch with medical specialists as per their requirements and reduce the time and resources taken to complete such a task.

Access a broader talent pool while reorganizing

Healthcare institutions have been trying to cut down on healthcare staff because of increased expenses and decreased revenue. Healthcare layoffs have gone up by an alarming 287% from May 2022. As such, hospitals will quickly need to bring in replacements – this can be done with the help of a medical staffing agency.

Bonus reason – Outsourcing recruitment

Some healthcare institutions prefer outsourcing all of their manpower sourcing needs to medical staffing agencies. This means the agency will take care of all recruitment processes including candidate sourcing and screening, initial interviews and even onboarding. By using a medical staffing agency, hospital administrations can focus on optimizing other functions at the institution.

Now that you know the reasons why a hospital needs a medical staffing agency, let’s quickly understand how a top medical staffing agency can help a hospital or healthcare institution with its recruitment needs.

Here are the benefits of hiring a top medical staffing agency

Medical staffing agencies can give you immediate access to a pool of candidates

Top medical staffing agencies tend to maintain a database of candidates across varied medical fields, designations and specialties. Because they have an extensive network of healthcare professionals at hand, they can quickly attend to a hospital’s recruiting needs.

Medical staffing agencies can provide flexible staffing solutions

A healthcare institution’s staffing needs might vary and it might not need permanent or full time employees all the time. Top medical staffing agencies can usually help with flexible medical recruitment solutions.

Medical staffing agencies provide end to end staffing solutions

Attention to detail and a robust skill set are key to working in the medical profession. Any mistakes or errors in judgement can cost a patient their life. That is why it is imperative that hospitals and other healthcare institutions only hire staff that has the right education, training and relevant experience. This makes it important to vet the applications received for a specific position. Staffing agencies with experience in medical recruitment are aware that due diligence must be conducted before hiring a medical professional including verifying their training and experience, assessing their skill set and conducting background checks based on the information provided by applicants. If a hospital or healthcare institution were to take up such a task they would find it to be extremely cumbersome as well as time consuming. But for those trained in medical recruitment, such a task will be easily streamlined.

Medical staffing agencies can cater to specialized needs

Hospital departments might require medical professionals with specialized skills. For instance, a trauma nurse might not be as efficient while assisting in a surgery as a surgical nurse. Similarly, a pediatrician might not be as efficient as a cardiologist while diagnosing heart related disorders. It is important that healthcare institutions hire medical professionals that cater to a specific branch of medicine in order to effectively treat patients. Medical staffing agencies can help shortlist, vet, assess and onboard specialty medical professionals as per the healthcare institution’s requirements.

Medical staffing agencies are prepared to cater to a manpower crisis

Because healthcare staffing agencies will have a better understanding of the healthcare industry, they will be better prepared to handle staffing needs of hospitals in case of emergency medical crises. Medical agencies will be in a position to resource temporary or contractual medical service professionals to address short term staffing needs.

Medical staffing agencies can help reduce the recruiting time by 50%

Because medical staffing agencies are better experienced and agile and they usually make use of technology to assist with recruiting, they can bring down the time taken to recruit medical staff by at least 50%, thereby saving on time as well as cost.

Medical staffing agencies opt for technology-based recruiting to optimize healthcare hiring

Medical staffing agencies usually employ AI based recruiting solutions to optimize the hiring process. AI can play a valuable role in healthcare recruitment by automating and streamlining various aspects of the process including candidate sourcing and candidate screening. AI based applicant tracking systems can also streamline candidate management while predictive analysis software can help match candidates as per criteria and introduce the best possible matches to healthcare institutions while eliminating recruiter bias. The advanced AI in Arya is revolutionizing the healthcare recruiting industry by using 300+ parameters and 7 multi-dimensional data points to score and rank talent for compatibility. Arya simultaneously helps source candidates from multiple channels in under 5 minutes, reducing candidate review and shortlisting time by 50%. Request a Demo to understand how Arya can help your organization streamline its healthcare staffing challenges in time to avoid a nursing shortage crisis.

Over to You

Staffing agencies play a crucial role in healthcare recruitment by connecting healthcare organizations with qualified professionals efficiently and effectively. By leveraging AI tools and technologies, healthcare organizations and recruiters can streamline the recruitment process, identify qualified candidates efficiently, and ultimately make better-informed hiring decisions.