Deciding Between Two Stellar Medical Candidates

November 28th, 2016

Well, your healthcare establishment’s hiring process was long and arduous, and now a difficult final decision is imminent. You have to choose between two excellent candidates, both with the medical industry experience and skill set to benefit your organization. In fact, you’d easily hire both if the budget allowed it.

A choice between the two is required, however, so you need some insights on how to pick between two top-tier medical candidates. What follows are a few tips on ensuring you choose correctly when faced with this dilemma. Good luck!

The Best Fit for the Open Position

Perform a detailed analysis of the skill set required for your open position and compare those requirements against each candidate’s experience and capabilities. It’s likely they will be essentially equal, but there may be a differentiator deep within the data. When in doubt, add extra weight to the candidate with the more relevant and tangible experience.

Additionally, take into account any office culture considerations. Sometimes a new hire becomes more productive if they fit in better with your current staff.

Compare Each Candidate’s Enthusiasm Level

Remember, the hiring process is a two-way street, and your chosen candidate might not accept a job offer. Try to determine which candidate seemed more enthusiastic about working with your medical firm; you may need to ask for additional insights from your interviewing team. Also, consider the candidates’ long-term goals and whether or not they mesh with your organization’s future outlook – you don’t want to rehire for the same position in a few months or a year.

Reference Checks Can Help Separate Two Equal Candidates

Checking each candidate’s references – including a detailed conversation with each – offers a great chance to separate two otherwise equal candidates. Pay close attention to how well they functioned under pressure earlier in their career. Any insights into their interaction with others are especially relevant to a medical office.

Use this opportunity to verify the accuracy of the contents of their résumé – especially their work history. Any discrepancies or exaggerations by one of the candidates might help you make that important final decision. This extra effort ensures your choice contributes to your organization’s success for years to come.

If you need any additional ideas on the hiring process in the medical industry, talk to the experts at Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the nation’s leading healthcare staffing agencies, we offer great candidates able to make a positive impact on your team. Connect with us at your earliest convenience.

How to Seek Out a Mentor in the Medical Field

November 21st, 2016

Whether you are new to the healthcare industry, or if you are an experienced medical professional, having a mentor is a great way to ensure your career stays on an upwards trajectory. A mentor offers the right advice when you need it, or they can suggest a training course or certification to improve your resume and future job prospects. If you only knew how to find someone willing and able to help!

What follows are a few ideas for how to find a mentor in the medical industry. Good luck in your search. Ultimately, it’s not a difficult process.

Leverage Your Professional Network

Your professional network and your LinkedIn account are great sources for finding a mentor. Look among your connections to see if there is someone currently working in a medical specialty of interest to you. It also helps to define your professional goals ahead of time when searching for a mentor, so they are better able to help you reach them. Another option would be one of your teachers from school, especially if you’ve maintained a good relationship.

What About Your Current Medical Workplace?

While it is possible to find a mentor among your supervisors or the more experienced co-workers at your current place of employment, it is better to look outside the office. If you ever have a problem at work, it helps to get a different perspective from an outsider. The same advantage also applies if you want to look for another position in the medical industry.

How to Approach a Potential Mentor

Send your potential mentor an email message describing what your goals are and inquiring whether they are able to work with you to achieve them. Find about their availability for a face-to-face meeting and schedule a time for a get together. If they are located in a different region, a video conference works as a valid alternative.

If they are open to a regular meeting schedule after your first get together, work with them on a time convenient for both of you. Be sure to do most of the agenda planning yourself; remember that your mentor is freely giving their time. Whether you choose a long-distance mentor or someone closer, they definitely provide the insight to help develop your medical career.

When you need additional advice on career growth in the healthcare industry, don’t forget the knowledgeable recruiters at Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the top medical staffing agencies in the country, we also know what companies are looking for talented professionals. Connect with us at your earliest convenience.

What Is the True Cost of Hiring a New Employee?

November 15th, 2016

The process of onboarding a new employee at your medical establishment comes with a variety of costs. You also need to take into account all the other tasks related to finding and hiring a talented candidate. All told, it is a significant undertaking which places the onus on making the right hiring decision, lest you have to repeat the entire exercise.

Understanding what’s involved with hiring a new employee helps you define a methodology to ensure a proper choice between candidates in addition to keeping your expenses down. Let’s analyze the true cost of the medical employee hiring process.

The Three Steps of Hiring a Medical Employee

The entire hiring effort essentially includes three different steps. First off, recruiting a new hire requires placing a job ad, perusing résumés, interviewing the best candidates, reference checking, and – finally – the hiring decision. Once a candidate is hired, onboarding that person comes with its own set of costs.

It is important not to forget training the new employee, which is especially vital in the healthcare industry. Entrepreneur.com estimates the average cost of hiring a new employee to be around $4,000; you can expect that number to be higher in the medical industry considering the cost of training. In short, your company’s outlay is much more than the new worker’s salary and benefits package.

The High Cost of Recruiting in the Healthcare Industry

When your company decides to hire a new employee, the recruiting process is surprisingly expensive. There is time spent determining the job requirements and writing an advertisement, in addition to placing that ad online and in print. Going through potentially hundreds of resumes takes the valuable time of you and your managerial team.

Finally, there are the significant resources spent interviewing the top candidates and calling their references. Background checks are another expensive, but necessary, part of the process.

What if there was a way to recruit healthcare talent more efficiently?

Leveraging the Help of a Medical Staffing Agency

Working with an experienced medical staffing agency is a great way to streamline your organization’s recruiting process. The best healthcare employment firms offer a robust supply of quality candidates – already vetted. Your team can focus on interviewing and hiring the best choice.

When searching for a top-ranked medical staffing agency to partner with, look no further than Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the nation’s leading healthcare employment companies, we offer the great candidates able to make a positive impact at your medical establishment. Schedule some time with us as soon as possible.

Risks of Giving Medical Advice Off the Clock

November 7th, 2016

Medical professionals are by nature empathic people. If someone close to them – possibly a friend or family member – wants insight on their health, they want to help. If you are ever faced with this scenario, consider any possible liabilities or legal risks due to giving medical advice outside of your job.

What follows is a look at some of the potential issues you may face by offering any recommendations regarding someone’s health when off the clock. Sometimes, it is best to stop and think before helping out.

The Legal Risks for Off-site Medical Advice Are Real

Unfortunately, simply giving a medical recommendation when not at work – and under the umbrella of malpractice insurance held by your hospital or doctor – carries a legal risk. Providing any sort of medical advice, education or care in an informal setting means you can be named in a lawsuit. Having someone sign a quick disclaimer notice isn’t realistic in most situations.

The only scenario where offering advice may be considered okay is if you trust the person in question. Even in that situation, your legal risk isn’t zero.

Check the Medical Laws in Your State

It is important to note the laws regarding off-site medical advice vary by state. Do a little research on your own, and ask a trusted supervisor at your employer to see if they can offer any insights.  When in doubt, the wisest move is to tread lightly on offering any medical recommendations unless you are on the clock.

The Same Liability Risks Apply on the Internet

Not surprisingly, you are subject to the same legal risks for providing medical advice over the internet, in an email or by text messaging. Consider writing a quick disclaimer along with your recommendations to lessen your liability, but the risk of a lawsuit still remains. There are even some cases of state licensing boards contacting people offering dietary and nutritional advice over the internet without a license.

The bottom line is simple – tread lightly whenever giving any kind of medical advice if you aren’t on the clock. Tell the person in question to make an appointment to see a doctor, or visit an urgent care facility or emergency room if the situation warrants it. You don’t want to put your career and financial situation at risk.

Whenever you need additional insights on your medical career, talk to the experts at Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the top healthcare staffing agencies in the country, we know what medical establishments are looking for talented professionals. Connect with us as soon as possible!

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