What are Recruiters looking for in Nursing Candidates?

October 31st, 2016

Whether you are fresh out of school or an experienced medical professional, it helps to understand what skills recruiters and hiring managers are hoping to find among potential nursing employees. Armed with this knowledge, you are able to tailor your candidacy — including your résumé and cover letter — to ensure a chance at an interview. If you decide to work with a medical staffing agency, their recruiters can prepare you for a successful job search process.

With a great new medical industry job in mind, here are the things recruiters want to see in a nursing candidate. Good luck in your efforts!

In-demand Technical Nursing Skills

There’s no denying the impact made by technology in the healthcare industry. Because of this, recruiters remain on the prowl for nursing candidates comfortable with computers as well as a whole host of specialized medical equipment, including dialysis machines. Familiarity with electronic medial records (EMR) software and quality assurance programs is another important ability for nurses.

Consider becoming certified in any of these technical nursing skills to add some heft to your résumé. Showing practical application of these abilities in a cover letter or during an interview definitely increases your chances at a job offer.

Soft Skills are also Important

Softer skills are also vital in the world of nursing. An empathic nature is a must; arguably being the most important trait for any nurse to possess. Leadership ability, especially with experienced nurses, also holds weight with many healthcare recruiters and hiring managers.

Bilingualism continues to grow in importance, and can be a requirement in certain areas of the country. Consider taking a language course to improve this part of your skill set. If interested in relocation, this ability simply gives you more options for potential employers.

Being Flexible is a Plus

Flexibility is important for all nursing candidates, but especially so if you are fresh out of school. Many hospitals or medical offices typically want nurses who are willing to work different shifts as well as regular weekend schedules. Once again, being open in this regard simply shows you are willing to help a potential employer.

Hopefully, these insights into what nursing recruiters hope to find in a candidate helps your job search end up successful.

When you need additional advice on looking for employment in the healthcare industry, talk to the experts at Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the top medical staffing agencies in the country, we can help take your career to the next level. Connect with us at your earliest convenience.

Five Useless Hiring Practices to Get Rid Of

October 5th, 2016

As the medical industry continues to evolve, so do the hiring processes used to connect healthcare establishments with new employees. In fact, this changing routine of finding new workers isn’t limited to the medical world — all industries are revising their out of date HR methodologies. Because of this continued transformation, certain older practices are now considered obsolete.

With an eye towards making your medical office’s hiring efforts state of the art, here is a list of five useless hiring practices worth placing in the dustbin of history. Hopefully, this lets you streamline the entire process, ultimately making your workplace run more efficiently.

Not Prescreening Candidates

In a previous paper-laden era, HR personnel had to deal with a host of time-consuming tasks when parsing through a collection of candidates. In many cases, they would forego a detailed prescreening of applicants before deciding on whom to interview. Today’s social media-driven world allows a streamlining of this process; there is no longer any excuse for not vetting an applicant’s social networking accounts and conducting a phone screening.

Obsolete Interview Questions

Concerning the interview itself, certain time-honored questions just don’t apply in the modern era. This includes overly vague and broad queries like: “Tell me about yourself.” That kind of question isn’t specific enough to be useful and only ends up wasting valuable time.

Making an Interviewee fill out an Application Onsite

Speaking of a time-waster, making an interviewee fill out an application — paper or online — when they arrive for an interview reeks of obsolescence. Your medical office needs an application tracking system with all the candidate data stored for easy reference. Interview time needs to be focused on the interview itself.

The Gauntlet of Interviews

Subjecting a candidate to any more than two or three interviews only serves to clog up the entire process. The efficiency of your medical office suffers, as more of your team spends time conducting interviews instead of caring for patients. Lessening the number of interviews when hiring a new employee is vital!

Not Following up when the Hiring Decision is Made

A social media connected society means news travels fast. In the past, companies would sometimes fail to notify candidates who didn’t get the job. With your medical establishment’s reputation at stake, take the time to inform everyone who interviewed for a position when you make a final hiring decision.

If your medical organization needs additional insights on the hiring process, talk to the knowledgeable team at Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the country’s leading healthcare industry staffing agencies, we offer great candidates able to succeed in your office or hospital. Meet with us as soon as possible.

Three Signs of a Great Medical Recruiter

August 22nd, 2016

When it comes time to look for a new job in the medical industry, working with a talented and experienced recruiter familiar with the world of healthcare is a smart call. The best recruiters know who is hiring as well as the hot skills currently in demand. Assisting you in putting together a résumé and helping prepare you for interviews are two other ways they make your job search a successful one.

Partnering with a great medical recruiter can be an important part of your career growth. Here are three attributes worth noting when in the market for someone to help with your job search efforts.

They Are Connected with the Local and Regional Medical Industry

The best medical recruiters maintain connections with those in the field on both a local and regional basis. This ensures they understand the cultures of the medical offices and hospitals in your area. Once they get to know you better, they will be able to place you at an establishment where you’d make a good fit.

At the same time, they also know what skills and abilities are currently in demand in the medical industry. This helps you decide on where to focus your training to ensure your career prospects stay bright in the future.

Following-Up is Important

Recruiters must regularly follow-up with both the candidates they are presenting and the medical companies looking for new talent. When you are waiting to hear back about a potential interview with the healthcare company of your dreams, it helps to be working with a recruiter who keeps you in the loop. You need to be aware of the current status of your recruiter’s efforts throughout the job search process.

Takes the Time to Understand you as a Medical Professional

When first meeting with a medical recruiter, pay attention to how closely they interview you. They need to fully understand your professional and educational background as well as what skills and abilities you bring to the table for a potential employer. You should treat this meeting as essentially a two-way interview.

Ensure the recruiter takes detailed notes during your discussion. Hopefully, their staffing agency has you fill out an application so all your skills and other professional abilities are searchable in a database. This makes it easier to match you with an employer looking for someone with your skill set.

When you are in the market for a medical recruiter, be sure to talk to the experts at Pinnacle Workforce. As one of the top healthcare staffing agencies in the country, we can help take your career to its highest level yet. Make it a point to contact us as soon as possible.

Three Ways to make your Employees’ Lives Easier

July 25th, 2016

Productive employees are engaged employees, which leads to a happier and more efficient workplace. In the medical industry, this typically results in patients receiving better care, which is ultimately your organization’s most overriding concern. Keeping your staff from becoming overworked and stressed out helps ensure the overall productivity of your medical office.

In short, making your employees’ lives easier is a good thing for your company and the patients you serve. Here are three tips towards fostering a productive atmosphere in your medical establishment.

Leverage Temporary Medical Workers to keep Stress Levels Low

Bringing in temporary medical workers to help out during busy times at your office is a smart tactic aimed at preventing your permanent employees from working too many hours.  Stress isn’t good for your staff’s well-being or the care of your patients. Temp workers offer other benefits; including closing any skills gap on your team, or allowing you to test the temp’s abilities before potentially offering them a permanent position.

Work closely with your medical staffing agency partner for access to quality candidates willing to work on a temporary basis. Your regular employees will thank you.

Schedule Staff Strategically based on their Sleep Schedules

It is important not to switch your employees between different shifts on a frequent basis. Take into consideration their regular sleeping patterns when making your work schedules. Try to match shifts with your team member’s preference, and stick to these schedules once they are established. Happier workers and better patient care will be the result.

Be Open to Employee Insights for Operational Improvement

Allowing your staff to contribute their own insights and ideas on your medical office operations is a great way to keep them engaged. Experienced medical professionals working on the frontlines of the industry offer a unique perspective that sometimes gets missed by management. Employees feel they have a stake in the game and their own performance will likely improve as a result.

Maintaining an open door policy welcoming employee opinions helps to start this process. Consider a more formal setup, like holding regular staff brainstorm sessions or an online message board where everyone is encouraged to contribute.

When you need additional insights on building and maintaining a top-notch medical office, talk to the experts at Pinnacle Workforce. One of the top staffing agencies in healthcare industry, we offer great the candidates perfect for both temporary and permanent assignments. Meet with us at your earliest convenience.

The Use of Music as Therapy in Elderly Patients

March 18th, 2014

As patients age, their health problems can increase from brittle bones to memory loss, and while there are few options to drastically improve their mental state, new research is providing hope for an improved quality of life for their daily life. Music therapy can be the medium used to bring the elderly out of their depression and provide them with an outlet for strength and happiness. The ideology behind the therapy is simple: music can recreate memories and cause the elderly to interact with something positive and happy, music.  When the brain is stimulated, it tends to stay in that state so the elderly can have hours of productive brain thought after the initial music therapy session.

Creating a Higher Quality of Life for the Elderly
Plagued with health problems, medications that make them groggy and even a loss of special memories can make the elderly depressed and they will sometimes retreat from the world. When this occurs, their health begins to deteriorate at a rapid pace without daily walks, mental stimulus, and the social interaction that humans need on some level. Music has always been regarded as a mood-lifter and a positive influence in lives. It can reduce anxiety and confusion with dementia patients, causing them to interact with others and when the brain is stimulated, it can lead to increased functionality throughout the day. The elderly are more apt to vocalize a problem and even remember things on their own. Even for the elderly without dementia, the music will create a calm environment and happier exchanges with others in the community as well as the caregivers.

Easy to Understand Why it Works
When the elderly are placed in a retirement setting or even with a caregiver at their home, it can be a scary time. Not only is it is a new situation to face but many times, they may wake up, forgetting where they are and why they are there. Music therapy can work as a calming agent to decrease the agitation felt by these patients who will struggle to put into words their own feelings of helplessness and confusion. Every one of all ages will respond more positively to a happy mood and something familiar, especially the elderly when they hear music from their past that can conjure up good memories for them. It will encourage them to sing along and it may be surprising to see how much they do remember from the “good old days” of their past and the conversations that follow can create stronger relationships and enjoyment. Elderly care facilities around the country are implementing music therapy for patients in all stages of care and seeing dramatic results when the patients are given the chance to choose their favorites on a music device. 

Pinnacle Workforce
Pinnacle Workforce strives to meet the needs of the dynamic healthcare industry. We promise to provide qualified professionals to the companies and organizations where they are needed most. Want to learn more about our team and how we can benefit your hiring needs? Contact our team of experienced San Antonio medical recruiters today!

Key Facts of The Affordable Care Act

December 27th, 2013

Due to the nature of this politically charged government bill, it can be hard to determine what the truth is and what is propaganda put out there with an ulterior motive. In order to fully understand this new healthcare law and how it affects you, it is important to realize the facts of this new health care plan. You can then form an educated opinion about Obamacare and its impact on your life.

The Foundation
The Affordable Care Act, ACA, or Obamacare are all the same thing and it is part of the reform signed into action by President Obama in 2010 designed to provide quality, affordable healthcare for all Americans and reduce the growth in health care spending. The ACA has a goal to expand the private and public sectors of health insurance so more people can afford it without having to sacrifice on the quality of the program. Here are some quick facts about this new healthcare reform meant to educate and inform:

  • Obamacare does not replace private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid
  • It regulates health insurance, not the care you will receive.
  • All insurers are required to cover those with pre-existing conditions.
  • Insurance companies can no longer drop you when you get sick or make an honest mistake on your applications.
  • The insurance companies can no longer hike up your rates and they must do away with life-time and annual limits.
  • There are ten essential health benefits that must be included on all non-grandfathered plans with no annual or lifetime dollar limits: outpatient care, emergency room care, hospitalization, maternity and newborn care, mental health and addiction treatment, prescription drugs, rehab services and devices, laboratory services, preventative and chronic disease treatment, pediatric services.
  • Immunizations, yearly checkups, counseling, and screenings are all included in the free preventative care that must be included on all non-grandfathered plans.
  • Most Americans will have to obtain healthcare coverage, get an exemption or pay a monthly fee/penalty if they do not have the appropriate insurance.
  • The ACA reduces the growth in healthcare spending that is currently the standard.

If you still have questions about this new healthcare law, you should search the internet or talk to a health care insurance professional to learn the facts. When you have the facts and knowledge about how the mandates will affect you, you can make educated decisions about your own healthcare or that of your company. From large corporations to the small corner business, the ACA has different requirements and unless you know what they are, you may feel overwhelmed and panicked. The staff at Pinnacle Workforce is here to help you with your concerns about the ACA and how it will affect your employment, your team, or even your ability to hire new team members.

© Year Pinnacle Workforce. All Rights Reserved. Site Credits.