Hospitals struggle to recruit, retain variety of medical support specialists

Many rural and suburban hospitals spend a lot of resources and time recruiting doctors to their healthcare systems. But acquiring and keeping other professionals such as registered nurses, radiologists, lab technicians and others can be just as hard.

Brian Welton, Baptist Memorial Hospital Crittenden County (BMHCC) president and CEO, said he thinks his organization has an invaluable tool to attract medical professionals — a new hospital.

BMHCC is slated to open its $43 million hospital in December, and it will employ approximately 115 people. Finding and retaining the quality medical professionals is among the most daunting tasks facing the healthcare industry, Welton said.

“I think it’s important to focus on growing and developing your staff,” he said.

Nursing is projected to be one of the top growing professions during the next 10 years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). There were 2.7 million registered nurses in the U.S. in 2014, and that number is expected to grow to 3.2 million by 2024, a 16% increase. About 600,000 nurses are expected to leave the profession or retire during the next decade, meaning there will be more than 1 million jobs available.

Registered nurses make on average around $70,000 per year, and those salaries can range from $48,000 to more than $100,000 per year. Salaries in the sector are growing, the BLS reported.

Recruiting nurses will be highly competitive, Welton said. Salaries among different health entities are relatively the same, but some larger hospitals might be able to offer a little more. His organization’s plan is to sell the experience of working in a state-of-the-art hospital.

Another recruitment tool is word of mouth from current employees. The goal is to provide a good work experience for employees, and that will translate into successful recruitment and retention, Welton said. About 80% of people leave a job directly because of the work environment, he added. Healthcare is a tough and demanding career, and managers and administrators have to do a good job of taking care of those workers.

“We want to build a sense of excitement and fulfillment with our team members. … We’re opening a new, innovative hospital,” he said.

Doctor and nurse recruitment is important, but there are other medical professionals who are highly sought after as well, Welton said, adding that surgical technicians, speech pathologists, physical therapists, oncology specialists and others are in high demand.

Surgical technicians make on average $46,310 per year, and the sector is expected to grow by 12% nationwide by 2026, according to BLS statistics. Physical therapists make $86,850 per year, and the profession is expected to grow by 28% during the next decade. The median income for a speech pathologist is $76,610, and its projected job growth is 25,900 new workers, or 18%.

Recruiting professionals as soon as possible is the key to success in rural healthcare, said Junior Briner, Lawrence Health Services (LHS) chief operating officer. Walnut Ridge-based LHS operates Lawrence Memorial Hospital and Lawrence Hall Nursing Center and offers medical services to other providers. LHS tries to recruit medical professionals while they’re in school and doing rotations in the system as a part of the training, he said.

Larger hospitals in Jonesboro and Memphis may be able to pay a little more or provide more benefits, he said, but a smaller system such as LHS has some advantages. Many people want to live in smaller towns to raise families, and Jonesboro is 30 minutes away, he said. The drive time for many medical professionals isn’t worth the extra money they might make at a larger hospital, he said.

Retaining and attracting these professionals goes beyond the health metrics for a community. Healthcare also has a significant impact on the local economy for many of these smaller communities. LHS employs more than 300 workers and is the largest employer in Lawrence County, Briner said. The median income in the county is $33,176, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Some of the highest paying jobs in the county are in the LHS system, and the healthcare system is vital for the county’s economic growth, said Briner, who is also a member of the Lawrence County Quorum Court.

Lawrence County can look to its neighbor to the west, Sharp County, to see what can happen to a county’s economy when a hospital shuts down. In 2004, Sharp County lost its hospital. Despite a large population of retirees with disposable income that live in Cherokee Village, Sharp County median income is $2,000 less than Lawrence County’s. Both counties have similar populations and demographics, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Crittenden County has also been without a hospital since 2014. BMHCC wasn’t expected to open until early 2019, but construction has been brisk, meaning a key recruiting tool for medical professionals in the region is ahead of schedule, Welton said.

“It’s exciting. People want to work at a new hospital,” he said.