Nursing

Behind the scenes of a nurse recruitment event

Stressed Out Nurses Weekly, November 19, 2007

Myra Aldana is the HR director for Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, CA. Visions of recruitment dance in her head when she goes home at night. Okay, maybe not, but Aldana has been in her position at Huntington for more than four years and is always thinking of fresh ways to bring new, qualified nurses to her facility. How and why does her organization do it? Aldana takes us behind the scenes after a successful event that drew 440 nurses last week.

"I think hospitals will have to continue finding creative ways to recruit and retain staff," Aldana says. "This shortage is not going to end anytime soon."

And so Aldana lays out the hard truth facing staffing directors, recruitment specialists, retention coordinators, and everyone else under the HR sun. The highly-publicized nursing shortage continues to be a sense of worry, frustration, and danger for hospitals across the country, but it may hit home the hardest in California. Last year, according to a report released by the Center for Health Workforce Studies at the University of Albany's School of Public Health, California ranked dead last in RNs per capita.

To lure new nurses, Aldana says she has seen organizations offer:

  • Very aggressive sign-on bonuses
  • Weekend cruises
  • Down payments on homes

In her view, though, it's not always about the biggest idea. "It's about executing your ideas well," she says. "Many, many hospitals have events, but they all may not have the same success that we do."

But hospitals try. And try. And try. New, competent nurses are a hot commodity in the industry. "Everyone is in the same boat, especially in California," Aldana says. "We have mandated staffing ratios, so we're all competing for nurses. We're always looking for ways to develop the talent pipeline."

To read the entire story (plus a whole lot more!), please click here.

Most Popular

Related Articles