One of the biggest operational challenges medical clinics face today is hiring and retaining Medical Assistants (MAs). In a 2022 MGMA Stat poll, 44% of practices said that Medical Assistants were the most difficult position to recruit. This staffing challenge has negative implications for healthcare providers and patients, including burnout, retention issues, and financial setbacks.
Many hiring managers and practice administrators are looking for alternatives to traditional recruiting channels for MAs. They want to fill MA positions faster, find quality candidates, and avoid using temporary staffing solutions. Here are 5 tips to help your medical clinic or practice, navigate entry-level clinical hiring:
- The MOST effective way to to fill entry-level clinical positions is to hire college graduates that are planning on attending medical or physician assistant school. These individuals, specifically, require a certain amount of clinical hours in order to attend. A win-win!
- Did you know that 67% of Pre-Med students took at least one gap year, and over 50% took more than one gap year? During these gap years, these individuals are looking to spend most of their time working to gain experience and launch their careers.
- Pre-Meds and Pre-Physician Assistant students can fill many more roles than solely Medical Assistant positions. They are also great candidates for filling roles such as medical scribes, clinical research coordinators, patient navigators, laboratory assistant/technician, orthopedic technician, EKG technician, pharmacy technicians, physical therapy aides, and case management assistants.
- Don’t all Medical Assistants need to be certified? No! Most states do not have specific educational or certification requirements for serving as an Medical Assistants.
- Medical practices and clinics can find Pre-Med and Pre-Physician Assistant individuals that are ready to start via the CapYear job board. Simply post a job opening and you will receive pre-screened, qualified candidates in no time.
CapYear is here to help your clinical practice navigate entry-level clinical hiring, in a streamlined way. At CapYear, the candidates come to you!
Learn more about this process in detail by downloading our Free Medical Hiring Guide: