Practice Management Alert

Frustrated by lack of response? The trouble could be your choice of medium

How many times has this happened to you: You run an ad to fill the latest vacancy in your medical office and eagerly await a flood of responses, only to come out with a handful of resumes that don't fit the bill?
 
To help you avoid this scenario, we-ve got tips tapped from the experts on attracting prime candidates for your empty slots. Think Twice About Newspaper Ads The most cited source of disappointment with employment ads among medical office professionals: newspapers. -I-ve probably spent thousands of dollars on newspaper ads, and in five years, I-ve only had one hire from an ad,- says Karen Eyberger of Genesis Healthcare System in Zanesville, Ohio.
 
Problem: Newspaper ads often don't yield many results because you-re sending a very specific call out to a very broad population, says consultant Steve Passmore with Healthy Recruiting Tools in Murray, Ky. Employers in large metropolitan areas often have better luck with this approach than those in rural areas, experts say.
 
Another problem with newspaper ads is that most employers can only afford a very short line ad that potential hires could easily miss. -No one can really afford to put a big splash in a newspaper,- Passmore says.
 
Tip: If you believe a newspaper ad is worth a shot, be sure to run the ad through the paper's online classified section under a specific heading, says consultant Kay Stanley with The Coker Group in Atlanta. This will at least narrow down your audience to Internet-savvy folks, she says.
 
-When we do use print, we only advertise on Thursdays and Sundays,- Stanley says. More people tend to buy the paper on those days, and the classified section on those days is usually strong, she says.
 
Be specific: Run an ad for a -Medical Billing Supervisor- instead of just advertising generically in the medical classified section. That way, you can grab the eyes of job-hungry healthcare professionals -quot; while simultaneously weeding out potential applicants who  don't have the necessary qualifications. Launch a Targeted Search For about the same amount of money that you-d spend on a newspaper or online advertisement, you could target your job search to those most likely to be qualified for your position, Passmore says.
 
Idea: Send a postcard describing a particular job to all the appropriate medical office professionals within a 35-mile radius of your practice or facility, Passmore says. That way, -you-re putting [the ad] right in their home and giving them the message you want,- he says. Start With a Specific Job Description Many employers become frustrated because the people responding to their ads aren't a good fit for the position. If this is [...]