Strategies to hire medical assistants and retain them
The role of medical assistants is demanding and tedious as they handle a broad range of clinical and administrative duties within a healthcare setting. This nature of their job often requires a full-time commitment, including working various shifts, especially during holidays. The huge workload associated with these responsibilities can lead to stress and burnout issues among medical assistants, due to which a majority of them shift their careers or retire early.
The workload on medical assistants has increased, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic, since there is a surge in patient visits for preventive care treatments. The aging baby boomer generation has also caused an increase in patient volume, especially in outpatient clinics. All these factors have led to a shortage of skilled medical assistants in the USA. To address this medical assistant shortage, facilities must implement long-term hiring and retention strategies for long-term success. This blog outlines the recruitment strategies for hiring medical assistants, including training and retention, to overcome shortages of skilled medical assistants.
Trends and implications for hiring medical assistants
The healthcare sector is changing rapidly regarding technological advancements and care delivery models. It is essential for healthcare facilities to understand and comprehend these trends to hire and retain skilled medical assistants based on their demand. The following are some key trends in the medical assistant field and their implications for hiring practices.
- Technological advancements in data management and storage have led to an increased use of electronic health record systems in facilities. Although this has saved administrative workload, it imposes an increased demand for hiring medical assistants experienced in these tools.
- Telemedicine has been a significant uptrend in the medical field after the setback of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, it is essential to have medical assistants who can manage patients remotely and have experience working via telemedicine platforms.
- Workforce dynamics have shifted in the healthcare domain to prioritize work-life balance. Temporary hiring of medical assistants who can work on flexible shifts is preferred by most facilities nowadays.
- Diversity, inclusiveness, and culture fit are buzzwords focusing on employee wellbeing. There is an increased focus on employee wellbeing due to the vast number of healthcare workers getting burned out. Hence, it is essential to prioritize these elements while hiring medical assistants.
- Upskilling through continued education and cross-training opportunities is followed by most facilities to meet the rising demand for skilled professionals. While hiring medical assistants, ensure that the candidate values professional development and continuous learning.
Hiring medical assistants: legal and regulatory considerations
Medical assistants have specific legal and regulatory considerations like any other medical profession. The state where your facility is located has the right to set the practice guidelines for them. Understanding these regulatory guidelines is the first step towards navigating legal implications that may arise. Below are some legal considerations to be followed while hiring medical assistants:
- Always check whether the medical assistant hired is licensed to practice in the state.
- Verify the credentials of the candidate before onboarding
- Ensure their license is active and valid throughout their employment.
- Cross-check other employment laws by the state, if any, to avoid compliance concerns.
- Conduct thorough background verification for any pending criminal records/charges.
- Conduct pre-employment medical screening without fail.
- Provide a detailed list of job duties in the job description, in the interview, and the offer letter.
Training strategies for medical assistants: a guide for employers
Hiring medical assistants who have recently graduated is the easiest way to address the staffing gap. While these new medical assistants may initially lack practical experience in the domain, they can be trained with the help of a mentor to work efficiently in clinical settings. However, facilities must devise a structured approach to hiring and onboarding new medical assistants with adequate training to implement this strategy. A well-rounded medical assistant training plan can be structured by defining the objectives and creating a timeline for orientation with the help of an experienced mentor or supervisor. Orientation can be provided in various aspects, such as organizational culture, clinical tasks, administrative procedures, and customer service, each detailed below.
Organizational culture orientation: The organizational culture will encompass everything related to the facility’s values, beliefs, ethics, and workplace environment. This is essential to ensure that the hired entry-level medical assistants fully believe in your mission, vision, and values.
Clinical training: Clinical training comprises hands-on exposure to the new resources to work in a clinical setting by handling procedures in their job description using medical equipment. This training will also include patient data collection and electronic health record management.
Administrative training: As medical assistants perform administrative duties, they must be provided with an orientation on administrative procedures such as scheduling appointments, billing, insurance claim handling, and customer service.
After providing the required orientations, integrate the entry-level medical assistants into the team by ensuring they can assist other experienced medical assistants. Check the progress of the new medical assistants and share constructive feedback with them for improvement. This can help employers efficiently manage their medical assistant demand by effectively training new graduates.
Long-term retention strategies for medical assistants
In the current healthcare staffing landscape, more emphasis should be given to retention than just hiring medical assistant. By building effective strategies, facilities can reduce their new medical assistant staffing demands by retaining their existing staff. Here are some strategies you can follow to build a loyal team by retaining medical assistants in your facility:
- Research the medical assistant career outlook and provide fair compensation based on market standards.
- Implement additional perks, such as career progression paths and vacation policies, in addition to salary and health benefits.
- Offer flexible working options and rotatable shifts.
- Review staff’s workload at regular intervals to avoid medical assistant burnout.
- Provide clear career progression pathways for professional development.
- Offer cross-training opportunities to advance the skillsets.
- Establish regular performance reviews and reward cycles for employee recognition.
- Ensure the staff is aligned with your culture to reduce medical assistant turnover rates.
- Foster a safe and supportive work environment where nobody feels left out.
Conclusion
The challenging yet diverse role of a medical assistant is incredibly advantageous to healthcare facilities. By adopting the above medical assistant recruitment strategies and employing proper retention policies to retain talent, facilities can significantly reduce medical assistant staffing shortages. Doing a fair amount of market research and understanding the unique staffing needs of your facility is the key. To swiftly lay down and manage these strategies for your facility, you can partner with MedSquirrels.
MedSquirrels is an all-in-one healthcare staffing platform that staffs skilled and experienced medical assistants. After you sign up on our platform and post your job requirements, MedSquirrels will leverage AI and experienced medical assistant recruiters to submit curated profiles for your job opening. After hiring a medical assistant, our platform will begin the onboarding and credentialing steps. Our platform will also take care of their payroll, compliance, and benefits while ensuring zero administrative burden and compliance risks on your facility. To know more about how MedSquirrels will help you in hiring medical assistants, schedule a demo today.
