The final few months of the year are a great time for for quiet reflection. With 2022 coming to a close and 2023 right around the corner, we’d like to take a moment to recap the best blogs HospitalRecruiting that were published this year. Our job board is proud to continue offering resources for healthcare professionals and employers alike, so today we would like to recognize the standouts. Here are our top 10 healthcare career resource blogs from 2022.
1. Understanding Rank Order List (ROL)
Author: Tiffany McPherson
After finishing your residency application, it is finally time to begin on your Rank Order List (ROL). Understanding how the algorithm works and considering many different factors in this process is crucial, because a Match is considered a binding contract. This article contains helpful guidelines for navigating your ROL.
Key Takeaways
- Rank your most preferred program first
- Consider multiple factors when organizing your list
- Do not rank programs where you do not want to train
- Consider sending Letters of Intent to your top programs
- Do not forget to Certify your ROL
2. How To Successfully Change Your Specialty During Residency
Author: Danielle Kelvas, MD
Though there are no clear statistics on the exact number, many physicians opt to switch specialties over the course of their career. Some start even earlier and decide to switch during residency. Though it can seem like a daunting process, here are tips on the best way to navigate swapping specialties as a resident.
Key Takeaways
- Communicate your thoughts and feelings as early as possible to your program director
- Create a profile on https://www.residentswap.org
- You do not have to re-enter the match, necessarily
- Build your application
- You can always enroll in a research year
- You must absolutely be enrolled somewhere if you plan to leave
- Only leave or switch at the end of the academic year, which is the end of June
- Do your best to leave in good standing
- Go above and beyond during your last few months
3. Best Cities to Work as a Physician Assistant
Author: Jacob Bollinger, PA
When settling on a city for your career as a physician assistant, there are many important considerations to factor in; salary, work-life balance, nearby amenities and entertainment, cost of living, and the overall general location. That considered, here are some of the best cities in America to work as a PA.
Key Takeaways
- Cities with the highest overall salary for PA’s are
- Yakima, WA
- Salinas, CA
- Anchorage, AK
- Cities with the highest salary (adjusted for cost of living) for PA’s are
- Edmond, OK
- Okemos, MI
- Tyler, TX
- Cities with the best work/life balance rating for PA’s are
- Madison, WI
- Virginia Beach, VA
- Minneapolis, MN
4. Work-Life Balance as a Physician Assistant: Is it Possible?
Author: Jacob Bollinger, PA
Provider health is integral to patient health, so it is important that physician assistants maintain a healthy work/life balance. While everyone has their own way of finding balance, here are a few time-tested methods for managing your life and workload.
Key Takeaways
- Scheduling is Important
- Set Limitations and Expectations for Yourself
- Maintain Focus and Avoid Distractions
- Be Willing To Make a Change, Like
- Transitioning to part-time
- Requesting a sabbatical
- Changing workplace or specialty
- Taking some time off
- Taking a Vacation
5. Physician Assistant vs. Nurse Practitioner: Explaining the Difference to Patients
Author: Jacob Bollinger, PA
Physician Assistants and Nurse Practitioners are two divergent career paths often mistaken for one another due to their similarities. In reality, they are more similar than different, which makes it even more difficult to understand the distinction between NP’s and PA’s. So this begs the question; what IS the difference?
Key Takeaways
- Physician Assistants
- Trained in medicine based on the medical model
- More generalized and are typically licensed to practice in almost all medical specialties
- Physician assistants are required by law to have physician oversight in all 50 states
- Nurse Practitioners
- Trained in medicine based on the nursing model
- Have differing degree paths for different specialties
- Nurse practitioners are required by law to have physician oversight in only 27 states
6. 10 Questions You Should Ask During Your Interview
Author: Benjamin Williams, RN
There comes a time in every interview when the candidate gets to question the interviewer. This is an opportunity not only to learn more about the company, but also another chance to demonstrate the value you could bring to the role. Here are 10 interview questions you should be asking.
Key Takeaways
- Can you tell me more about the daily responsibilities of the role?
- Where does the company see itself in five years?
- What do you personally like about working for this company?
- What do you personally find most challenging about working for this company?
- What one word would best describe the company’s culture?
- What is the last change your department has made based on staff input?
- How do you help staff to grow personally?
- How do you evaluate success in this role?
- Why did the last person leave this position?
- What is the compensation for this job?
7. Permanent vs. Locum Tenens – Which is Right For You? Part 1
Author: Shani Saks, DO
When considering your career as a physician, one of the first questions you’ll ask yourself is what type of medical setting you’d like to practice in; a traditional, more permanent position, or a locum tenens assignment? This article weighs the pros and cons of both options.
Key Takeaways
- Pros of Locums
- Higher Pay
- Opportunity for Travel/Adventure
- The Opportunity to Make Your Own Schedule
- Can Mitigate the Feeling of Burnout by being a “Free Agent”
- Cons of Locums
- Schedule can be Unpredictable
- No Financial Security due to Temporary Nature of Assignments
- May Not Assimilate Well with Permanent Staff
- You’ll Need to Learn a New EHR, Administration, Staff, and Culture
- You are a Contractor, not an Employee
8. How Important is Emotional Intelligence in Recruitment?
Author: Riia O’Donnell
Candidates have the potential to make or break a facility. That’s why it is important for recruiters to utilize emotional intelligence (or EI) in their placement efforts. Emotional intelligence not only helps recruiters ask the right questions, but it also ensures they are self-aware, socially aware, and self-regulating.
Key Takeaways
- The 4 Keys to EI
- Self-Awareness
- Self-Regulation
- Social Awareness
- Relationship Management
- EI skills benefit all professional and personal relationships
- There is EI training available to develop one or more of the EI categories
- High EI has a ripple effect on employee retention
9. Focus on Career Development to Recruit and Retain Top Talent
Author: Riia O’Donnell
One effective way to source candidates is to provide pathways for their future. Most job seekers are seeking fulfillment and career advancement opportunities from the jobs they take, so offering career development as an advantage under your organization’s ‘plus’ column is key to securing top talent for every department at the facility.
Key Takeaways
- Career development is a recruitment tool
- Job postings are your first opportunity to demonstrate your emphasis on career growth to candidates
- Interviews are another chance to stress the value you place on setting employees on track
- Career development is a retention tool
- Supporting the growth of existing employees incentivizes them to stay
- Target at-risk employees to help them find opportunities to grow within your organization – not elsewhere
10. Burnout is Really Depression in Disguise
Author: Danielle Kelvas, MD
Being burned out is living in a constant state of overwhelming exhaustion, whereas depression is defined by the inability to feel pleasure and dysphoric mood. But is burnout a syndrome in and of itself, or is it actually part of the pathology of a larger depression? Current research argues the latter.
Key Takeaways
- There are 3 parts to burnout
- Overwhelming exhaustion
- Feelings of cynicism and detachment from the job
- A sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment
- Though burnout is not recognized as a legitimate diagnosis, in one study that polled over 5000 people suffering from burnout, 90% matched criteria for depression
- Current research argues that burnout is a form of depression rather than a differentiated type of pathology
Thanks for reading, we’re happy to continue providing career resources and articles for healthcare employees and employers alike. For further reading, visit our blog homepage.
