If you’re a healthcare hiring manager feeling the pressure these days, you’re not alone. The landscape of healthcare talent acquisition continues to evolve at a relentless pace. Between tightening budgets, shifting candidate expectations, and the delicate balance of protecting patient care while maintaining operational efficiency, hiring in this industry is uniquely complex. Add in cultural friction, pay disparities, and sky-high turnover rates, and it’s no wonder many hiring leaders are feeling stretched thin.
Based on conversations with healthcare leaders across the country, here are two of the most common—and frustrating—challenges hiring managers are dealing with right now, plus a few ways to make navigating them just a little easier.
Challenge One: The Long and Winding Interview Process
In healthcare, filling a role is rarely as simple as scheduling two interviews and making an offer. With physician travel schedules, interdepartmental approvals, and multiple layers of decision-makers, the hiring process can stretch out over weeks—or even months.
Why it’s a problem:
- Top candidates drop out. The longer it takes, the more likely it is that your frontrunner accepts another offer.
- It hurts your employer brand. Candidates begin to feel undervalued, confused, or like they’re stuck in bureaucratic limbo.
- It reduces new interest. If word spreads that your hiring process is slow or unclear, future candidates may not even apply.
But it’s not all bad:
In Stephen Jacobs, Regional Director experience, “All parties involved in talent acquisition achieve better success whenever the absolute best person is hired. Sometimes a long interview process can cause previously unforeseen red flags to surface. Or, a stronger candidate may emerge while the initial interviews are still being scheduled.”
But for those silver linings to matter, you need a system that works for you—not against you.
How to address it:
Structure and transparency can transform a lengthy interview process from a frustrating experience into one that feels intentional and professional. Assign specific focus areas to each interviewer: one person covers technical competency, another evaluates cultural fit, and a third examines problem-solving or financial acumen. When each interview has a clear purpose, candidates are more likely to stay engaged—and they’ll feel like they’re meeting a true cross-section of the team, not just checking boxes. Communicating timelines up front and offering regular updates helps candidates feel respected, even if the process takes longer than expected.
Challenge Two: Temporary Talent, Permanent Frustration
Staffing gaps are a reality in today’s healthcare world—and for many organizations, temporary clinicians, nurses, and technicians have been the lifeline that keeps departments functioning. But what happens to the morale of your permanent team when they’re working alongside contract professionals earning more for the same work?
Why it’s a problem:
- Pay disparity breeds resentment. Permanent employees may feel undervalued and underpaid, which can lead to burnout or even resignation.
- It affects culture. Frequent turnover in temporary roles can make it difficult to build team trust or consistency in patient care.
- It feels transactional. When staff sense that leadership is focused more on filling shifts than fostering a mission-driven environment, engagement suffers.
According to one of our Executive Recruiters, Patty Puppo, “Most healthcare settings are under-staffed but due to external challenges or financial constraints they do not have the ability to hire permanent staff. This can cause internal issues with current staff because organizations resolve this challenge with traveling or temporary providers. Travelers which are much needed to care for patients are much appreciated by the leadership, but in the long term I’ve seen firsthand how it can erode the morale of the culture and permanent staff.”
Don’t worry! There can be positive things in this and there are ways to mitigate potential fall out and even improve overall culture at the end of it.
Finding the upside:
Temporary staff can be a powerful mirror for internal reflection. Their presence may highlight inefficiencies, skill gaps, or scheduling issues that permanent teams have normalized. This visibility can push leadership to take a more proactive, creative approach to long-term hiring and retention.
How to address it:
Start by acknowledging the elephant in the room. Open conversations with your permanent staff about why temporary help is necessary can ease tension and build trust. Reinforce your appreciation for their continued contributions and emphasize that your goal is long-term stability. Where possible, offer retention incentives, development opportunities, flexible scheduling and self care support to show your investment in the people who’ve stuck with you. It’s also worth evaluating internal career pathways—can current staff be upskilled or reskilled to fill gaps before bringing in external help?
Find behavioral health specific continuing education ideas in our recent blog
Finally, use temporary talent strategically. Bring them in not just to plug holes, but to mentor, support training, or temporarily expand specialized services. When staff see that these roles are part of a broader patient care strategy—not just a cost-saving measure—they’re more likely to stay engaged.
The Bottom Line: You’re Not Alone
Healthcare hiring has never been easy—and right now, it’s arguably more challenging than ever. But you’re not the only one navigating these complicated dynamics. By embracing structured processes, open communication, and a culture-first approach to staffing, you can not only survive these challenges—you can turn them into opportunities to lead better, hire smarter, and build a more resilient team.
