5 Steps to More Caregiver and Nurse Hires

Together With:

Ever wonder why it feels like you’re always scrambling to fill shifts, while still losing great caregivers?

In healthcare, building a stable workforce starts with how you recruit. Reactive hiring leads to higher costs, nurse and caregiver burnout, and instability. Strategic recruitment, on the other hand, helps you attract the right people, strengthen retention, and protect patient care.

But making that shift is tough when you’re relying on job boards, staffing agencies, or ad-hoc processes.

Empeon is an all-in-one HCM platform built for healthcare companies and partners with leading recruiting experts to help healthcare organizations move from reactive to proactive hiring. Together with their partners, they help leaders explore ways to build talent pipelines, elevate their employer brand, automate processes, and streamline recruiting and onboarding with integrated tools.

👉Learn more about strategic recruitment by watching Empeon’s webinar.

Good morning,

If there’s one question I get more than any other, it’s this:

“How do we fix recruiting and retention?”

And if there’s one mistake I see most often, it’s this:

Leaders being too hands-off with their recruiting funnel.

I’ve implemented this five-step recruiting system in dozens of communities over the past few years — and every single time, it produces an immediate boost in caregiver and nurse pipelines.

Here’s the truth: recruiting is not just an HR function. It’s an operational system. And like any system in your building, it needs ownership — from you. Whether you’re the NHA, ED, VP of Ops, or COO, recruiting lives and dies by how closely you manage the system.

Let’s walk through the five system checks every operator should own — and what you can start doing today to strengthen your pipeline.

Top 5 Recruiting System Checks Every Operator Should Own

1. Audit Your Applicant Experience Quarterly

What to do:

Every three months, go through your own hiring process like you’re a CNA or nurse applying for a job.

What to check:

How quickly can you find your open positions on Google or Indeed?
Is the application simple and mobile-friendly?
Does it take more than three minutes to complete? (That’s the drop-off cliff.)
Does the applicant get an immediate text or email acknowledgment?
How long before a human actually responds?

Why it matters:

If candidates can’t get through your hiring funnel, you don’t have a staffing problem — you have a systems problem. You should know exactly what it feels like to apply to your organization.

2. Track Two Critical Metrics Weekly

Time to First Contact — the time between a candidate applying and a human reaching out (Goal: within one hour).
Average Time to Offer — for those applicants who get an offer, how many hours/days from app to contingent offer. (Goal: within 48 hours)

Use your ATS if you have one, or a shared spreadsheet if not.

These two numbers will tell you in seconds whether your issue is pipeline or process.

Slow follow-up? You’re losing candidates.

Too long between them reaching out to you offering a role? You’re missing the window when they’re most motivated.

3. Introduce the Right Friction — and Smarter Screening

If you’re buried under unqualified applicants, don’t make the application harder — make the process smarter and automated.

Tactical moves:

Use a short pre-screen form with the essentials: CNA license status, reliable transportation, available hours.
Add 1–2 behavioral questions that surface real-world thinking:
- “Tell me about a time you were short-staffed — how did you prioritize care?”
- “A resident refuses a bath for the third day — what do you do?”
- “You see another aide rush a transfer — how do you handle it?”

These questions reveal emotional intelligence and consistency under pressure — qualities you can’t teach from a handbook.

Why it matters:

Thoughtful friction filters for caregivers, not just people who call themselves caregivers.

4. Build a 24/7 “Always-On” Recruiting Funnel

Recruiting doesn’t stop when you’re fully staffed. The best operators are always marketing their culture — not just their openings.

Tactical moves:

Keep evergreen job ads active on Indeed, Facebook Jobs, and your website.
Rotate hooks monthly (“Weekend Warrior Shifts,” “After-School Caregiver Hours,” etc.).
Use QR codes on flyers, business cards, and signage that link directly to your quick-apply form.
Leverage organic Facebook content: post twice a week from your community page.

Post cadence:

One focused on culture — short videos, team photos, birthdays, CNA Week highlights.
One focused on community — residents, local events, or family caregiver tips.

These posts build trust and visibility long before someone ever clicks “Apply.”

5. Own the 7-Day Recruit-to-Start Commitment

Speed wins — but structure keeps you there.

Tactical moves:

Map your process: Application → Screen/Interview → Contingent Offer → Background Check → Orientation.
Get buy-in from department heads: goal = contingent offer within 48 hours and orientation within 7 days.
Keep a live dashboard showing where every candidate is.
Celebrate every time your team hits that 7-day window.

Why it matters:

Operators who own this process — visibly, consistently — win the staffing battle. The first operator to make a contingent offer almost always gets the caregiver.

Recruiting isn’t HR’s job — it’s an operational system.

If you wouldn’t run your dining program without tracking food temps or your falls program without audits, then don’t run your recruiting system without these five checks.

Own your funnel. Audit your experience. Track your speed. Refine your process. And celebrate your wins.

Do this consistently, and you won’t just fill open shifts — you’ll build a culture where people want to stay.

A Word from our Community

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The NHA Stand-Up Playlist

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The NHA Stand-Up Playlist is built by NHAs, for NHAs.

Tracks that lift you up, fire you up, or just let you breathe.

🎧 Listen to the full NHA Stand-Up Playlist here

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Thanks for reading. Have a wonderful day.

Kevin Goedeke, Publisher and Founder