What to Consider Before Writing a Job Advertisement for Medical Professionals

A clear, concise, and well-written job advertisement can make a significant difference when hiring a new team member in the healthcare sector.

Before drafting a job description, it’s essential to take three critical steps to ensure you attract the right candidates. Carefully considering the skills required, distinguishing must-haves from nice-to-haves, and determining a suitable salary range will help you craft a job ad that resonates with medical professionals.

Here’s what to consider before writing a job advertisement.

1. Identify the Skills You Need

Whether you’re replacing a team member or creating a new position, begin by assessing your healthcare facility’s needs and ensuring the role aligns with its objectives.

Clearly define the role and what successful performance looks like. You might be looking to enhance patient care, introduce a new medical specialty, or distribute the workload more efficiently as your practice grows.

Identify both the core skills and competencies required for the role. These can be divided into two main categories: hard skills (such as medical expertise, technical abilities, or procedural knowledge) and soft skills (such as communication, teamwork, leadership, and empathy, which are crucial for healthcare professionals).

A skills gap analysis can also be helpful. Highlight the skills your current team already possesses and identify those missing. This approach will help you assess applicants based on their abilities and competencies rather than just their qualifications and experience. This method has been shown to increase the quality of hires, broaden the talent pool, and improve retention rates.

2. Decide on the Must-Haves

When recruiting, narrowing the criteria too much can limit your options. It’s important to determine which skills are essential and where you can be more flexible.

In the medical profession, qualifications are often non-negotiable, especially for roles requiring specific certifications or registrations (e.g., general practitioners, surgeons, or anaesthetists). However, within the scope of those qualifications, focusing on practical skills and relevant experience may be more valuable than additional degrees or accolades.

For example, a doctor may need to be registered with the Australian Medical Board, but beyond that, their hands-on experience in a particular specialty, communication skills, and ability to work in multidisciplinary teams might be more critical than additional academic qualifications.

3. Settle on a Salary and Benefits

Just as salary is crucial for candidates seeking a new role, it’s equally important for healthcare employers to offer competitive compensation that attracts the best talent.

When determining a salary range, it’s useful to conduct thorough wage research. Look at market surveys for similar positions within the healthcare sector and consider the current demand for medical professionals in your area.

Additionally, perks and benefits are often just as important as salary—sometimes even more so. Flexibility around work hours, options for remote consultations, and support for continuing professional development are highly valued by healthcare professionals. Mental health and work-life balance are particularly significant, and offering perks that support these areas can make your role more attractive to candidates.

Final Thoughts

Before drafting your job ad, think about the essential skills your team needs, where you can be flexible, and the salary and perks you’re willing to offer. Taking the time to work through these factors will simplify the writing process and help you attract the right medical professional for your team.

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