Unlike orientation, which is short-term, transactional, and processed based 1-2 days, onboarding is a long-term commitment that begins well before a clinician's first day and can extend up to a year after the physician or APP is hired. Focused on relationship building, its goal is to create long-term, meaningful relationships for all parties. Thorough onboarding allows the provider to feel thoroughly acclimated to their environment. Whether pairing with a peer mentor, increasing patient volumes gradually to allow adjustments to facility technologies and protocols, or other simple touches of personalization, being detailed and deliberate with your onboarding process is vital to smooth facility operation and care.
Based on the report's findings, numerous clinicians emphasize the importance of a thorough, structured onboarding process: 73% of physicians and clinicians who reported satisfaction with their onboarding had undergone a formal process, compared to only 34% of those who were dissatisfied.
Physicians reported that the significant challenges they faced when starting a new position were familiarizing themselves with a new facility’s technical systems, adapting to protocols, and having accurate details on where to report. Many of these issues can be addressed with a formalized onboarding process. A majority (87%) of recruitment professionals from organizations with an onboarding period of 12 months or longer expressed satisfaction, compared to 66% from organizations with a one-week onboarding process.
With 38% of clinicians experiencing licensing delays, the need for a comprehensive onboarding process is evident. Issues regarding poor communication and staffing shortages are more prevalent in organizations without a formal onboarding process. As a comprehensive full-service agency, LocumTenens.com plays a crucial role in addressing these issues by partnering with clients and clinicians to offer onboarding workflows and checklists that begin at the time of a verbal offer. LocumTenens.com assists with privileging, licensing, provider enrollment among many other areas to make the process as efficient and seamless as possible.
Creating a formal onboarding process allows locums providers to really focus on patient care. Supplying an interactive and supportive environment with personalized support ensures locums providers are properly informed and ready to care for patients who otherwise wouldn’t be able to be seen.
About the author
Jenny Binner, MBA, MHA
AVP of Emergency Medicine, Urgent Care, and Occupational Medicine Services
Jenny began her career at LocumTenens.com in 2017 after an extensive career in healthcare staffing, technology and management. With over 15 years of healthcare experience, Jenny brings a wealth of knowledge to role as Associate Vice President of the Emergency Medicine division. As AVP, Jenny is focused on assuring clients the very best coverage for their need for Physicians and Advanced Practice Providers in Emergency Medicine, Urgent Care, and Occupational Medicine settings.
Along with the work Jenny does leading the Emergency Medicine Division, Jenny works with LocumTenens.com's Charitable Giving committee and uses her vast healthcare background to lead and manage many of LocumTenens.com's company-wide projects and initiatives. She graduated from the University of Georgia and received her Master of Health Administration(MHA) and Master of Business Administration(MBA) from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University in 2014. She loves reading, rescuing dogs, spending time with her family, and attending her son's sporting events in her free time.
