"Recruiting and retaining caregivers will continue to be a major pain point for the industry and limiter of growth for agencies nationwide."
There’s no doubt that caregiver retention, recruitment, and hiring have been major buzzwords in the home care industry over the last few years. In fact, in a recent survey conducted of AxisCare users, 83.5% stated that “keeping caregiver turnover at a minimum” was a top concern for their home care agencies in 2023. You may have even been caught asking yourself “Where have all the caregivers gone?” amidst a national caregiver shortage…That’s where we come in!
In this blog post, we’ll cover surefire ways to find, recruit, and retain your ideal candidates along with plenty of resources to help you along the way. Although we do not have the silver bullet for this industry-wide issue, we do have some expertise and advice to share, so buckle up!
Finding
Choosing the right caregiver recruitment sources, aka “Being Where They Are”:
- Local Facebook Groups (think churches, volunteer groups, etc.)
- Employee referrals (maybe there’s an incentive here!)
- Indeed
- ZipRecruiter
- Keeping in touch with prior employees
- Facebook Ads
Now that you’ve found your channels to post in, having a compelling job description to captivate them and encourage them to apply (and hopefully join your team) is a necessary next step in recruiting caregivers.
No need to do any heavy lifting – we have a full blueprint available for your caregiver job descriptions at the ready.
Recruiting
The job description is ready, the open positions are live… now what? It’s time to separate yourself from the competition and make YOUR agency THEIR top choice.
From competitive pay, benefits, and furthered education and training, the more you can widen the gap between your agency’s open positions and other available roles in your area, the more likely you are to hire and retain your caregivers.
When thinking of pay, you will need to consider the labor shortage in the industry, your neighboring competition, and factors outside of the home care industry that may be deferring applicants. A good barometer for competitive pay here is a compa-ratio of .75 or 75% in the home care industry – meaning you should be paying more than 75% of the home care agencies in your area.
The benefits you can offer your staff to incentivize them to choose your agency are plentiful, we even recommend pooling your current caregivers and asking them what incentives they’d find interesting before rolling out benefits/incentives to your applicants – hear it directly from the source!
Other homecare recruitment ideas include:
- Caregiver Mentorship Programs
- Defined opportunities for growth and advancements
- Laid out salary expectations
- Benefit offerings (examples include: PTO, holiday/sick leave, tuition reimbursement, training completion bonuses, performance bonuses, travel reimbursements, uniform stipends, insurances)
- Staff appreciation initiatives
- Software transparency
Now that your benefits are defined, your role is posted, and applications are coming in, you must recognize that not every applicant is suited for the duties and emotional bandwidth it takes to be a caregiver. When interviewing, it is crucial to illustrate your agency’s mission and allow your applicants to feel eager to move on and help you achieve your goals.
When beginning the vetting process and conducting interviews, here are a few helpful links to streamline your interview process:
Retaining
Your new hire’s start date is an opportune time to lay the foundation of their importance and positive impact on your agency. We recommend having a well-structured first day scheduled for them so they can begin to feel welcome before entering your doors. We all get first-day jitters and by acknowledging that anxious energy early on and developing expectations, you’re sure to put them at ease from the start.
Another recommendation would be a mentorship program where your new hire can receive hands-on training alongside a reliable source sure to show them the ropes while learning from example. Part of this training process may include learning new software, and while this may be daunting at times, having software that is user-friendly, intuitive, and built for caregivers’ daily routines will be of benefit in the long run. Frustrations in daily processes over time can lead to resentment and turnover, it’s best to nip that in the bud early on.
Home Care Pulse states that on average it costs agency’s $2,600 to onboard a new caregiver and although turnover is inevitable, you should be doing everything in your power to lessen your cost of hiring new caregivers, and instead focus your efforts on retaining your staff and making them feel appreciated.
One way to show this appreciation is by celebrating National Caregivers Day in your agency. This special day can be used to highlight the hard work of your caregivers and show them how much they are valued. It could involve a small celebration, a token of appreciation, or even a simple thank you note.
Caregiver appreciation can come in many forms, like your “love languages” in your home relationships, the same tactics can be mirrored in a professional setting. Speaking your caregiver’s professional love language will ensure they feel supported and acknowledged in the way that is most impactful to THEM. For example, someone may not appreciate a catered lunch but would really love to hear how much of an impact they have on your team – the feeling of recognition is not one size fits all, and neither should your appreciation tactics.
Here are additional resources for retaining and showing your appreciation to your staff:
- A People First Mentality Is Crucial to Success
- Staff Appreciation Doesn’t Have to Break the Bank (Or Your Budget)
- 5 Ways EVV Can Help Retain Caregivers & Improve Job Satisfaction
- 8 Signs of Caregiver Burnout + 4 Ways to Turn the Tide
- Caregiver Recruitment: 4 Tools to Strengthen Your Workforce
- How to Retain Caregivers – 7 Proven Approaches [+Downloadable Tips & Stats]
- Holiday Gifts for Caregivers
Although at times it may feel like you’re swimming upstream when finding, recruiting, and retaining top-notch caregivers, but with a little bit of realigning, organizing, and really diving into your agency’s mission, you’ll be sure to have better luck. When looking for tools to help you achieve this goal, AxisCare and our dedicated teams are here to help you along the way. With award-winning easy-to-use software, your caregivers will have more time to focus on providing top-notch care when their paperwork is made easier within our system. Book a demo with one of our home care experts to learn how AxisCare can support you and the success of your agency.
Glossary of References/Resources:
- 3 Ways to Grow Your Agency Amidst a Caregiver Shortage
- A Blueprint For Your Caregiver Job Descriptions
- Caregiver Recruitment: How To Make YOUR Agency THEIR Top Choice
- Rising Caregiver Wages: How Much Should You Pay?
- 47 Ideas For Employee Benefits For Caregivers
- How to Incentivize and Encourage Continuing Education and Training In Your Staff
- 7 Benefits to Attract and Retain Home Caregivers
- Staff Appreciation Doesn’t Have to Break the Bank (Or Your Budget)
- 6 Interview Strategies for Hiring the Best Long-Term Caregivers
- 75 Caregiver Interview Questions to Help You Hire the Right Caregivers
- 4 Tips for Hiring Excellent Caregivers
- How Your Team Can Make New Employees Feel Welcome Before They Walk in the Door
- Speaking Your Caregiver’s Professional Love Language
- 5 Ways EVV Can Help Retain Caregivers & Improve Job Satisfaction
- A People First Mentality Is Crucial to Success
- 8 Signs of Caregiver Burnout + 4 Ways to Turn the Tide
- Caregiver Recruitment: 4 Tools to Strengthen Your Workforce
- How to Retain Caregivers – 7 Proven Approaches [+Downloadable Tips & Stats]
