Wondering how the industry leaders approach healthcare onboarding and compliance?

If you're in the business of recruitment, you're undoubtedly familiar with the constant struggle to secure top-notch talent. The long onboarding processes, high HR costs, and the need to comply with federal and state regulations make the journey even more challenging.

The first question you need to ask yourself.

Can there be simpler, quicker paths to onboarding and compliance?

Your time and budget matter, and so does your success.

That's where this blog comes in. Healthcare recruitment isn't one-size-fits-all; it's about finding what suits your agency best. If you handle occasional, one-off recruitments, outsourcing offers the flexibility you need. For agencies dealing with regular or high-volume recruiting, Credentially's advanced tech might be your ideal match. How to decide? Explore below, where we dissect the strengths of outsourcing and Credentially's innovative tech. Our aim is to guide you, providing insights tailored to your agency's unique requirements. Whether you need personalized attention or crave efficiency at scale, by the end, you'll have a clear understanding of what each option entails, empowering you to make an informed decision suited to your agency's needs.

The Outsourcing Appeal: A Traditional Pathway

As a leader in a thriving healthcare recruitment agency, you're constantly navigating a sea of interviews, meetings, and endless tasks to keep the engine running. Amidst this whirlwind, the challenge of ensuring compliance with the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and The Joint Commission standards is an additional mountain to climb, especially when your core expertise lies in recruitment, not compliance audit.

Here's where outsourcing shines—a tried-and-tested solution.

Envision a team of seasoned professionals taking over your compliance challenges. They come equipped with expertise, aligning your operations seamlessly with healthcare standards in the USA. This scenario isn't merely wishful thinking. It's a reality that can liberate your in-house resources, allowing them to focus solely on what they do best—recruitment.

‍Let's delve a bit deeper.

Expertise and Compliance Excellence

Outsourcing firms in the USA boast seasoned professionals with profound knowledge of healthcare compliance regulations. Their expertise ensures meticulous vetting, aligning with the standards set by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and The Joint Commission, instilling confidence in your clients and candidates.

Administrative Efficiency

Outsourcing liberates internal resources by offloading meticulous tasks such as license verifications and background checks, enabling agencies to focus on core operations, strategic planning, and client relationships.

Agility in Compliance

Outsourcing firms proactively adapt to evolving regulations, ensuring your agency stays compliant in a constantly changing landscape. Their vigilance and swift response safeguard your agency from compliance pitfalls, offering stability and confidence to your operations.

Cost Reduction

Unlike the financial burden of in-house compliance—hiring, training, and technology investments—outsourcing provides a sigh of relief. The larger scale of outsourcing firms translates to cost savings, distributing operational costs across multiple clients, making compliance less of a financial burden.

Time-Saver

These firms, with their specialized focus, conduct compliance audits swiftly and effectively, acting as a catalyst in streamlining your compliance processes. This efficiency allows you to channel your time and resources towards core business functions and revenue-generating activities.

Boosted Confidence

Engaging reputable outsourcing firms acts as a badge of compliance assurance. Your clients gain confidence knowing your recruitment processes have been rigorously vetted and aligned with USA healthcare regulations. This not only enhances your credibility but fosters trust—a priceless asset in the recruitment landscape.

Cost-effective Compliance Assurance

For burgeoning recruitment agencies or smaller ventures, an in-house compliance expert is a hefty financial commitment. Outsourcing emerges as a cost-effective solution, ensuring stringent compliance adherence without a hefty price tag.

Agile Compliance Management

In the ever-evolving domain of healthcare compliance, the agility offered by outsourcing is invaluable. These firms, adept at identifying and addressing compliance issues promptly, often prevent significant problems due to their awareness of evolving regulations.

Reduced Risk, Elevated Reputation

Outsourcing acts as a shield against the financial and reputational repercussions that non-compliance can trigger. It's a safeguard that not only mitigates potential risks but also bolsters your recruitment firm's reputation.

Strategic Business Enhancement

Outsourcing amplifies your agency's appeal to prospective clients, candidates, and partners by showcasing a commitment to maintaining a compliant and professionally managed recruitment process. The impartial perspectives of external consultants often unveil novel solutions, contributing to insightful problem-solving and strategic business growth.

Integrated Tech Marvels

Outsourcing firms often lead the charge in employing integrated technology solutions that streamline the audit and compliance process. This tech infusion not only accelerates the audit process but also provides actionable insights, refining your recruitment strategies further.

Outsourcing—the bridge between traditional recruitment practices and modern-day compliance expertise. It's not merely about offloading tasks; it's about elevating your recruitment firm to a new height of compliance assurance and operational efficiency. 

Outsourcing is a practical step to handle the compliance needs of healthcare staffing. It takes a big chunk of responsibility off your plate. But it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. Although appealing, like anything, it has its nuances. Human errors are always lurking, and for organizations on a rapid growth trajectory, the costs can indeed cause concern.

Drawbacks of Outsourcing in Healthcare Staffing

One major hiccup is human error. With a ton of candidate information and documents to manage, mistakes can happen. And these mistakes, even if small, can have big consequences for the NCQA and The Joint Commission.

Here's another snag. Outsourcing usually covers the initial compliance checks. But what about the ongoing compliance or re-credentialing? It's a big deal in healthcare staffing. For example, if a healthcare professional's certifications expire, the ball is back in your court.

Cost is another factor to consider, especially if you're hiring healthcare professionals in large numbers. The costs of outsourcing can add up quickly. And don't forget about the time-to-hire. In a market that's always in the fast lane, a longer hiring cycle can send prospective healthcare candidates to competitors who can get them on board quicker.

In short, outsourcing can be a great help, but it has its limitations. Human error, ongoing compliance checks, costs, and time-to-hire are all factors that need a close look. As you weigh the pros and cons of outsourcing, understanding these drawbacks will help you make a well-informed decision.

Understanding the HR Software Landscape

HR software serves as the backbone for managing various organizational processes, including payroll, applicant tracking, and shift scheduling. Yet, a one-size-fits-all solution often remains elusive. Specialized software applications have emerged, each focusing on distinct HR processes, from Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS).

For onboarding and compliance—two critical HR functions—the need for specialized software is pronounced. The meticulous process of verifying credentials, ensuring regulatory compliance, and managing ongoing compliance for new hires necessitates dedicated tools.

How Credentially Approaches Compliance

Credentially employs cutting-edge technologies like automation, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to automate the manual verification of credentials.

By significantly easing the administrative burden that often overwhelms recruitment agencies, Credentially boasts an impressive reduction in onboarding times - from a staggering industry average of several weeks to a mere 5 days. This efficiency in swiftly verifying credentials, ensuring compliance, and onboarding candidates showcases how automation is reshaping the traditional recruitment paradigms. 

Let's delve a bit deeper into the process with 3 key aspects:

1 - Profile Creation

The HR or compliance team kicks off by crafting a profile package on Credentially, specifying the requirements for candidates based on their respective job roles. This may include various document requests such as certifications and qualifications.

2 - Candidate Onboarding

Candidates receive a personalized link and follow a step-by-step process to enter their details. Credentially collaborates with Checkr to verify the information. Candidates can upload documents directly from their phones, with OCR technology recognizing document types and expiry dates. Candidates can electronically sign any necessary documents. An interactive demo of Credentially's onboarding process is available here for a firsthand experience.

3 - Monitoring and Compliance

On the HR or compliance team's side, they receive real-time updates on the onboarding progress. They are alerted to any compliance issues that require attention and are prompted for necessary approvals. This also encompasses ongoing compliance, e.g., alerts for documents due to expire.

Exploring Credentially's Capabilities in 9 Simple Features

1 - OCR Scanning

Credentially simplifies data management with OCR technology, eliminating manual data entry. This saves time, centralizes all data securely, and enhances accuracy by reducing manual errors. Scanned documents become searchable and editable, simplifying information retrieval.

2 - Reference Requests

Credentially automates reference requests, increasing receipt rates by 70%. It seamlessly integrates reference checks into onboarding, ensuring candidate evaluation efficiency. Real-time tracking and automated reminders streamline the process for applicants and providers.

3 - All-In-One Hub

Credentially serves as a centralized data hub, unifying employee records securely. It ensures operational consistency, acting as a data processor managing HR and compliance records while granting organizations control over specific data.

4 - Compliance Monitoring

Credentially's intuitive dashboard offers quick insights into staff onboarding and compliance status. Custom tagging and robust reporting features identify areas for improvement, ensuring compliance and efficiency.

5 - Easy Reporting

Credentially's advanced reporting generates customized reports, simplifying HR metric analysis and compliance tracking. Real-time insights and visualizations aid strategic decision-making, saving time and enhancing overall efficiency.

6 - Streamlining Cross-State Operations

In the healthcare sector, adhering to compliance regulations is fundamental, mainly when operating across different states. Credentially's cross-state licensure feature simplifies the intricate web of regulations, ensuring seamless operations across diverse US regions.

7 - Comprehensive SAM & OIG Integration

In the compliance landscape, vigilance is paramount. Credentially integrates seamlessly with SAM & OIG, serving as your guardians against compliance risks. This integration ensures your candidates align with the highest standards, providing a solid foundation for your agency's credibility.

8 - Efficient Background Checks with Checkr

When it comes to hiring, information is power. Credentially's partnership with Checkr turbocharges your background checks. Utilizing cutting-edge AI technology, Checkr ensures you have all the data you need when you need it. Making informed decisions becomes effortless.

9 - Nursys e-Verify Integration

With Credentially's Nursys e-Verify integration, the verification process for nursing professionals becomes remarkably streamlined. Candidates can effortlessly confirm their nursing licenses, simplifying the often complex task of credential verification. Plus, real-time updates on nursing license status guarantee that you are always equipped with the most current and reliable information available.

The Shortcomings of Credentially

Initial Setup and Adaptation

Credentially requires an initial setup alongside a phase of adaptation to its technologically-driven mechanisms. This learning curve could potentially pose a hurdle for smaller operations or those with limited technical savvy. Acquainting oneself with a new software platform may demand additional time and resources, which may not always be readily available.

On the other hand, outsourcing represents a ready-to-go solution with seasoned experts at the helm from the outset. This model eradicates the need for a setup phase or a learning curve, allowing for an immediate commencement of the recruitment and compliance processes.

Cost Factor for Smaller Agencies

When it comes to costs, Credentially operates on a flexible monthly subscription model, contrasting with the fixed fees typical of outsourcing services. The monthly subscription fee is determined by the number of users, allowing for adjustments based on your specific needs. Larger organizations can benefit from a volume discount, resulting in a reduced per-user fee. 

Conversely, outsourcing often operates on a pay-per-use model, aligning the costs directly with the volume of recruitment and compliance tasks undertaken. This model presents a more economical solution for agencies with sporadic or lower volume recruitment needs, as it allows for cost control in line with the actual usage, making it a financially flexible option in comparison to the fixed subscription model of Credentially.

Exploring the Comparison: Credentially vs Outsourcing

Delving into the heart of the matter, a comparative evaluation between Credentially and outsourcing unveils distinct aspects worth considering.

Cost Efficiency:

The cost narrative varies significantly across both platforms. Outsourcing, although alleviating the need for in-house resources, often carries a substantial cost per candidate. Conversely, Credentially presents an economical solution with a monthly fee based on the number of users and a volume discount, making it particularly advantageous for agencies with higher recruitment volumes. The more you onboard, the cheaper Credentially is for you.

Time-Saving:

Time is a critical factor in the competitive market, and Credentially shines in this regard. Its automated processes significantly reduce the time-to-hire, a vital efficiency in today's fast-paced recruitment landscape. Conversely, outsourcing, with its manual processes, may not provide the same efficiency level, potentially leading to extended hiring cycles.

Control and Transparency:

Credentially provides real-time updates and a transparent view of the candidate's progression through the onboarding process, ensuring you're always informed. In contrast, outsourcing may fall short of providing this level of transparency and control, potentially resulting in communication gaps and delayed responses.

Candidate Experience:

Credentially offers a seamless, user-friendly interface. Candidates can easily upload documents, complete onboarding via mobile devices, utilize e-signatures, and, importantly, track their onboarding journey, ensuring engagement. In contrast, working with an external agency might leave candidates in the dark, potentially causing frustration due to communication issues and delays.

Compliance Assurance:

Compliance is a critical, non-negotiable aspect of healthcare recruitment. Credentially's automated compliance checks provide a streamlined and accurate approach, ensuring adherence to US healthcare standards. With its manual verification processes, outsourcing may be susceptible to human errors, which could prove costly in the long run.

In Conclusion, The Verdict

Navigating the demanding realms of healthcare recruitment in the USA requires a harmonious blend of cost efficiency, time management, and unwavering compliance assurance. 

Outsourcing emerges as a viable contender for those with sporadic hiring needs or smaller recruitment volumes, offering a pay-per-use model that aligns costs with actual recruitment activities. It's a ready-to-embark solution with a wealth of seasoned compliance expertise at its helm. 

On the flip side, Credentially, with its robust automation, significantly trims down the time-to-hire and administrative burdens, presenting itself as a potent ally for agencies with higher recruitment volumes. Its subscription model could potentially translate to substantial cost savings as recruitment scales up. Moreover, the real-time updates and transparent onboarding process it offers ensure you remain at the helm, navigating the compliance landscape with precision. It's an innovative solution that resonates with the modern-day emphasis on digital agility and streamlined operations.

Whichever route you choose, ensuring it resonates with your operational ethos and long-term strategic vision is paramount to navigating the USA healthcare recruitment domain effectively and efficiently.

For a deeper dive into Credentially's offerings, book a demo with them to explore its potential fit for your organization and gain insights into how it can propel your recruitment processes into heightened efficiency and compliance assurance.

In Conclusion, The Verdict

Navigating the demanding realms of healthcare recruitment in the USA requires a harmonious blend of cost efficiency, time management, and unwavering compliance assurance. 

Outsourcing emerges as a viable contender for those with sporadic hiring needs or smaller recruitment volumes, offering a pay-per-use model that aligns costs with actual recruitment activities. It's a ready-to-embark solution with a wealth of seasoned compliance expertise at its helm. 

On the flip side, Credentially, with its robust automation, significantly trims down the time-to-hire and administrative burdens, presenting itself as a potent ally for agencies with higher recruitment volumes. Its subscription model could potentially translate to substantial cost savings as recruitment scales up. Moreover, the real-time updates and transparent onboarding process it offers ensure you remain at the helm, navigating the compliance landscape with precision. It's an innovative solution that resonates with the modern-day emphasis on digital agility and streamlined operations.

Whichever route you choose, ensuring it resonates with your operational ethos and long-term strategic vision is paramount to navigating the USA healthcare recruitment domain effectively and efficiently.

For a deeper dive into Credentially's offerings, book a demo with them to explore its potential fit for your organization and gain insights into how it can propel your recruitment processes into heightened efficiency and compliance assurance.