Healthcare Hiring Shows Early 2026 Momentum Amid Growing Candidate Interest, According to iCIMS Data

Increased applications and openings for healthcare roles offer organizations a chance to improve process efficiency and capture top talent

Holmdel, N.J. [Feb. 11, 2026] – iCIMS, a leading provider of talent acquisition technology, released its iCIMS Insights February 2026 Workforce Report today, revealing that labor market momentum increased in early 2026 with applications, openings and hires rising month-over-month. Although the data reflects a softer start to the year, the report offers clear opportunities for organizations to convert strong candidate interest into hires. It also takes a closer look at the healthcare sector, where early signs of a potential rebound in clinical and nonclinical hiring are emerging.

Based on proprietary data from thousands of customers worldwide, the new report shows that although hiring activity rose in January, it remains below last year’s levels. Overall labor market activity strengthened from December, with applications up 23% month-over-month, job openings up 21% and hires climbing 7%. Year-over-year increase is more moderate: applications up 3%, openings 4% and hires down 6%. This emerging gap highlights the importance of efficient hiring processes to fully capitalize on available talent.

“While the upward trend in openings, hiring and applications continued in January, they are still below the January 2025 trends,” said Trent Cotton, head of talent acquisition insights, iCIMS. “As the market is improving, the opportunity to convert interest into hires has never been greater.”

The healthcare sector continued to lead the rebound in January, showing strong applicant growth and steady gains in job openings:

• 2026 may be the year of the clinical rebound: Clinical healthcare exhibited an uptick last month, with applications (+10%), openings (+20%) and hires (+5%) all up month-over-month. Despite hiring being down 4% year-over-year, the increased activity in January creates a prime opportunity for organizations to optimize processes and capitalize on renewed candidate interest and openings.
• Nonclinical talent holds the advantage: Positive momentum from December continued into January, with applications (+17%), openings (+15%) and hires (+6%) up month-over-month. Openings (-2%) and hires (-9%) remain lower year-over-year, signaling that employers who act quickly can capture top candidates as candidate interest is outpacing employer demand.
• Applicants per opening (APO) hits a high note: After hovering in a tight 22–24 range through most of 2025 and softening slightly in Q4, APO spiked to 25 in January (+12% month-over-month)—the highest level in 13 months.

“The clinical applicant volume returned in January with year-over-year growth. This is a strong indicator of a positive change in candidate interest but also a caution to organizations who are still struggling with bottlenecks in the recruiting process,” said Cotton. “It is wise for organizations to take advantage of the increased interest and build talent pipelines for 2026.”

BrightSpring Health Services, a leader in home- and community-based care across 40+ brands, faced a growing shortage of clinical talent. By using iCIMS as the cornerstone of a streamlined hiring process, the BrightSpring team increased applicant flow by 242%, going from ~700 to 2,400 applications per day.

“With iCIMS, we’ve been able to provide the whole picture of what TA is producing and how the experience is going,” said BrightSpring Health Services’ VP of Enterprise Talent Operations. “It’s been tremendous for building internal trust and partnership within the organization.”

Download the iCIMS Insights February Workforce Report for a closer look at healthcare hiring trends, plus expert insights on how organizations can optimize processes and leverage responsible AI to capitalize on the early 2026 rebound.