How to recruit nurses: Strategies, tips and solutions

When it comes to how to hire nurses in the midst of a known “healthcare talent crisis”, many talent acquisition professionals within the industry are feeling overwhelmed.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 1.2 million new registered nurses will be needed by 2030 to fill new positions and roles vacated by retiring nurses. But in a sector marked by high turnover and burnout rates, finding these qualified candidates is, and will likely remain, a challenge.

For medical facilities, the consequences of unfilled nursing positions range from inconvenient to disastrous. Being short-staffed can directly impact patient outcomes, placing tremendous stress on nursing teams to deliver adequate and attentive care to their charges.

Consequently, there’s an urgent need for talent acquisition teams to develop effective recruiting strategies to attract, engage, and retain nursing talent. As experts in healthcare and hospital recruiting software, here are tips to help you get there.

5 criteria to consider when recruiting nurses

Recruiting nurses requires a detail-oriented approach, as nursing itself is a broad profession with many possible specializations and workplace settings. Here are five criteria to assess during the hiring processes:

1. 1. Educational qualifications and licensure: Ensure potential candidates have the requisite degrees and active licenses to work in the state you’re hiring in. Different roles also require varying levels of education, ranging from an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) or even higher.
      
   2. Essential certifications: Check for the necessary nursing certifications during recruiting. Specialized nursing fields often require specific credentials, including Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) for pediatric nurses or Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN) certification for ICU roles. Showing a growth-oriented mindset—either by continuing to earn certificates or deepen specializations through courses—is also an asset in the profession.
      
   3. Clinical experience: Evaluate each potential candidate’s work experience to ensure it aligns with your needs and healthcare setting, such as previous roles and duties in emergency rooms, intensive care units, or long-term care facilities. If a potential hire lacks a specific qualification, consider whether mentorship opportunities with current staff or an extended onboarding period would be feasible to bridge the skills gap.
   4. Technical proficiency: Leveraging medical technology with confidence is necessary in modern healthcare environments. Given the scope of their patient care responsibilities, skilled nurses are expected to be proficient in using medical equipment and healthcare software, such as electronic health records (EHRs), telehealth platforms, and medication dispensing solutions.
   5. Interpersonal skills: Being a strong communicator with an empathetic, team-oriented attitude is necessary to thrive in medical environments. Nurses must be able to interact respectfully and calmly with patients, their families, and colleagues of all roles and seniority levels.

Key challenges in nurser recruitment

Healthcare settings often run into these difficulties when looking into how to recruit nurses with greater efficiency and success:

• Nursing and skills shortages: Hiring nurses in the healthcare industry is strained by a marked shortage of qualified professionals. By 2025, McKinsey & Company projected a shortage of 200,000 to 450,000 nurses in the US, equating to a 10% to 20% workplace gap for direct patient care. These shortages are often attributed to an aging population needing more care, experienced nurses reaching retirement age, and limited capacity in nursing education programs. Plus, today’s healthcare landscape also increasingly demands specialized skills, making it tricky to find top candidates who meet all requirements.
  
• Burnout and high turnover: Combining the intensive nature of nursing with long hours and emotional stress has led to high burnout rates. This burnout contributes to increased turnover and creates a cycle where medical facilities must continuously recruit new talent. Worrisomely, a 2024 survey by AMN Healthcare found that over a third of nurses (35%) said it was “extremely likely they would change jobs” within the year.
  
• Competition: Filling nursing roles has become somewhat of a competitive sport. With the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics hypothesizing that over 275,000 more nurses will be needed by 2030, workplaces must strive harder to entice candidates to join them. Standing out often requires a combination of offering competitive compensation packages, professional development opportunities, and a supportive culture.

Effective strategies on how to recruit nurses

Addressing the challenges above becomes decidedly easier if your recruiters are equipped with the right technology, brand awareness, and strategic thinking to succeed.

Let’s explore how to improve your recruitment strategies in healthcare.

Leveraging technology in nurse recruitment

Using a talent acquisition software can streamline how your workplace attracts, engages, hires, and advances the best nursing candidates.

iCIMS AI offers healthcare recruiters AI-powered features for managing the entire candidate lifecycle.

By automating daily tasks, matching the talent pool to open roles, and personalizing engagement at scale (via nurse-friendly channels like texting!), the platform can reduce time-to-fill by up to 50%—while staying compliant with the industry’s strict regulations and requirements.  See more details about our healthcare recruitment software solutions here. 

Building a strong employer brand

To attract top talent, healthcare organizations must develop and maintain a compelling brand that resonates with prospective hires.

Effective marketing strategies could include showcasing a commitment to work-life balance, professional development opportunities, and positive stories from current nursing staff.

Implementing an employee video testimonial software, like iCIMS Video Studio, can streamline the process of building low-lift, high-quality employee-generated testimonies to differentiate their workplaces.

Utilizing social media for nurse recruitment

Social media platforms offer viable channels for reaching and engaging nursing talent online.

Professional networks like LinkedIn, as well as online communities for nurses, grant talent acquisition specialists an audience to both active and passive job seekers. Through social media marketing and recruitment marketing software, workplaces can showcase their mission and values, share staff-generated content, and promote job openings via targeted campaigns.

Social sourcing capabilities, offered by iCIMS’s applicant tracking system (ATS), empower recruiters to identify and connect with promising candidates and build out their talent pipelines for the future.

Implementing virtual interviews and assessments 

Known for working long and often unusual hours, nurses often struggle to find the time for in-person job interviews—even for roles they want and would be uniquely qualified to fill.

To accommodate their on-the-go candidates’ hectic schedules, employers are encouraged to adopt virtual interviewing platforms that support anytime, anywhere recruiting.

Video interviewing software, ideally with self-scheduling and pre-screening questions, can deliver the flexibility needed to vet candidates effectively. The iCIMS solution, for instance, even integrates natively with our ATS and Digital Assistance for better tracking, improved reporting and feedback, and less no-shows.

Solutions for high-volume nurse recruitment 

While it’s not uncommon to hire for multiple nursing roles at once—especially during workplace expansion or seasonal peaks—the volume of incoming CVs can be overwhelming for talent acquisition teams.

Managing large-scale hiring efforts is simplified with the right recruiting tools, especially when powered by smart automation.

AI-driven candidate relationship management solutions, like iCIMS Candidate Experience Management (CXM), can sift through the resume pile to source best-fit applicants, and then keep them engaged during the hiring journey with personalized marketing and cross-platform outreach.

Automating recruitment workflows 

Integrating automation into your hiring processes can increase efficiency and decrease the time spent looking for qualified applicants.

By handling routine tasks like application screening, interview scheduling, and candidate communications, recruitment software empowers talent acquisition teams to focus on high-value activities like candidate evaluation and relationship building.

Measuring and improving recruitment success

Adopting data-driven recruitment strategies can help healthcare organizations refine their hiring approach and improve the retention of new employees.

After all, without tracking the wins and misses of your talent acquisition endeavors, it’s impossible to know what’s working versus what isn’t.

Key metrics for nurse recruitment

Tracking key hiring metrics is necessary for fine-tuning recruitment workflows and sourcing nursing candidates who will thrive in their new roles. Here are three vital metrics to monitor: 

• Time-to-hire: Measure the number of days from when a nursing candidate enters the recruitment process to when they accept a job offer. A shorter time-to-hire indicates an efficient hiring process, reducing the risk of losing top talent to competing offers.
• Quality of hire: Assess how well new nurses perform in their roles and meet stakeholder expectations. This metric can be evaluated through performance reviews, patient outcomes, and feedback from supervisors and colleagues. It’s important as strong hires contribute to better patient care and team cohesion.
• Retention rates: So, you hired an amazing talent… but will they stay? Measure the proportion of new hires that remain in their roles after a designated timespan (ex. the first year). A low retention rate could signify workplace red flags, such as poor onboarding, inadequate employee support, or undesirable wages or labor conditions.

Continuous improvement in nurse recruitment

Improving and future-proofing your recruitment strategies requires the ongoing analysis of key metrics and feedback from hiring managers, new hires, and nursing candidates. Regular reviews help healthcare facilities assess their recruiting tactics and make data-driven adjustments to boost efficiency and outcomes.

To refine your processes even more, consider adopting the following strategies:

• Exit and stay interviews: Hold candid discussions to identify factors that influence nurse retention and job satisfaction.
• HR and team leader meetings: Nurture open communication between recruiting stakeholders to address any hiring challenges and resolve bottlenecks.
• A/B testing of recruitment materials: Experiment with different versions of job descriptions, email templates, and outreach messages to see which approaches convert best.

How to recruit nurses: Innovative solutions with iCIMS

The ongoing nursing shortage presents major challenges for healthcare institutions, but the right strategies and tools can make all the difference. Successful nurse recruitment requires a multi-faceted approach that blends technology with human-centered approach.

iCIMS’ healthcare recruiting solutions can support every step of the hiring journey. Powered by artificial intelligence, Talent Cloud AI streamlines applicant sourcing and screening, keeping leads from going cold with custom messages and content that resonates with them. Even during high-volume hiring, our CXM system ensures no qualified candidate is overlooked.

Ready to elevate your nurse recruitment strategy? Schedule a demo today to see how iCIMS can help you attract, engage, and hire top nursing talent.