Care sector recruitment faces unprecedented challenges. From global talent shortages to the lingering effects of Brexit, the sector is at a critical juncture.

If you’re a care sector recruiter, understanding these issues and leveraging the right strategies is crucial for securing the talent needed to provide quality patient care.

Major Challenges in Recruitment in the Care Sector

Recruiting for the care sector has become increasingly complex due to several converging factors. The challenges faced by care sector recruiters can be grouped into three key areas:

1. Talent Availability: With global workforce shortages and the effects of Brexit, the availability of skilled care sector professionals has become a significant concern. NHS and private care organisations are fighting over the same limited pool of candidates, particularly in specialised areas like nursing and surgery.
2. Operational Costs and Efficiency: The costs associated with recruitment have soared, from advertising to onboarding new staff. At the same time, lengthy and bureaucratic processes have hindered organisations’ ability to move quickly, resulting in lost candidates and inefficiency.
3. Workplace and Candidate Engagement: Once hired, care sector professionals face high workplace pressures and burnout, contributing to high turnover rates. Additionally, ineffective communication during the hiring process often leaves candidates feeling disengaged or disillusioned, further complicating recruitment efforts.

Each of these areas presents unique challenges, but they also offer opportunities for improvement. Data-driven strategies and recruitment technology provide solutions to your hiring and retention woes.

Competition for Talent

Recruiting in the care sector is fiercely competitive. Recruiters are vying for a limited pool of skilled professionals, driving up demand, especially in high-need specialities like nursing, midwifery, and emergency care.

As of January 2024, the NHS employs over 1.33 million full-time equivalents, a 5.5% increase from the previous year, and as of the second quarter of 2024, there were approximately 4.9 million people employed in the human health and social work sector in the UK. Yet vacancies remain a significant challenge. This high demand means recruiters often find themselves in bidding wars, further complicated by regional shortages and a shortage of professionals in key specialisms.

SOLUTION

Tailored Recruitment Strategies

Customising recruitment workflows to fast-track top candidates and prioritise urgent
specialities can give your organisation a competitive edge.

Leverage Technology
Utilising an advanced applicant tracking system (ATS) can help streamline processes
and reduce manual work, allowing your team to focus on building relationships with qualified candidates. Platforms like Oleeo Recruit streamline recruitment by automating repetitive tasks and leveraging data to fast-track top candidates.

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By integrating intelligent workflows, these systems allow teams to focus less on manual processes and more on building connections with candidates, ultimately reducing time-to-hire and improving recruitment outcomes.

Global Shortages

Organisations within the care sector are not just competing within local 
borders — it’s part of a global struggle. The World Health Organisation projects a shortage of 10 million healthcare workers by 2030. While a significant reduction from the 15 million shortfall in 2020, this global deficit impacts the care sector’s recruitment efforts.

SOLUTION

International Recruitment Campaigns
Expanding recruitment efforts beyond local markets can 
 help tap into global talent pools. Consider recruitment 
 partnerships with educational institutions or governments in regions with a surplus of care sector professionals.

Offer Competitive Packages
To attract international talent, make your job offers stand out with competitive benefits and clear pathways to career development.

Automate Processes
When faced with a global shortage of care sector professionals, you must efficiently manage high-volume recruitment. Platforms like Oleeo handle large-scale hiring needs, automating the process of screening, scheduling, and communicating with large pools of candidates. This helps care sector organisations fill roles faster without compromising the quality of hires, even in high-demand specialisations like nursing and midwifery.

Brexit

Brexit has introduced new obstacles to recruitment in the care sector, particularly when attracting talent from EU countries. Prior to Brexit, EU/EEA nationals comprised around 10% of the NHS’s workforce. However, nearly 45% of EU doctors have considered leaving the UK due to Brexit’s professional and personal impact. The free movement of care sector professionals across Europe has been curtailed, making it harder to fill vacancies with qualified staff from overseas.

SOLUTION

Support for Foreign Applicants
Providing legal and financial assistance for EU/EEA staff to navigate visa processes can help retain current employees and attract new ones.

Foster Inclusivity
It’s essential to maintain diversity, equality, and inclusion in recruitment, particularly in a post-Brexit landscape where the talent pool is shifting. Using recruitment technology that integrates DEI tools minimises bias 
and gives diverse candidates equal consideration based on qualifications. This approach helps strengthen organisational commitment to 
diversity while addressing changing recruitment challenges.

High Costs of Recruitment

Recruiting care sector professionals is expensive. Advertising job vacancies, conducting interviews, and onboarding new hires require significant investment, 
with recruitment budgets in both the NHS and private care sector already stretched thin. To give you an idea of how costly it is to recruit new healthcare workers, the NHS spends an estimated £3 billion on recruitment each year. Recruitment is one of the largest overheads, especially in high-demand sectors.

SOLUTION

Automation
Recruitment technologies like Oleeo’s ATS reduce the time and cost associated with manual processes.

Bulk Hiring for Volume Roles
Use recruitment campaigns that target high-volume needs, such as nursing, to efficiently manage costs by processing multiple candidates simultaneously.

Workplace Pressures

Care sector workers face significant workplace stress. Long hours, emotional strain, and physical exhaustion contribute to high burnout rates. 50% of NHS trainers report being at moderate or high risk of burnout, while over 21% of trainees are in similar conditions. This ongoing pressure leads to high staff turnover and further intensifies recruitment challenges.

SOLUTION

Flexible Working Arrangements
Offering flexible hours or remote options where 
possible can reduce burnout and improve retention.

Employee Support Programs
Implement well-being initiatives that include mental health resources and support groups to help alleviate 
 stress and promote a healthier workplace.

Ineffective Communication With Candidates

One major issue in care sector recruitment 
is ineffective communication, often resulting 
in candidates losing interest. Recruitment processes are notoriously slow, leading to candidate disengagement. High application volumes, bureaucracy, and resource constraints delay decision-making and onboarding.

SOLUTION

Enhance Candidate Experience
Invest in tools that streamline communication, 
such as automated email updates, to keep candidates engaged throughout the hiring process.

Lengthy Recruitment Processes

Delays in recruitment can cause significant issues. In the NHS and private care organisations, the time-to-hire is often extended due to complex processes and vacancy approvals. Prolonged hiring processes can deter qualified candidates, many of whom may accept offers elsewhere before you can fill roles.

SOLUTION

Shorten the Recruitment Cycle
Evaluate your current processes to identify bottlenecks and explore how technology, like a CRM or ATS, can accelerate tasks such as scheduling interviews or making job offers.

Limited Growth and Improvement in Efficiency

Limited growth and efficiency also hamper care sector recruitment. Despite the increasing number of medical trainees, the infrastructure supporting them hasn’t expanded at the same rate. The 2024 National Training Survey reported that more trainees are entering the system, but a shortage of trainers and limited resources affect training quality.

SOLUTION

Invest in Training Infrastructure
Provide adequate support for trainers to accommodate the rising number of trainees. 
 This helps ensure trainees receive the mentorship and skills development they need, 
 reducing turnover and improving overall system efficiency.

Future-Proofing Your Recruitment Strategy

While you need to address immediate recruitment challenges, care sector organisations must think long-term to maintain a sustainable workforce. Anticipating trends in care sector staffing and workforce needs can give you a significant edge in recruiting the right talent at the right time.

• Predictive Analytics: By leveraging predictive analytics, care sector organisations can anticipate staffing shortages or surges in demand based on factors like patient demographics, seasonal care needs, and retirement trends within the workforce. For example, as populations age, the demand for specialised care roles such as geriatrics and chronic disease management will increase.
• Long-Term Workforce Planning: Developing a strategy beyond filling vacancies today 
will ensure a steady pipeline of qualified candidates. 
This includes investing in partnerships with educational institutions, creating internal development programs, and supporting apprenticeship or training programs to grow talent from within.
• AI for Workforce Sustainability: AI-driven tools can help forecast future recruitment needs by analysing trends in employee turnover, role demand, and care sector advancements. Oleeo uses predictive scoring algorithms to evaluate and rank candidates, helping you identify the best-fit talent for future engagement. 

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By scoring candidates based on their potential and qualifications, you can focus on building relationships with the most promising applicants, ensuring a steady pipeline of talent for years to come.

Conclusion

Recruiting in the care sector is becoming more challenging, but with the right strategies and tools, you can stay ahead of the competition. Investing in automation, streamlining processes, and addressing workplace pressures will help you secure top talent more effectively. Whether navigating the effects of global shortages or Brexit, the solutions lie in proactive recruitment strategies tailored to the unique demands of the care sector.