Community Health Network, an integrated system in Indianapolis, is using text messaging to recruit nurses and other hospital staff.
CHN said it is the first health system in Indiana to use Canvas, a text-based interviewing and recruiting platform to bring in nurses, as well as social workers, housekeepers, security, patient services representatives, cooks, environmental services staff and other workers.
Through Canvas, 22 recruiters respond to applications from job candidates with a text, and the candidate may write back and answer any questions about their application, reports the Indianapolis Star. The candidate may then end up scheduling an on-site interview or phone call.
Recruiters send one message to multiple candidates and have standard responses ready for frequently asked questions.
Scott Sendelweck, CHN's human resources digital marketing manager, said the system wanted to recruit faster, better and at a lower cost. It also sought to target medical school graduates, many of whom prefer texting as an initial contact versus a phone call.
"We decided that text recruitment is the way to go," he told the Star. "It's super-fast, very efficient. We could have personal conversations with another person really quickly."
CHN began using Canvas in May. Since then, it has reached out to 1,772 candidates through Canvas and most recently recruited and hired several heart and vascular nurses.
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