continued from previous page hand, so they were not shocked by streetwalkers and hippies. “I tell people, ‘We’re going to put you up at the Carter House,’” he says. “‘The bad news is, the Carter House is in one of worst neighborhoods in town. The good news is, that’s one of the worst areas in town.’” Get it? Folks from the big city would. Herrmann Spetzler, CEO of Open Door, thinks recruiting has to be shaped — stretch that net into a hook and fling it at specific targets. For example, he says, Humboldt providers should be recruiting the older doctors — because young ones need mentoring — in less traditional ways. “The carrot is solely the community when you are trying to [recruit] a 45-yearold doctor,” says Spetzler. “We tend to stick with professional journals, or headhunters, to recruit. I’d like to propose we run ads in the equivalent of Field & Stream or Backpacker Magazine or Sea Kayaker Magazine.” As for those young doctors, something has to entice them to stick around once their loans are repaid. “National statistics show that very many young people will return to where they went to high school for their permanent place of practice,” Spetzler says. “Often that has to do with extended family.” Young doctors often have young
says Pardoe, with children, and grandparents wheedle the Humboldt Medical doctors back home. Specialists. “That’s the “I think what the big challenge.” community needs And to make to do is to adopt a everyone’s life more recruitment program fun, Penny Figas says for grandparents,” the medical society Spetzler says. “If we is hosting more social could get the grandevents to connect parents to move here, doctors and their and give them a great families to others — place to retire, then we especially primary care can keep these young docs, because they Herrmann Spetzler, CEO of Open Door Community Health Centers, recruits.” spend less time in the says recruiters need to target Spetzler’s other hospital on call now the extended family of doctor big idea is to start a that there are hospitalcandidates – show them Humboldt’s ists for that. Events resume exchange with a fine place to retire. include membership other companies and Photo by Heidi Walters meetings, Friday beer organizations who rounds at different hire professionals. establishments and “walk with a doc” pro“So when HSU is hiring someone in their grams (on nature trails). administration, or a professor, the spouse’s Finally, the hospital foundation and the resume goes into a resume pool that all of independent practices must sort out their us looking for educated staff would go to differences, says recruiter Darien George, first — before we go out and look outside who is managing partner at the executive the area.” search firm Mackenzie Eason. He used to If we can’t entice the extended families recruit for St. Joseph. He says when the to up stakes for Humboldt, then at least hospital was undergoing a lot of regime maybe we can make their travels less frustrating. “The county needs another airline,” changes, CEOs and such coming and going,
it made everyone look bad to recruits. Besides, he says, there aren’t enough candidates to compete for, and new doctors should have a choice here of what type of model they want to work in. Maybe they want the security of the hospital’s big foundation. Maybe they want to be a scrappy country doc. “The best way to approach it is to have multiple avenues to recruit in,” George says. If that all happens, maybe we’ll get more doctors — specifically more doctors like Leer, Grotke, Pardoe and Rangel. The ones who stick around. The key to such longevity may be as simple as loving this rural variety of hard work. Rangel works with patients in the hospital, works in the office, makes house calls, goes to nursing homes and assisted living facilities. “You’re a rural physician and that’s incredibly fulfilling,” she says. “I have had the most fun in my career since I left Chicago. I love, love, love my practice. I love running into my patients in Safeway — they tell you how to can tomatoes, tell you how to embroider correctly, take you fishing, bring you crab, teach you how to fix your diesel engine.” A doctor like that probably won’t faint if some lady bares her bosom in the window of the Carter House. l
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14 North Coast Journal • Thursday, Nov. 7, 2013 • northcoastjournal.com