The healthcare sector has faced some of the most acute hiring challenges in the 2020s, first hit by a transformed workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic that transformed into a difficult hiring environment in the recovery. Employers leaned on contract labor and traveling professionals to fill obvious and hotly contested labor shortages.
As the new year begins, new challenges emerge. Can healthcare hiring teams embrace new technologies? Will the demand in the sector hold up even as the labor market on a whole weakens, and will the focus shift from the all-important registered nurse position to something new? Let’s explore the trends that will shape healthcare recruiting in 2025.
1. Even healthcare demand and supply will (somewhat) normalize.
The healthcare sector has been in a powerhouse in a weaker overall market over the past two years, continuing to grow even while other sectors slow. However, even healthcare is not adding jobs at the same breakneck pace seen in 2022 and early 2023. In 2025, expect more of the same from healthcare hiring: tapered-off demand that remains stronger than pre-pandemic levels and most other industries.
2. Hiring trends: From Nurses to Therapists
However, the hot professions (from a demand perspective) may be shifting slightly. The focus in the first half of the decade has been on nursing; ensuring hospital floors across the nation were properly staffed, bringing in contractors and travel talent to fill the gaps. Over time, that demand for nursing has come down, as shown by the decrease in job postings for the profession. On the other hand, demand for physicians and therapists has refused to budge over the past two years and remains over 80% higher than February 2020 levels.
3. Rural areas are the battleground: Travel nursing remains an option, if not as heavily
An emerging trend over the past few years (and one that is sure to continue over the next couple decades, not just in 2025) is the difficulty in hiring in rural areas. In general, rural populations are older and have worse health conditions than urban counterparts, but their access to healthcare is far more limited.
There’s only so much to be done to solve the rural healthcare shortage: It is downright difficult to attract permanent talent to some of these places. Thus, though there has been much discussion over whether 2025 will finally see a decrease in contract and travel labor, Appcast predicts that travel workers will remain an integral part of the rural labor force.
4. Retention strategies at the forefront: Stay interviews & flexibility
The tight labor market has created an environment where keeping good talent is an absolute necessity. Healthcare workers continue to have a lot of options out there, so keeping employees engaged and content will continue to be a priority. Over the past couple years, some employers have implemented retention processes that will likely be adopted more broadly in 2025.
Stay interviews are one of those initiatives. These interviews, aimed at identifying key areas of improvement and success, are usually conducted by senior management and should be offered to top employees. It’s a simple way to figure out what makes top talent stay in their current roles and is also an opportunity to identify what pushes workers to leave.
One thing that workers at every level value is flexibility. We’ve seen employers become more and more experimental with flexibility offerings, with some even adopting technologies to create gig economies in healthcare settings. Whether these inventive techniques are a band-aid or a long-term solution remains to be seen, but expect further innovation in this space in 2025.
5. Tech: AI and Cybersecurity
One of the main themes for the labor market on the whole is the further adoption of artificial intelligence and the move from implementation to litigation. Healthcare may be a bit behind the curve in this trend, so expect to see more adoption of AI in 2025. It is harder to implement groundbreaking technologies in this more conservative, safety-first sector. Additionally, so much of the tech improvement focus in this sector is on cybersecurity, especially as threats become more and more common. In 2025, expect to see continued strong spending on cybersecurity.
Conclusion
The healthcare industry has had a particularly wild ride over the past four years. Looking ahead to 2025, many of the same challenges remain, and new solutions are emerging. For help with 2025 planning in healthcare, reach out to us about creating a holistic recruiting strategy.
Healthcare is not the only industry set to experience change in the new year. In Appcast’s recent report, Top Recruiting Trends for 2025 we look ahead at the trends shaping recruiting in the new year, informed by expert opinions.
