Partnering with ExpressCare: ‘PS&D was Our Secret Sauce’

Providence ExpressCare set an ambitious goal in 2018. In response to the explosive growth of retail healthcare and increased consumer demand, it planned to build and open more than 35 clinics in California and Alaska.

ExpressCare leaders would need a lot of clinicians, and it would need them fast.

They came to Provider Solutions & Development, asking us to be their exclusive recruiting partner in hiring more than 110 nurse practitioners and physician assistants in the span of eight months.

It would be no small feat, managing shifting construction deadlines, permitting delays and striking the delicate balance of putting out job offers at just the right time. Extend an offer too soon, and you’re paying people to work at a clinic that isn’t open yet. Extend an offer too late, and a clinic sits waiting for staff.

Project Managing a Big Expansion

Each ExpressCare needs 2.3 fulltime staff to operate, a float pool for paid time-off and vacations, plus Per Diem employees to augment the float pool. To get the right mix, PS&D got to work, drawing on our 20-year history and sourcing from our vast database and network of candidates and health systems.

The PS&D team created a detailed project plan and formed relationships with the construction contractors to ensure we had providers hired, onboarded and ready to start as each clinic opened its doors – without missing a single deadline.

“We never could have done this without PS&D,” says Dr. Sunita Mishra, then-Chief Executive of ExpressCare. “Our providers are the heart and soul of our company, and PS&D helped us find the right people.

“Our goal is to keep our patients at the center of this journey. PS&D not only understood our business model, they were able to consistently communicate our vision so we were able to recruit really incredible, innovative people who believe in what we are trying to do.”

The Booming Industry of Retail Healthcare

PS&D began working with ExpressCare in 2015, when Providence entered the retail healthcare market. It started with a rapid launch of 34 clinics in Portland and Seattle, in part by building out many within Walgreens. Today, at more than 65 clinics, ExpressCare is one of the largest retail medicine providers on the West Coast.

On-demand care has easily been one of the biggest disruptors in the healthcare arena — the industry is currently valued at $28 billion.

Patients love them for their low wait times, emphasis on customer service and contained pricepoint. Clinicians enjoy the immediate gratification of solving a present health issue and the desirable schedule (often three 12-hour days a week). The model allows health systems to dramatically increase their patient access points, funnel patients into primary care clinics for follow-ups and ease the burden on their emergency rooms.

Finding Top Candidates in a Competitive Marketplace

Staffed primarily by nurse practitioners and physician assistants, ExpressCare clinics have opened up a whole new arena for advanced practice clinicians. Meanwhile, there’s a provider shortage, making for a highly competitive recruiting environment. Good candidates can go anywhere they want, and they often have competing offers on the table.

PS&D recruiters held the interest of top-tier candidates through a mix of superior communication, relationship-building and connecting them to the mission of a truly patient-centered experience.

Margaret Bredehoft, ExpressCare’s Director of Strategy and Operations, says PS&D’s value, from the beginning, has been connecting with and keeping the right talent.

“We had great candidates to choose from, which is always the ultimate goal,” Margaret says. “We’re the envy of a lot of people, because we have such high-quality candidates. Physician groups are always asking me, ‘Where did you recruit these people and how did you do it?’ What we have here is something special. PS&D knew how to tell our story, and they attracted the right people for us. The teamwork they built with us has been our secret sauce.”

Outcomes

• 110+ Providers Hired
• 35 Clinics Opened
• 425,000+ Patient-Access Points to Primary Care (Annually) Created
• 4 New ExpressCare Markets - California, Eastern Washington, Montana and Alaska - Opened

Services

• Executive Recruitment
• Interviews
• Marketing
• Site Visit Coordination
• Project Management
• Onboarding Facilitation
• Contract Negotiation
• Compensation Package Design