There is an interesting double standard in healthcare recruitment that we do not talk about enough.

A healthcare facility hires a recruitment agency and says:

“We don’t want you poaching employees from our organization.”

Fair enough. A recruitment partner should respect its clients and honor clearly defined off-limits agreements.

But then comes the next request:

“We need experienced candidates. Conduct a nationwide search and find us the best people in the industry.”

So where exactly do we think those candidates are working?

At other hospitals.
Other health systems.
Other healthcare organizations.

The reality is simple:

The candidate you want to hire is very often someone else’s valued employee.

When a recruiter calls someone at another hospital, we call it recruiting.

When that same recruiter calls someone at your hospital, suddenly we call it poaching.

We cannot have it both ways.

If a facility wants an agency to conduct a true nationwide search, that agency must identify successful professionals who are currently employed, approach them, present an opportunity, and determine whether they are interested in having a conversation.

That is not a flaw in recruiting.

That IS recruiting.

If agencies were limited to candidates actively applying for jobs, facilities would not need recruiters nearly as much. They could post the position and wait for resumes.

The value of a professional recruiter is reaching the people who are not applying.

Now, should agencies have boundaries? Absolutely.

If an agency represents a facility, that client’s employees should be protected according to clearly established agreements. Agencies should honor their commitments, protect placements, and never intentionally dismantle a client’s team to benefit another client.

There is also another side to this conversation.

A recruiter can make a phone call.

A recruiter can present an opportunity.

But a recruiter cannot force a happy employee to leave.

Maybe instead of only asking:

“Why are recruiters calling our employees?”

Healthcare organizations should also ask:

“Why are our employees willing to take the call?”

Compensation matters. But so do leadership, culture, recognition, advancement, workload, flexibility, stability, and opportunity.

The strongest defense against “poaching” is not stopping recruiters from calling.

It is creating an organization people do not want to leave.

If you want recruiters searching hospitals nationwide for the best talent, you must recognize that every one of those candidates is somebody else’s employee.

Protect your recruitment partnerships. Establish reasonable boundaries. Hold agencies accountable. Then let recruiters recruit.

Because when you hire an agency to find the best candidate in the country, you are usually not asking them to find someone who needs a job.

You are asking them to find someone worth recruiting.