Hospitals recruiting doctors

PARKERSBURG - Recruiting doctors to meet the health care needs of the area is a priority for both Parkersburg hospitals.

Over the past several years, Camden-Clark Memorial Hospital and St. Joseph's Hospital have brought in physicians covering a wide range of medical disciplines.

With tort reform, malpractice lawsuit caps, malpractice liability insurance rates dropping about 9 percent in 2008 and the lower cost of living, the state has become enticing to physicians looking to set up a practice.

West Virginia was recently named by Medical Economics, a magazine that follows business trends in the medical field, as one of the top 10 places to practice medicine in the United States.

Jason Landers, director of Managed Care and Physician Recruiting at Camden-Clark Memorial Hospital, has been doing recruiting for 10 years.

''There have been highs and lows,'' he said. ''I would say that 2002 was probably the low point.

''I was still recruiting well then, but it was very hard. The tide has certainly turned and it is a lot easier now, but there are still a lot of challenges.''

One of those challenges is overcoming preconceived notions about West Virginia.

''The reality is that if you are coming from anywhere above the Mason-Dixon line, many people still have preconceived notions of what coming here really is,'' Landers said. ''It is funny. I talk to people all the time and one of the things they always ask is about the coal mines.

''I always have to tell them there are no coal mines within 50 miles of here and not all West Virginia is mining coal. They don't know. I guess I can understand that. When most people think of New York, they think of New York City. There is much more forested land in New York than there is in West Virginia, but it is not what people think about.''

West Virginia's past problems with malpractice lawsuits and high insurance costs still come up in conversation with recruits, Landers said.

Candace Jones, physician recruiter for St. Joseph's Hospital, said efforts startswith what the community needs.

Whether through a community survey or the recommendations of the medical staff, the hospital can see where it needs a certain type of doctor, she said. The number of potential patients and how well that segment of the population is being served locally are considered.

''You have to show there is a community need and demonstrate that,'' she said.

Having been able to bring in general practice physicians over the past few years, St. Joseph's Hospital is now looking for doctors with specialties in orthopedics, interventional cardiologists and pulmonary critical care.

Another determining factor is whether an established doctor in the area is planning to retire soon, Landers said.

''We are always looking for new doctors,'' he said. ''The reality is people grow old and retire.

''We have got some needs that are urgent and we have a couple of doctors who need some help because they are the only one (of a certain specialty) in the area. They have to take all the responsibility for everyone. We are also looking to bring in people to help the transition when some doctors are ready to retire. I love it when our physicians can be a part of the entire process.''

One specialty Camden-Clark is looking for is pulmonology, which deals with diseases of the lungs and the respiratory tract. There is one doctor in the area covering those patients.

Landers said there are a limited number of doctors who finish training in that field and the number of jobs available outnumbers the people available.

Hospitals post openings on Web sites that doctors look at. Hospitals post job openings in medical journals. Doctors hire headhunters to look for openings around the country.

''There are a lot of recruiting firms that can match a doctor with a hospital,'' Jones said. ''The search can be throughout the United States or we can get a list of doctors who have some kind of tie to West Virginia, either they went to school here or they grew up here. There are a variety of ways you can break it down to find that doctor.''

Once they find someone, Jones said there is a process of doing a phone interview, checking their job history, references and other pertinent information. They will have other local doctors in the same specialty call them and have a dialogue.

''Credentialing for the hospital is a very exhausting process of checks from every place they have ever been to background checks, their training and the verification of everything,'' Jones said. ''We are a primary source verification; we do all the checking.''

If all works out well, the hospital will bring the person to the area for a visit.

Landers said if they can get three doctors to visit, he can usually hire one. He is constantly networking with as many people as he can trying to find doctors who might be interested in coming to Parkersburg. Doctors who are from West Virginia know what the state has to offer and understand its people, he added.

Camden-Clark recruited Dr. Chris Bailey, general surgeon, last spring.

''I was looking for a new job and the hospital was recruiting for a surgeon,'' he said. ''Things fell into place and have worked out well for the both of us. Things are going real well here. I am very happy here. I like Parkersburg and it was nice to get back to West Virginia (he was originally from Princeton and had been practicing in Ashland, Ky.).''

One of St. Joseph's Hospital's recruits was Dr. Heather Irvin, who has a specialty in Obstetrics/Gynecology.

Jones recruited Irvin to St. Joseph's Hospital in 2004 after Irvin completed her residency at the Medical University of South Carolina in Columbia, S.C.

A native of Wetzel County and graduate of West Virginia University's School of Medicine, Irvin always knew she wanted to practice medicine in West Virginia so she could be close to her family.

''I found an opportunity at St. Joseph's that allowed me to work in a wonderful community where I could build a great OB/GYN practice, plus it was near my family,'' she said.

Camden-Clark is looking at its residency program as a potential recruiting tool for new doctors.

Many doctors coming to the area can make a good living in this area, Landers said.

''You have to overcome the stigmatisms of small town America and small town West Virginia,'' he said. ''It is getting them here and showing them. Once we get them here, it doesn't end. At that point, it is the responsibility of the whole community to make these people feel welcome. Retention is the ongoing process.''