Kaleb walks into the school gymnasium, bright-eyed and hopeful. Tables adorned with colorful posters, branded swag, and neatly stacked brochures line the room. A recruiter from Mercy Hospital smiles at him from the first table. Kaleb has always had questions about the medical field but never knew who to ask. Guess this is my chance, he thinks as he approaches the recruiter.
The nationwide healthcare shortage has hit Arkansas hard, especially in high-demand areas like the River Valley. But instead of accepting it as an unchangeable reality, Mercy Hospital Fort Smith is treating it as a call to action. Through early recruitment, retention strategies, and investments in cutting-edge technology, the hospital is turning the challenge into an opportunity for innovation and growth.
How Does Early Recruitment Help with Retention?
Most healthcare recruiters start with the low-hanging fruit: those actively applying for healthcare jobs or enrolled in a healthcare degree program. Mercy Hospital takes a different approach, reaching out to students long before high school graduation.
Mercy’s recruiters begin engaging with students as early as elementary and middle school, sparking interest in healthcare careers through career fairs and other outreach opportunities. The hospital also partners with a local junior high school to offer an immersive health science program integrated into the hospital. Students actually take classes in the hospital building to further pique students’ interest. 
Mercy even partners with Fort Smith Public Schools to offer LPN and CNA educational pathways so students can become certified LPNs, CNAs, or EMTs upon graduation.
After graduation, Mercy offers clinical rotations at the hospital for students at the University of Arkansas–Fort Smith, Arkansas Tech, and other local universities. This ensures students gain hands-on experience while serving their community.
What Retention Strategies Work for Experienced Nurses?
Recruitment helps bring in new talent, but retaining skilled nurses in the workforce is just as important. Mercy puts just as much emphasis on retention as it does on recruitment, offering:
- Flexible scheduling through a gig workforce model, where nurses can select their shifts through an app.
- Mentorship and residency programs that pair new nurses with seasoned ones for year-long support.
- Dedicated education units that allow experienced nurses to train students while managing fewer patients to reduce burnout.
Instead of pushing for longer hours, Mercy focuses on skill-building and work-life balance to build a stronger, more resilient nursing workforce.
How Does Technology Help Reduce Workloads?
Documentation and administrative tasks take time away from direct patient care. To salvage time with patients, Mercy is piloting AI-powered documentation through Epic and Microsoft. This technology listens to nurse-patient conversations (with patient consent), pulling salient details into the chart and saving nurses up to two hours of administrative time per shift.
Mercy also relies on remote services, such as sepsis alerts and critical care monitoring, through their Visual Care Center in St. Louis, adding another layer of safety and efficiency.
How Does This Improve My Practice?
These strategies coming out of Fort Smith can be scaled to clinics across the state.
- Early engagement with the up-and-coming healthcare workforce ensures rural and urban hospitals grow their own talent.
- Flexible scheduling and mentorship opportunities improve retention, reducing the cost of instability and turnover.
- Smart technology frees time for patient interaction, not just chart completion.
Arkansas providers can draw inspiration from Mercy’s blend of education, innovation, and adaptability to strengthen their own nursing teams.
