A few hours of shadowing tells you what resumes don’t.

Of the 30 fastest growing occupations in this country, 20 are health related, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One of the 20, albeit close to the bottom of the list, is the ophthalmic medical technician.

To replace an employee who leaves, says the Department of Labor, an employee will pay about one-third of the new person’s salary. If the ex-employee was valuable, expect to pay more.*

But here is the finding that we’ll discuss in more detail: The extent to which an employee understands her job will have a direct impact on her attitude and behavior on the job.*

GETTING PAST PAPER

The ophthalmic practice has much to offer a bright, young educated man or woman, a person who wants a medical career but who is not interested in the messiness of an emergency department; who wants her holidays and nights for family time; who prefers a smaller clinic compared to a hospital, regardless of its size. Does this mean that ophthalmic techs and front-desk personnel can be choosy about who they want to work for? After all, there are many more of them than there are eye-care practices.

We didn’t think we should acquiesce our position. While health-care jobs haven’t always been the most in demand, replacing a departed worker has always cost a lot in terms of money and training hours. And because most offices have relatively few employees, as compared to a hospital or other health-care center, the social dynamic can take forever to work itself out. No, we have learned not to stop at the resume.

THE SHADOW KNOWS

The first thing we do, after determining that a candidate has a possible place with us, is invite him or her to spend a few hours in the practice within the department she will be working. For those few hours the candidate will follow a supervisor or a senior employee. If the position is for a technician for example, the candidate and ophthalmic head technician will be attached at the hip for those hours.

If the candidate doesn’t like hustle and bustle, isn’t fond of the enormous amounts of detail that must be entered into the EMR, then we have already weeded out a candidate who, had she been offered and accepted the job, would have been overwhelmed at first, and miserable to the end — and likely quit. The shadowing opportunity gives the practice and the candidate a realistic glimpse into the required tasks and whether the two will be a good fit for each other.

We’ve been using our shadowing technique for 18 months now, and the new hires have been working out better. It’s just a few hours, but it’s time well spent. OM

*Harvard Business Essentials: hiring and keeping the best people. Harvard Business Press. 2002. p. 65.

Cynthia Matossian, MD, FACS, is the founder of Matossian Eye Associates. Her e-mail is cmatossian@matossianeye.com