When the Baskin-Robbins ice cream franchise decided to let customers sample flavors before picking which one they wanted, it was a revolutionary idea. But the company realized the value of allowing folks who had a tasty treat on their minds to sample a free taste on a small, pink, plastic spoon before settling in with a whole cone of just one flavor. Nurse recruiter Karen Henderson, RN, is putting a similar idea in place at Wellmont Health System in Tennessee.

“I thought it would be a cool thing,” says Henderson, who has been a nurse for 18 years. “We could have a day where nurses could come in and try out a couple of units that they might be interested in. And, they don’t have to make a commitment.”

Henderson’s creative idea came to fruition last week, as two Nurses’ Dream Days were held at Bristol Regional Medical Center. Soon-to-be-graduate nurses and nurses looking for a change came in and shadowed RNs on a variety of units, including critical care, cardiac, pediatrics, and the emergency department, to get a taste of life on those units. The response was very positive, Henderson says. “One person had a path in mind, so we put him in a couple places,” she adds. “He experienced a unit that he never would have even thought of. He was very excited.”

One Nurses’ Dream Day was held at Holston Valley Medical Center on March 30 and another, free of charge, will take place on April 13.

Like other nurse recruiters across the country, Henderson is always thinking of creative ways to find qualified applicants. It’s not easy. “The nursing shortage is national and it’s very real for all of us,” she says.

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