The People Behind J-1 Waivers: Anna West
This is the final blog in our series highlighting the important work of J-1 program coordinators and those involved with the process throughout the country. Foreign-born physicians with J-1 Visa status are required to return to their home country for two years after their completion of residency in the United States. The J-1 Visa Waiver, most commonly associated with the Conrad 30 Program, allows them to waive this requirement in return for three years of service in a medically underserved area.
One of the biggest barriers to physician placement in rural and underserved communities is marketing. That is, helping those involved understand what they are signing up for, how their efforts can help beyond what they may realize, and what they stand to gain from partnerships with sometimes unexpected sources.
We spoke to Anna West, Workforce Development Coordinator, Utah Department of Health and Human Services, in Utah, where the team raised their waiver numbers to 15 last year from 9 at most in years past. From her perspective, much of the strategy to success in J-1 physician recruitment is marketing. From our conversation with her, along with the coordinators we’ve highlighted previously in this series, we’ve developed a list of tips and tricks for J-1 coordinators across the country:
Find Evergreen Angles
Sometimes timely pieces get lost in bureaucratic hoops, sometimes an interview falls through that you were counting on because a physician was called away…finding evergreen angles - that you can utilize as content year round - allows you to work ahead on your content and be worry-free when barriers arise.
Increase Communication
Create a content schedule for the platforms your organization has a presence on. Blog twice a month, if you can. Evergreen content really helps here.
Reuse Content
No one said you had to invent the wheel each time! Share your most recent blog post in your newsletter, pull a quote from it to post on social media, reshape it to send out as a success story on a listserv - get as much mileage as you can out of what you create.
Value Relationships with Legal Counsel
Attorneys may oftentimes be the only relationship you have with the physician throughout the process. As much as they are a resource to you, be a resource to them.
Focus on Patients Served
Sometimes it can be hard to pour resources into a single healthcare provider, whether or not you are able to successfully place them. Try to remember that each physician can serve more than 2,500 patients a year! You are affecting thousands of lives with your work - as are they.
“Find that core human issue that anyone can relate to.”
- Anna West - Speaking of a physician her department had recently highlighted in a blog post, West emphasized that the best content is content that is relatable. For them, this post in particular did well because it highlighted just how integral this J-1 physician had become in his patients’ lives - to the point where one young boy has a tradition of taking a picture with him each year.
Coordinating and working with the J-1 Waiver program is not for the faint of heart, but because of the work of so many key individuals in each state, thousands of lives are changed.
For more information on the specifics of the J-1 Visa Waiver process, view 3RNET’s Guide to Navigating the J-1 Visa Waiver Job Search.