Officials at Muskogee Regional Medical Center say getting more doctors is one of their top priorities.

They acknowledge a physician shortage and are concerned about local doctors reaching retirement age.

It’s a high-stakes issue, involving the need for good health care and requiring the hospital to spend millions on the hiring process.

Andrea Wilcoxen, physician recruitment manager, said the goal she has been given by management is possible.

“We are looking to recruit 53 physicians over the next five years, by 2012,” she said. “I think it’s realistic. There are things in place now to help the process that were not in place when I came here just over a year ago. It can be done, but it will take an incredible amount of work.”

Wilcoxen’s responsibility is people-intensive; she is constantly researching or dealing with physicians or their representatives.

“The job involves a lot of phone calls,” she said. “I usually can’t reach the doctors during the day because they’re too busy, so I call them in the evening, usually three days a week. It involves getting curriculum vitae from recruiting companies. A lot of communication is key to what I do.”

Once contact is made with a candidate, it’s the first opportunity to look for clues as to what kind of person he or she is.

“During our first communication over the phone, I’m listening for how well they communicate,” she said. “I ask myself, if I were this doctor’s patient, how would I feel? I can get a sense of their personality by whether they are taking time to listen to what I say. They ask what the practice is like, what they can expect for call, compensation, the community, the schools, even the weather. There are almost more questions about the community than the practice itself.”

For candidates who pass the first cut, the next step is planning a site visit where everyone can meet in person.

“If they have families, I give them a good picture of what Muskogee is like,” Wilcoxen said. “These physicians can practice anywhere, but their spouse has to be comfortable.”

A site visit is a carefully choreographed combination of arranging meetings, asking and answering questions, providing baby-sitting for any children brought along, and sightseeing around Muskogee.

“The average site visit is two days,” she said. “One day is more focused on the hospital; meeting doctors and administrators, then as much or more time for learning about the community. For the most part, they are very impressed with what they see. It is green, clean, open and spacious. We have people from New York, Florida and L.A.; I have heard them describe this as a little piece of paradise.”

It takes a lot of work for a few success stories. Wilcoxen described the ratio.

“I’ve done approximately 50 site visits,” she said. “We have seven hires including hospitalists hired involving Dr. Berry Winn. We’re not the only ones courting these candidates. We think those who are here took the job because this was just a good fit for them.”