During her more than 30 years in healthcare staffing, Lisa Taylor’s career has taken her from a human resources apprenticeship with British Aerospace in Hertfordshire, England to her current position as Vice President of TRS International.
Her first foray into healthcare recruitment was working with an agency in Hatfield, England, where she covered permanent and temporary desks. Soon after, Lisa’s then-boss asked her to come to London to help set up the international division of the British Nursing Association. It was this role that launched Lisa’s passion for working with international nurses.
Using the knowledge she’d gained, Lisa decided to set out on her own, creating an international nurse recruitment agency. It was a leap of faith, but Lisa felt confident in the move.
“It was make or break…so I stood up and never looked back,” she says.
After more than a decade with her company, Lisa became acquainted with TRS Healthcare after her husband met Jimmie Bilby, Chief Growth Officer, and Jeremy Wilson, Vice President of TRS Managed Services, at a healthcare staffing conference. Lisa’s husband went on to introduce her to the two, and there was an immediate connection.
“I could see that the company had the same values and ethics that we did, so I was very keen to introduce them to my clients on the international side because we didn’t deal with travel [nursing] or have a [managed service provider]. And on [TRS’] side, they didn’t have an international division,” explains Lisa.
“We began referring her to some of our clients after we heard some of the success stories that she was having. And then, over time, we ultimately chose to start a pathway toward a partnership,” explains Jimmie.
It was at this point, in 2021, that Jimmie and Jeremy asked Lisa to join TRS Healthcare full-time to lead an international division of the company—what’s now TRS International.
“It was her passion [for] helping hospitals, but even more importantly, just helping people achieve a dream of coming to the United States,” says Jeremy of why they wanted Lisa at TRS.
At that point, Lisa had been approached by countless recruitment agencies that wanted to offer international staffing as one of their service offerings, but she knew that moving forward with TRS Healthcare was the right choice for herself and the business that she built.
“If I was going to join forces with someone, I wanted to feel [I was] still going to have control over the international side…It was [about] going with a company that was going to treat the nurses like individuals and not just like a number,” Lisa explains.
Since joining the company, Lisa has been able to show healthcare facilities across the U.S. the true value of international staffing—not just because of how quickly TRS International is able to fill positions with qualified international candidates, but also because Lisa is able to offer the support and expertise that hospitals want when choosing direct hire solutions.
“Lisa really builds trust very easily with our clients,” adds Jeremy. “It’s really amazing to watch her work and be able to answer the questions and the concerns these hospitals have.”
When it comes to international staffing solutions, Lisa says that hospitals are initially apprehensive because they don’t know where to start. “They think it’s going to be labor-intensive on their part,” she explains. Though, once clients see how TRS International handles everything from credentials and immigration to interviews and relocation, they understand how easy it is.
While Lisa is a key player in TRS International’s success, she credits her incredible team and their passion for all that the international division is able to accomplish.
“They’re all specialists in their own area, and they’re all really passionate about what they do,” she says. “They all really care about the healthcare professionals that we’re working with. They take time to get to know the nurse [and] their families.”
One of the biggest differences between TRS International and other agencies that offer international staffing is the care Lisa and her team put into their work—especially when it comes to creating a welcoming environment for the international nurses they bring to the U.S.
Not only does TRS International have a relocation program that includes assistance with housing, obtaining Social Security numbers and bank accounts, setting up phones, and more, but the team is also there to greet the international nurses when they arrive and help them get established in their new community.
“We do a good job of building that community before they even arrive,” adds Lisa. “We set up Facebook groups for all of our clients who’ve recruited nurses so that we do a welcome post for each nurse that signed their job offer so they get to meet their colleagues and peers before they even start work.”
“In this model, once [the nurses] become employees of the hospital, they’re employees of the hospital. They’re not tied to us really anymore. But they are [in a way] because of Lisa,” adds Jeremy. “Every single day, we get anywhere from two to five referrals from people she’s placed…It’s just amazing what’s she’s done and what she’s created with these healthcare professionals.”
Interested in a career with U.S. healthcare facilities? Fill out the TRS International application.
Need international staffing solutions for your hospital? Fill out this staffing request form.
For more information, email internationalinfo@trshealthcare.com.
