Director Of Nursing Search

Interim DON Coverage - 2026

The Best Interim Director of Nursing Providers of 2026

We track 4 search firms, interim providers and hiring options that serve skilled nursing and assisted living operators. Here is how they rank against our published criteria.

Short answer: Cross Country Search, B.E. Smith and Kirby Bates Associates sit at the top of this ranking of 4.

Interim nurse-leader providers that hold the DON seat while you search, and how to keep survey readiness intact during a leadership vacancy. Every option below is weighed against the same five criteria. See how we picked, or read our Interim DON Coverage guides.

By Dorian Iyer Editorial reviewer

Updated

At a glance

Provider Our pick Type Best for
1 Cross Country Search Best for national reach DON Recruiting Firms multi-facility operators that want national candidate reach
2 B.E. Smith Best for interim-to-permanent Interim DON Coverage interim DON coverage that can convert to a permanent search
3 Kirby Bates Associates Best nurse-leadership specialist DON Recruiting Firms a nurse-leadership specialist search
4 Medical Solutions Best for multi-site contracts Nurse Staffing Platforms multi-site operators managing travel contracts centrally

Our picks, ranked

  1. 1
    Best for national reach

    Cross Country Search

    DON Recruiting Firms

    Trade-off Placeholder - the honest catch, added after review.

    Placeholder - our 2-3 sentence take on this provider is written by the editorial team after review.

    What works

    • Added after our review.

    Watch for

    • Added after our review.

    Best for multi-facility operators that want national candidate reach

    Compare DON Recruiting Firms Full review coming soon
  2. 2
    Best for interim-to-permanent

    B.E. Smith

    Interim DON Coverage

    Trade-off Placeholder - the honest catch, added after review.

    Placeholder - our 2-3 sentence take on this provider is written by the editorial team after review.

    What works

    • Added after our review.

    Watch for

    • Added after our review.

    Best for interim DON coverage that can convert to a permanent search

    Get a quote link added after review Full review coming soon
  3. 3
    Best nurse-leadership specialist

    Kirby Bates Associates

    DON Recruiting Firms

    Trade-off Placeholder - the honest catch, added after review.

    Placeholder - our 2-3 sentence take on this provider is written by the editorial team after review.

    What works

    • Added after our review.

    Watch for

    • Added after our review.

    Best for a nurse-leadership specialist search

    Compare DON Recruiting Firms Full review coming soon
  4. 4
    Best for multi-site contracts

    Medical Solutions

    Nurse Staffing Platforms

    Trade-off Placeholder - the honest catch, added after review.

    Placeholder - our 2-3 sentence take on this provider is written by the editorial team after review.

    What works

    • Added after our review.

    Watch for

    • Added after our review.

    Best for multi-site operators managing travel contracts centrally

    Compare Nurse Staffing Platforms Full review coming soon

How we picked

Every option on this page is weighed against the same five criteria, in the same order. Rank follows the criteria; award labels say what each option does best.

  1. 1 Post-acute focus. Experience placing nursing leaders in skilled nursing and assisted living, not only acute care.
  2. 2 Fee and guarantee clarity. Whether the fee basis, replacement guarantee and terms are stated before you sign.
  3. 3 Search process. How candidates are sourced, screened and presented, and how long a typical search runs.
  4. 4 Candidate vetting. License verification, references and attention to a candidate's survey history.
  5. 5 Fit for independent operators. Whether a single-site SNF or small group gets the same attention as a large chain.
Read the full methodology

How to choose

Placeholder - a short guide to choosing among interim don coverage options for an independent SNF or assisted living operator is written by the editorial team.

How much does it cost?

Placeholder - typical cost ranges are added from our DON salary and leadership benchmark and from published pricing.

Option How you pay
Contingency search A percentage of the hire's first-year base salary, owed only when you hire
Retained search A fee paid in stages during the search, whatever the outcome
Interim leader A daily or weekly rate for the length of the assignment, plus travel where it applies

Where to find a search partner

Placeholder - where operators find and engage search firms, interim providers and hiring options, and when each route makes sense, is written by the editorial team.

Frequently asked questions

Questions are being collected

Answers to the questions operators ask most about interim don coverage will appear here.

References

Placeholder - the sources behind this ranking are listed here as the page is filled.

More rankings

Read next

Guides are on the way

Our first interim don coverage guides and provider reviews are being written now. They will appear here as soon as they are published.

For recruiting firms and hiring platforms

Reach operators comparing interim don coverage

Put your company in front of SNF and assisted living operators on the ranking they read before they decide - a labeled placement in the category you sell into. Placements buy visibility, never a position in the ranking.

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