Supplemental Health Care

1. What’s different about Supplemental Health Care?

We approach business differently. We know if we focus on solving your workforce problems, we’ll both be successful. We understand the pressures a facility faces today, and have developed our services to help you achieve your goals, from improved patient care to reduced operational costs.

Here are a few specifics:

Our strategy revolves around fixing the root cause of the problem, optimizing the use of staff (all health care staff, not just contract labor), reducing costs and improving quality outcomes
A belief that using contract labor is a legitimate part of any comprehensive staffing strategy to provide appropriate flexibility and cost containment, however, it is not the only answer
“Less People Strategy.” Often high contract labor use is a symptom of a larger underlying condition; our goal is to help clients control and reduce their overall usage of supplemental staff while achieving better patient outcomes

2. What exactly is Workforce Optimization?

Simply put, it is a fact-based, data-driven workforce solution for your facility that addresses all of the factors (census, budgets, staff availability, etc.) that affect your ability to consistently deploy the right nurses and therapists, at the right time, in the right place. Planned and executed properly, it will make sure that you always have a workforce that meets your model of care, improves your workforce coverage, delivers the best possible care and reduces your overall personnel spend.

3. Don’t you provide contract labor to hospitals and other health care facilities?

Yes, we do. In fact, we supply thousands of RNs, NPs, LVNs/LPNs, PTs, OTs, SLPs, Imaging and other health care professionals to facilities across the country every day for short-term, long-term, and contract assignments.

But, we also believe that too often contract labor is a quick fix masking a deeper workforce optimization problem. The best way for us to avoid being part of that problem, and ultimately being seen as a necessary evil, is to provide the people, processes and technology to drive true workforce solutions.

4. What are the benefits to me and my organization from a Workforce Optimization program?

A more efficient workforce, one built around your specific demand history and operating realities, provides a variety of benefits to your facility:

First and foremost, less schedule gaps and improved patient care coverage
Improved understanding of demand trends, staffing patterns and areas of risk
Mathematically optimized schedules and staffing plans
Less mandatory staff overtime
More accurate budgeting and improved cost controls
Reduced use of contract labor and variable labor spend
Improved compliance and reduced regulatory and liability risk
Increased staff satisfaction and retention
Increased patient satisfaction and outcomes
Improved revenue opportunities through increased capacity

5. We work with finance to create our staffing budgets based on last year’s Average Daily Census (ADC) how is this different?

Welcome to the flaw of averages.

The problem with average daily census is that it’s just that – an average. ADC based budgets look nice on paper but are impossible to staff to given their flat budget approach. After all, it’s not unusual for a department to experience as much as a 20% variation in daily census compared to their midnight or daily average census.

Our Workforce Optimization program looks at admissions and acuity from the ground level up, starting at the unit level, not on average across the organization. By developing a better understanding of past demand, we’re able to create more accurate demand forecasts. With better forecasts, you can actually budget based on seasonal, operational, and environmental realities.

6. What role does technology play in your workforce optimization solution?

Through our partner company, The Optime’ Group, we use an entire suite of proprietary analytical and operational software to drive demand analysis, mathematical optimization and program execution. In fact, Optime’s SmartSuite system provides us with an integrated technology platform (SaaS) assisting with all phases of workforce optimization.

7. Our facility is already using a scheduling system; can you integrate with it?

Yes we can. Many hospitals have implemented scheduling, shift auctioning, and vendor management systems in search of a lasting solution to their workforce issues. While these point solutions might not have solved your problems, we realize you have time and money invested in this technology.

Our workforce optimization program can be integrated with or alongside your existing solutions, actually improving your facility’s ability to leverage your incumbent technology.