Healthcare staffing is becoming increasingly challenging. Hospitals are facing an increase in patients, but are constantly failing to provide the best care due to a shortage of staff. Therefore, it causes delays in delivering care and puts considerable stress on existing staff. This is why the demand for temporary health workers increased by 12% in the last year. This illustrates just how severe the problem is.
Therefore, hospitals now require a faster and more efficient way to manage their workforce. That’s where a medical staffing VMS can be of assistance. A staffing VMS can help with finding, managing, and retaining the right workforce. This blog highlights five key staffing challenges and explains how a VMS can address them.
Why Do Hospitals Face Staffing Challenges?
Numerous factors contribute to staffing issues within hospitals. The primary reasons are the shortage of qualified staff and the growing number of patients. Many staff members leave their jobs due to high work pressure and burnout.
However, things become complicated during emergency cases or seasonal surges. Additionally, manual control of staff is time-consuming and expensive. That’s why healthcare facilities now use advanced healthcare staffing agency software. It allows the facilities to fill vacancies quickly.
5 Common Challenges in Healthcare That a Staffing VMS Can Solve
The healthcare industry is always under pressure to deliver the best patient care. They struggle to maintain a good staffing level. Therefore, healthcare facilities seek solutions to identify the right individuals for specific roles. It is possible with a trusted medical staffing VMS. They address major staffing problems and give quick solutions. How? Let’s know!
Difficulty Searching Specialised Talent
Locating qualified and high-skilled healthcare professionals is no simple task. Many positions in healthcare need candidates with specific training, licensure, and certification. Therefore, when you conduct manual searches, it requires time and personal effort.
However, a medical staffing VMS provides an opportunity to access a wide range of talented staff. You can filter by skill set, location, experience, and more, quickly finding suitable candidates. It can also maintain a database of pre-screened candidates for filling urgent openings, eliminating last-minute panic and stress.
Compliance and Credential Challenges
Compliance is key in the healthcare industry. Every member of the staff should have valid licenses and current certifications. It only takes one missing document to put a healthcare employer at risk of a potential violation. But a healthcare staffing VMS can track your staff’s credentials and permissions within minutes.
It even alerts users when a document (like a license or certification) is about to expire. A VMS does not require guesswork; it checks for compliance before off-boarding any staff member. There’s also no risk of manual data-entry errors. So, with it, a hospital can remain compliant, limit risk, and maintain trust with patients and regulators.
Seasonal Patient Volume
Flu season and any emergency events can peak patient numbers in hospitals. When this obvious change occurs, it’s difficult to plan how to treat patients equally. Due to short-staffing issues, care for the patient population declines.
However, a VMS enables you to manage your staffing levels effectively. It helps with forecasting demand and utilising staff efficiently. Then, you can schedule shifts, post shifts, and fill vacancies faster. Not only does the quality of care remain at a high level when demand increases, but it also offers flexibility without giving up staffing control.
Staff Burnout
In hospitals, overworked staff always experience burnout. It occurs due to long work hours and irregular shifts. However, a healthcare VMS technology can help alleviate this burden. It requires no staff input to offer scheduling options and preferences.
Managers can now shift workloads after checking everyone’s schedule. So, it helps track staff who have done overtime, which is an early indicator of burnout. As a result, the staff can avoid excessive workload. So, happy staff can deliver care for much longer periods.
High Turnover Rates
For healthcare providers, high turnover is an expensive issue. It takes time and money to hire a new provider and train them. Here, a VMS can provide better workforce retention by helping hospitals find more suitable candidates.
Additionally, it can utilise relevant data to identify the ideal workforce and develop tailored onboarding plans for personnel. So, it reduces delays in the hiring process and ensures fewer mistakes. With fewer hiring mistakes and more support, hospitals can reduce turnover.
Must-have Features of a Healthcare Staffing VMS
A healthcare staffing VMS must be designed for speed, accuracy, and usability to manage complex staffing needs effectively. The right features make the solution unique and faster.
User-friendly Interface
The system should be easy for both managers and staff to use. A simple layout reduces training time and improves daily productivity in healthcare.
Automation Feature
Automation helps with resume screening, credential checks, and shift reminders. It cuts down manual work and speeds up the entire hiring process.
Electronic Scheduling and Time Tracking
Staff can view schedules, track hours, and log time from anywhere. This ensures accuracy and avoids conflicts or payroll mistakes.
Vendor Neutral Model
The VMS must improve access to multiple staffing vendors who are treated with equity. This allows hospitals to access better sources of talent from diverse sources.
Cloud Technology
Cloud technology provides immediate access to data on any device at any time. It gives you confidence that the healthcare facility’s data storage is secure and updates can occur with no downtime.
Centralized Dashboard
It is an excellent feature, as it provides a comprehensive view of staffing needs, shifts, compliance, and vendors’ performance. With this, managers can make a quick, informed decision about hiring or scheduling staff.
Conclusion
Healthcare staffing can seem tough at first. But with the right healthcare staffing agency software, hospitals can overcome big staffing challenges. From hiring to compliance, everything becomes easier. Choose software with the right features to make all the difference.
So, are you ready to simplify staffing? Check out Vemsta—an all-in-one software solution for healthcare staffing. It is built for speed, accuracy, and a more intelligent hiring process.
FAQs
What is the most common staffing challenge hospitals face?
The most common staffing challenge is finding qualified and specialised staff on short notice. Healthcare-based roles often require specific certifications and relevant experience. Short staffing has a direct impact on patient care. It increases stress on the existing staff and increases the risk of burnout.
How to use a healthcare VMS in the best way?
First, automate as many routine tasks as possible with VMS. It includes staff scheduling, credential checking, and reminders to staff about shifts. Use built-in analytics and other features to make more informed staffing decisions. Additionally, always keep your system updated and spend time training users on its use.
What to Consider Before Choosing a Healthcare Staffing VMS?
Search for a system with an easy-to-use interface and automation. Additionally, consider the compliance tracking capability and integration with your existing systems. Give priority to solutions that are scalable for growth.
How does a healthcare staffing solution improve compliance in medical staffing?
A medical staffing software tracks every employee’s licensure and certification in real time. So, whenever you hire staff with it, you get the assurance that they are compliant with regulatory laws. So this way, it helps sustain your healthcare reputation.
Can medical staffing software manage travel nurses and locum tenens?
Yes. A modern VMS can help you find a variety of flexible workforce models, including travel nurses and locum tenens workers. It can also streamline onboarding and credentialing. This way, you can effectively manage shifts and meet staffing needs during periods of high demand.
Ref:
https://www.crosscountrysearch.com/blogs/5-common-staffing-challenges-hospitals-face
https://empowercare.us/blog/permanent-staffing-solutions-healthcare
https://go.beckershospitalreview.com/10-top-healthcare-staffing-challenges-and-how-to-solve-them