ShiftMed Knowledge Center

The healthcare industry is facing a severe nursing shortage, and the impact of this crisis is being felt across the board. The shortage affects health systems in many ways, but one of the most significant impacts is operating budgets. As health systems struggle to maintain staffing levels, they rely on expensive agency contracts and travel nurses, contributing to budget instability. At the same time, labor costs continue to rise, making it challenging to maintain a balanced budget. 

In today's digital age, health systems are inundated with an overwhelming amount of healthcare software and technology platforms that are critical for managing patient care and employee retention. However, this excess of healthcare software leads to major interoperability challenges, ultimately impacting patient outcomes and staff satisfaction. 

Population health management is a proactive approach to healthcare that focuses on improving the health outcomes of entire patient populations. It involves collecting, analyzing, and managing patient data to identify health disparities, healthcare access, and healthcare costs. With technology and value-based care, healthcare providers can deliver patient-centered care emphasizing prevention, early intervention, and patient engagement. 

Latent workforce opportunities in healthcare refer to untapped pools of internal and external labor that can help solve staffing challenges. With the ongoing healthcare staffing crisis, exploring these opportunities is critical to ensure high-quality patient care while reducing labor costs. One innovative solution to accessing internal and external labor is ShiftMed's gap shift management technology platform, which empowers healthcare systems and facilities to seamlessly manage their internal labor pools and tap into a W-2 on-demand marketplace of over 350,000 credentialed nurses. 

There is a shift taking place in nursing and healthcare in the United States. The pandemic exposed a workforce staffing crisis that has been brewing for decades. On its current trajectory, it’s expected to get worse in the coming years because pay isn’t keeping up with the cost of living, healthcare workers are being asked to do more with fewer resources, and there aren’t incentives for nurses to enter the workforce. 

Hiring quality, reliable healthcare professionals is tougher than ever. You've got nurses retiring, overworked nurses leaving the profession, and bottlenecks in nursing education. It's become a costly dog-eat-dog situation for healthcare providers trying to attract and retain top talent.