HWL Insights

One of the most significant challenges that hospitals have faced for years is the shortage of skilled workers. This, in turn, has made recruiting extremely competitive — if hospitals are all vying for the same candidates in the same labor pool, whoever offers the most will win. So, it's no wonder the industry average time to fill positions is 49 days.

Tracy Kettler is a highly accomplished professional with extensive experience in healthcare workforce solutions, operations and strategic business relationships. As the Vice President, Account Management at Nomad Health, she successfully led the expansion of the account management team, developed training programs, and improved supplier rankings. Tracy's career highlights include leadership roles at AMN Healthcare and RightSourcing Inc., where she managed large client portfolios and implemented successful programs. With a degree and progressive experience, Tracy has been recognized by leadership, peers, and clients for her deep understanding of workforce solutions in healthcare. Her expertise spans all facets of implementation, client services and delivery for many industry-leading healthcare systems.

Managed service providers (MSP) have quickly become a mainstay in the U.S. healthcare space, with around 71% of all healthcare organizations utilizing them in some capacity. The benefits that an MSP provides have proven numerous, ranging from streamlining talent acquisition to decreasing procurement costs and beyond.

Lee Health is among the most extensive not-for-profit public health systems in the United States, with over 950 primary and specialty care physicians and advanced practitioners serving patients across Southwest Florida in more than 100 practice locations.

HWL is proud to announce Reed Parsons as the Senior Director of Sales Enablement, the latest team member to join our organization. Reed brings a wealth of experience and strategic leadership to his role, marked by a remarkable career in the dynamic field of sales and enablement. Throughout his journey, Reed has consistently made impactful contributions, showcasing his ability to drive organizational success through innovative approaches and meticulous execution.

HWL Works is a holistic approach to healthcare staffing management that considers  all of your business's goals, pain points, and everything in between. From a state-of-the-art vendor management system (VMS) platform, managed service program (MSP), and locums management services to helping you create an internal agency and source talent directly, our suite of workforce solutions helps you attain organizational imperatives.

The healthcare industry's staffing woes have been ongoing for decades, despite being exacerbated over the past few years. In 2017, the majority of the nursing workforce was at retirement age, with similar trends observed among physicians. Coupled with burnout and increased strain that became all too common during the pandemic, organizations big and small started to shift their hiring practices. More emphasis was put on contingent labor, which, while convenient, tends to be more expensive.

It is our absolute pleasure to introduce you to our newest team member, Melissa Evans, who joins us as the newest Vice President of Business Development. With an impressive track record in the industry and a wealth of experience, Melissa brings a fresh perspective and boundless enthusiasm to our team.

For better or worse, the world of locum tenens staffing is changing more rapidly than ever before.  

Utilizing multiple locum agencies with individual contacts for each specialty can easily become overwhelming and impossible to manage. Due in part to a lack of advancement and modernization in locum tenens staffing over the last decade, many organizations are now seeking new ways to streamline the process. 

The Situation

Banner Health, regarded and recognized as a top health system in the country for the clinical quality consistently provided to patients in its hospitals, is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. The non-profit health system operates 30 hospitals, including three academic medical centers and other related health entities and services in six states. With over 52,000 employees and 5,000 providers, Banner Health is Arizona's largest private health system and the third largest employer in the Northern Colorado front-range area. 

It is with immense pride and enthusiasm that we extend a heartfelt welcome to Tamara Miller, the latest addition to our HWL team as Vice President. With a career adorned with outstanding achievements and a profound dedication to the healthcare industry, her proven prowess in strategic solutions and business development is showcased through her role as Director of Strategic Solutions at Kirby Bates Associates, Orlando, where she orchestrated client-centered approaches, fostering growth and innovation. Previously, as Regional Sales Manager at Morgan Hunter Healthcare, Kansas City, Tamara displayed exceptional acumen in nurturing client relationships across six states, with a distinct focus on resolving EHR-based challenges.

It's no secret that the healthcare industry experienced unforeseen challenges that have driven innovation and adaptation in order to survive. Medical facilities have altered procedures and created new policies in order to accommodate massive influxes of patients and improve patient outcomes — but it certainly hasn't been easy, and there are still some common pain points that many organizations still deal with.

The world of locum tenens is changing at a pace that most, if not all of us, probably have not seen in our careers. We are seeing many statements or surveys that show that upwards of 40-50%+ of all physicians and providers are doing or open to locums/moonlighting work, 30-40%+ are moving to a locums lifestyle for a work life balance or to supplement their income, and that certain specialties are seeing spikes in utilization so are creating crisis level coverage issues driving department/unit closures or diversion of services.

The past few years have taught healthcare organizations to expect the unexpected. While this is certainly easier said than done, one of the most effective ways to prepare for unseen threats is to develop a strategic plan that covers how to implement and manage a rapid response/surge staffing program. 

Since the Coronavirus Pandemic, many healthcare organizations have turned to utilizing contingent staff to fill gaps wherever necessary. Despite the decrease in virus cases, it appears that contingent workers — particularly in nursing — are here to stay in the post-COVID era.

One of the more significant rippling effects of the coronavirus pandemic, even in the post-COVID era, has been a greater focus on employee retention. Within that scope, there has been greater emphasis placed on attracting quality talent and ensuring all workers feel fulfilled to complete their jobs successfully.

Even pre-pandemic, the healthcare industry as a whole had staffing shortages. But the past few years have exacerbated such pre-existing issues, often to the point where organizations of all sizes began pivoting and re-examining their hiring and employee retention practices. This has been particularly true when hiring nurses.

HWL is thrilled to welcome Tommy Binner to our team as the Vice President of Business Development, with a special focus on Locum Tenens. Tommy joins HWL with several years’ experience in the healthcare field, as well as the technology field.

The past few years have dramatically changed the way we think about work. Whether it's the rise of the gig economy or the ubiquity of remote work, nearly every industry has been impacted by the ever-evolving labor landscape; and the healthcare industry is no exception.

In the past decades, the healthcare industry as a whole has seen unprecedented labor shortages, which were greatly exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. With record rates of burnout, the Great Resignation, and other factors seemingly outside of the industry's control, healthcare facilities have turned toward locum tenens to fill the gaps.