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Banner Health Case Study: Empowering Locums and Fostering Innovation with a Flexible Platform

 

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. 

Banner Health, before 2020, manually managed its medical recruitment across six states. As the number of Banner facilities grew, the requisitions for locum tenens did as well. This required significant time from the Human Resources and Recruitment staff, who were tasked with manually processing their requisitions, tracking, and spend through spreadsheets and email requests, all requiring timely data input on the recruitment side. Banner needed the ability to manage and streamline the processes they had created, and the platform supporting Banner’s permanent staff management at the time could not support the Locums management. Banner began to search for an alternative to this process that would save time and organize the Locums program processes while offering permanent provider management, all in one place.  

 

At the time, Banner Health had a relationship with Jackson Physician Search, a Jackson Healthcare company, for their permanent providers. Banner discovered that HWL, another Jackson Healthcare company, had customizable management software. After meeting with Jonathan Ward, HWL President, and Karen Little, Vice President of Locums Account Services, Banner decided that HWL’s technology platform and its features proved to be the best solution for Banner. Early on, HWL committed to learning and delivering solutions to the health system’s needs, including Locums management, access to invoicing, and real-time reporting, all under one management system. Karen Height, Senior Director for Physician & Provider Recruitment, explained, “Our Locums program required a centralized process to gain organization and clarity into our Locums usage.  Our goal was also to have the ability to generate detailed reports to not only monitor usage and spending but also ensure that any changes in our processes were being tracked and measured. HWL provided a customizable approach to Locums management, which has evolved over the last few years to meet our needs.  The team has a wealth of experience and a dedicated team committed to supporting Banner’s Locums Team.”

 

 

The Solution

 

Customizing a platform for Banner meant that HWL had to determine how to personalize the locum's terminology within the VMS to align with Banner’s internal Locums terminology. Banner also had strict policies and procedures for vendors in the VMS that HWL was required to implement and manage. Lastly, Banner required a reporting system that would track Locums spend across the health system without any previous blueprint for a reporting system in place. HWL and Banner needed to collaborate on how to develop the best system to streamline and manage Banner's Locums program with an automated, centralized platform that provides visibility into usage and spend through real-time reporting. 

 

Upon meeting with representatives from Banner Health in 2020, HWL completed a thorough assessment of the existing Locums processes and software used to procure and track Locums providers. Together HWL and Banner met regularly to discuss the health system’s unique needs and how HWL’s platform could be adapted to meet them. HWL customized the platform to reflect Banner’s recruitment language to allow for more efficient processes to be built within the platform for posting requisitions, tracking provider needs by facility or specialty, onboarding, invoicing, and communicating with vendors.

 

Results

 

HWL and the Banner team have met regularly to review processes and potential enhancements supporting locum tenens management's evolving nature. HWL offers dedicated support for Banner through its own Account Manager, Wilma Guieb, who works alongside Banner to provide continual process improvement and customize its services to meet the health system’s needs.  Wilma Guieb, HWL Account Manager, described the collaboration between Banner and HWL, "At the start of our partnership with Banner Health, we had a general idea of how to develop the Locums program. Throughout the process, HWL and Banner Health have transitioned into a trusted consultative partnership to optimize the Locums space within Banner. I have enjoyed supporting Banner with its MSP and Locums needs.”

 

What was once a lot of back and forth between multiple vendors and representatives became a centralized portal through which requisitions could be posted while limiting the back and forth with vendors and maintaining strict quality standards. Banner now has detailed, real-time reporting at its fingertips, providing insight into locum usage and visibility across the health system on the true costs of hiring locum providers. The Director of Recruitment & Providers and recruitment staff can assess workload, narrow requests by region/frequency, and work with senior leadership to determine spend, eliminating the need for outdated manual management and tracking.  

 

HWL successfully developed a personalized platform for Banner Health that greatly enhanced Banner’s locum process. With HWL's impressive flexibility and ability to generate tailored reporting capabilities, Banner has gained valuable insights into their Locums spending and specific facility requirements. With this information, Banner can confidently communicate a clear narrative supporting their locum endeavors and drive innovation in their program. 

 

Let us transform how you manage your workforce through cutting-edge technology and a dedicated team of experts. To learn more about how HWL can streamline and support your Locums needs, contact an HWL representative for more information today!

August 31, 2023/By Trevor Strauss, FACHE
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Author: Trevor Strauss, FACHE

Trevor Strauss serves as a Vice President for HWL and has been designing new solutions and driving go to market strategy within healthcare workforce and human capital delivery for organizations since 2008. His expertise comes from having lead deal teams from inception through implementation across the entire labor continuum from search to enterprise-wide workforce and technology solutions. His passion is helping organizations reposition themselves to create the future they desire to meet their operational and financial goals, while ensuring patient care delivery. He received his BS from Lock Haven University, MBA from East Carolina University, and is Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. He is based out of Atlanta, GA and can be reached at tstrauss@hwlworks.com or 770-298-0122.
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