Locum tenens healthcare providers can be lifesavers for organizations who need additional providers, even though they come with a higher price tag than fully employed providers. Given an aging population and an aging physician workforce, the need for Locums is expected to continue to climb.
According to a recent survey conducted by Staff Care, use of Locum Tenens specialists has accelerated in the last few years, determining that “21% of healthcare facilities reported using Locum Tenens surgeons in 2019, up from 11% in 2016. And overall, 85% of hospitals, medical groups and other healthcare facilities used locum tenens doctors in 2019.” With the large number of healthcare organizations using Locums, and the many disparate departments within any given organization using Locums, managing high Locum spend has become a high priority for CFO’s.
Unfortunately, many organizations have no insight into how many Locum vendors the individual facilities and various departments are using. Add to that the fact that too often, one vendor will have many different contracts with varying terms and rates - even within the same department.
It’s impossible to get a handle on a problem you can’t define.
Too often a single facility will have multiple contracts with the same vendor, and with varying rates. A Market Rate Analysis is the process that studies all rates being paid for the same service in a given area and determining a competitive range of rates that are high enough to be competitive and get orders filled without overpaying when the supply is sufficient. This critical component to managing Locum spend should be conducted to ensure rates are competitive and suppliers are committed to providing healthcare providers at the negotiated rate structures. Agency providers are not likely to volunteer to reduce rates when organizations are overpaying. Periodically conducting market analysis is the best way to force transparency and identify successful rates for the market and realize potential cost savings.
CFOs can begin to take control of Locum spend by engaging with a vendor-neutral vendor management system (VMS) technology. A vendor-neutral VMS will give organizational leadership a clear view of where and how often each department is using temporary help. A robust VMS helps leadership teams to swiftly translate utilization data into action—resulting in reduced cost per Locum and provide insights to focus efforts and prioritize the hiring of qualified permanent staff.
Regulating Locum availability and balancing the need for standardized rates and contract terms is delicate; however, vendor-neutral workforce solutions provide a unique opportunity for significant financial savings through increasing the pool of vendors with both rate standardization and process centralization.
Hospital CFOs face many challenges in regard to managing Locum spend. From a lack of consistent process for sourcing, onboarding, and paying Locums - to the lack of visibility into Locum usage and spend, the process of identifying and selecting a solution can be complex. This is where a managed workforce solutions company with a proven track record and a powerful VMS can save you time and money. Here’s how:
For more information on the many benefits of hiring a Locum read, ‘How Do Healthcare Provider Organizations Benefit from Locum Tenens?’
Through a combination of proprietary next-generation technology and customizable MSP services, HWL delivers a vendor-neutral Total Talent Acquisition solution that lowers overall labor costs while reducing administrative burden.
From the credentialing team to hospital leadership, everyone benefits from the HWL solution. Even patients, though they may not know it, are receiving better care from higher quality temporary providers and floor managers with more time to dedicate to patient care.
For more information about Locum management or to request our services contact us.