In an era when cost seems to trump care, hospitals are challenged to find new ways to extract value from operations already burdened by the need to balance census levels, mandated value-based purchasing and reduced Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements. With labor typically as a hospital’s single largest cost, there is opportunity to unlock value through workforce strategies designed to address pressing needs for greater productivity, while supporting improved outcomes and patient satisfaction.
Beyond a growing reliance on supplemental staffing to keep up with varying demand, the healthcare industry as a whole is looking at ways to retool the workforce to address evolving needs. For example:
- Increasing the number of primary care practitioners, such as nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants
- Exploring acuity-based staffing models to better balance nurse-to-patient ratios
- Looking to academic institutions to offer more advanced degrees in nursing leadership
- Forming strategic alliances with third-party providers to leverage innovative tools and techniques to drive greater efficiencies
Initiatives like these are designed to enhance productivity, reduce costs and improve overall results in order to strengthen the ability of hospitals to thrive in the future. Three of the most promising solutions to achieving staffing productivity and savings include productivity benchmarking, web-based labor systems and innovative training programs designed to close skill and experience gaps.
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