As the national nursing shortage continues to impact hospitals and facilities across the country, the need for reliable and affordable healthcare staffing solutions is increasing. Tennessee’s shortage is severe, and as a major metropolitan center in the state, Nashville’s hospitals and healthcare facilities are feeling the pressure.
Nursa is a healthcare staffing app that leverages technology to provide flexible PRN staffing solutions for Nashville’s facilities. Keep reading to learn how.
Examining Nashville’s Healthcare Staffing Challenges
So, how does the nurse staffing shortage impact Nashville? Tennessee has a growing population. However, the age groups experiencing the most growth are also the ones requiring the most healthcare.
Projections show that between 2021 and 2035, Tennessee’s elderly population will grow around 13 percent for adults between 65 and 74 and 54 percent for adults 75 and older. This growth significantly outpaces that of working adults, at four to five percent.
Accordingly, projections for the demand for registered nurses (RNs) show a 37 percent growth in post-acute (long-term care) settings and a 17 percent growth in acute hospital settings.
By the year 2035, the shortage of RNs will likely reach over 8,000, and the state’s heavy reliance on licensed practical nurses (LPNs) is expected to continue.
Additionally, healthcare education leaders report a “dwindling pipeline” as decreased interest in healthcare careers and advanced education pile onto other challenges for growing nursing program sizes.
While the cost of advanced education nursing programs may be one reason for decreased interest, other factors may be in play here, such as negative perceptions about the anticipated workload, stressful work environments, turnover, and well being of nurses.
How to Choose the Right Staffing Option for Your Facility
As Tennessee nursing leaders collaborate to create long-term solutions for the nursing shortage, healthcare staffing in Nashville, TN, requires solutions now. There are different options available to your facility. However, the question is how to choose the right one. Here are some tips to help you evaluate what’s best for your situation:
- Timeframe: How urgent is your staffing need? Is it an emergency staffing situation? Not all staffing options can fill shifts quickly.
- Skills: What types of clinicians do you need? RNs, LPNs, or certified nursing assistants? Do you need someone to fill in for specialty hospital nursing staff—which is more difficult to fill?
- Cost: What’s your operational budget for short-term staffing needs? Does it account for hire-away fees if you want to offer an internal staff position?
- Oversight: How involved can you be—or do you want to be—in the selection of the short-term staff who will work in your facility?
Staffing Options Available in Nashville
As a thriving metropolitan city, opportunity and options come hand in hand. Healthcare staffing options for local hospitals and facilities in Nashville, TN, include the following: Nurse staffing agencies, travel nurse staffing companies, and per diem staffing.
Nurse Staffing Agencies
Agencies enforce contract terms, relieving any potential worries about retention for the time period. However, that lack of flexibility also risks overstaffing if the patient census drops while the contract is in effect.
Agencies handle credential verification and vetting. However, they are also typically in charge of candidate selection, leaving the facility little recourse if it’s not a good match.
Contracts with agencies typically include hefty hire-away fees, making it difficult for a facility to afford to offer a short-term temporary clinician a permanent in-house position.
Travel Nurse Staffing Companies
Travel nurse staffing companies typically operate on enforced contracts of eight to 13 weeks. They can also often source specialized nurses. However, disadvantages with this option include the lack of flexibility for the duration of the contract and the costs associated. Travel nursing is notoriously expensive, making it financially unsustainable for many facilities.
Per Diem Staffing
Per diem staffing refers to PRN nurses or nursing assistants who work shifts only on an as-needed basis. This helps facilities avoid overcommitting and also serves as an excellent resource for staff call outs or for on-demand staffing.
Some hospitals maintain their own per diem staff roster, but there are also PRN staffing apsp that handle credential verification and sourcing.
Nursa’s App Connects Facilities with Local Clinicians
Nursa is an online PRN staffing platform that offers flexibility and access to a large talent pool of PRN nurses and nursing assistants in Nashville, TN. The platform’s per diem staffing model creates single-shift contracts. This allows facilities to adjust their staffing levels in real time alongside fluctuating patient census.
Furthermore, this arrangement is useful for internal staff recruitment. Facilities can “try out” nursing clinicians for a few shifts to observe how they work and collaborate. When a solid match is found, facilities can offer permanent employment without repercussions. Nursa does not charge any hire-away fees.
Other advantages of using Nursa include:
- Transparent facility pricing: There are no hidden fees, and facilities determine the pricing structure for PRN shifts.
- Eliminates overhead costs: By sourcing PRN clinicians with Nursa, your facility only pays the hourly shift rate, no employee benefits, payroll taxes, or overtime.
- Save time: Posting shifts is easy, and the platform handles credential verification, ensuring the candidates for your shifts are vetted and qualified.
- Responsive: The platform updates shift postings in real time and sends out notifications to local clinicians when an urgent need is posted.
- You decide: Local healthcare professionals will request your facility’s PRN shifts and you select your preferred candidate to work the shift. You can even create a favorite clinician list, which will give them preference and auto-scheduling.
- Strategic staffing: Acute facilities and post-acute facilities have different staffing needs. Our team will reach out and help you tailor a staffing strategy specific to your facility’s circumstances.
Sign Your Facility up on the App, Today
Nursa offers adaptable staffing solutions by connecting Nashville’s hospitals and healthcare facilities to local clinicians who are looking to pick up shifts. With no hidden fees, transparent pricing, flexible scheduling, and clinician access, it’s a helpful tool just waiting to be used. Sign your facility up today and start filling shift gaps with our healthcare staffing app.
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