For years, the easiest solution to filling staffing gaps was through a mix of full-time employees, hired per diem staff, or agencies. While these solutions allowed for staffing gaps to be filled, they lacked efficiency. They created more problems for facilities, such as overworked full-time staff, costly agency fees, and required hours regardless of whether or not there was a need.
In today’s healthcare space, it’s more important than ever to make sure that facilities have the optimal staff they need to provide quality patient care. This means that more efficient, expansive workforce models are critical for ensuring the most cost-effective, flexible coverage to adapt to any staffing demands.
Overreliance on full-time staff is costing money
Asking full-time staff to pick up extra shifts or fill any gaps has been a consistent strategy for most healthcare facilities. Full-time staff have a solid understanding of how the facility runs already, have good rapport with co-workers, and are easy to get in touch with when a need opens up.
However, reliance on full-time staff to meet staffing needs isn’t as efficient as it might seem. When administrators rely on full-time staff as their primary way to fill gaps in coverage, this can contribute to burnout. When burnout is left unaddressed, the likelihood of turnover increases. According to a survey Medely conducted in April 2025, 58.4% of respondents cited that they had felt burnout within the past year, and of that group, almost 26.5% shared that their burnout levels had increased over the past year.
Of the top reasons for burnout, 50.2% cited long hours as one of the top reasons for burnout. With 12-hour shifts a few days a week, a large portion of their week is already dedicated to working. Asking them to contribute more is the perfect recipe for overworked health professionals who are going to search for shorter hours elsewhere or even leave healthcare entirely. As it becomes increasingly challenging to reduce rates of burnout, it’s now critical that facilities take measures to provide adequate breaks for their employees in between shifts.
Internal pools lack flexibility
Another common option is an internal pool of per diem staff who have more flexible hours. But the downside to an internal pool is that there are still typically requirements for how many shifts they need per month. While it can be a good option for filling shifts, there’s still a level of commitment to providing them a set number of hours, even if the demand isn’t there. When facilities are held to rigid structures for how they can staff, it doesn’t allow for the true flexibility that’s necessary based on fluctuations.
In a modern workforce, having options such as an internal pool or asking full-time staff to cover shifts is necessary, but facilities need to extend their workforce outside only their facility. When facilities only rely on their current staff, this sets their current staff up for burnout, which leads to high budget costs, unhappy staff, and a higher risk of negative patient outcomes.
A modern approach to staffing
The future of efficient staffing is utilizing an extended workforce through tech-based solutions like Medely. This allows facilities the option to book nurses and health professionals when they need them with no prior commitment. No insurance premiums, no required hours, no obligations. Simply book a nurse or health professional when the need arises. While agencies have a similar service, they don’t allow for direct contact between the facility and the healthcare worker, which has led to inefficiencies, delays in getting shifts filled, and costly retainer fees.
Technology-based solutions like Medely have bridged the gap between healthcare workers and facilities, allowing a direct channel to book top talent through our on-demand solution. No more manually calling agencies and going back and forth, trying to get someone booked. When a need arises, facilities can post a shift to the platform within minutes, and it’ll be sent out to all relevant nurses and health professionals in the area. Facilities can use Medely for one shift a month or one shift a day. With no retainer fees, all they have to do is simply pay nurses and health professionals for the time that they worked.
Consistent extended workforce through Favorites Feature
Most facilities turn to their internal employees first because of the familiarity that they have with the facility and the ease of not having to orient or train them. With Medely, facilities still have the opportunity to create a consistent pool of healthcare workers.
Medely’s Favorites Feature offers facilities the flexibility of an extended workforce with the trust of an internal float pool. After a nurse or health professional picks up a Medely shift at a facility, administrators can choose to add them to a favorites list so that next time a shift need arises, they can call back the nurse or health professional first. This allows administrators to build up rapport with top talent, ensure that full-time staff and per diem staff get along well, and reduce time spent orienting someone new to the facility.
One of Medely’s customers, Luminis Health Doctors Community Medical Center, has utilized Medely’s Favorites Feature to build up a list of 20-30 nurses and health professionals in their extended workforce who consistently pick up shifts at the facility. Through Medely, they’ve seen consistency in their patient outcomes, lowered money spent on contingent labor, and a solid relationship between full-time and per diem staff. “People, in an expeditious way, orient to the department so that we can get them in and get them working,” Crystal Beckford, CNO and VP of patient care, shared. “I am finding them very professional. I’m finding them clinically astute. I am finding them customer service-oriented. We’re very satisfied with our partnership.”
Ready to upgrade your staffing strategy to reduce turnover and lower extra spend? Start your free profile with Medely today!
