From surgery centers to long-term care facilities, Medely has partnered with facilities across the healthcare spectrum to provide flexible access to qualified nurses and health professionals at a moment’s notice. As we expand, we’re excited to strengthen our partnerships with behavioral health facilities nationwide as we work to provide a flexible solution for behavioral health staffing shortages.
A growing crisis: behavioral health staffing shortages
The United States is facing a mental health crisis. According to a survey from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, “Among adults aged 18 or older in 2022, 23.1 percent (or 59.3 million people) had AMI [any mental illness] in the past year.”
Furthermore, “19.4 percent of people aged 12 or older in 2022 (or 54.6 million people) needed substance use treatment in the past year, but of that population, “about 1 in 4 (24.0 percent or 13.1 million people) received substance use treatment in the past year.”
Mental health and substance abuse care have many barriers to entry, but one of the biggest is a lack of access to care and a growing shortage of behavioral health professionals. Behavioral health is facing a growing epidemic of staffing shortages that are getting worse as time goes on. According to the Bureau of Health Workforce, by 2037, there will be a combined shortage of over 400,000 behavioral health professionals across the top mental health positions based on the growing demand.
These shortages not only prevent patients from getting care, but they’re also continuing to burn out behavioral healthcare workers, leaving more potential for future turnover. According to The National Council for Mental Wellbeing, “Nearly half (48%) of behavioral health workers say the impacts of workforce shortages have caused them to consider other employment options.”
Medely works to challenge growing behavioral health staffing shortages
As Medely works to tackle the increasing staffing shortages, we’ve committed to being a hands-on partner with behavioral health facilities across the country. Medely supports flexibly-staffed facilities, allowing the best experience for those seeking care. One of these clients is Virtue Recovery Center in Arizona.
Devon Williams, director of nursing at Virtue Recovery Center, wasn’t new to Medely when she started at Virtue Recovery Center. “I used Medely at a different facility, and it was so easy to use,” Devon shared. “I could offer shifts to my favorites before anyone else. Honestly, the nurses were higher quality as well.”
When she transitioned to her role at Virtue Recovery Center, they were trying out a local agency that wasn’t providing Devon with the reliable, consistent coverage she needed to run her facility smoothly. After a few disappointing experiences, she chose to switch to Medely, a solution she trusted from past positive experiences.
Virtue Recovery Center’s partnership with Medely
Devon was immediately set up with senior account executive, Taylor Kampa, to help her work through any problems or concerns while setting up a new account with Medely through her current facility. Ensuring coverage is important for any facility, but for behavioral health facilities, there’s an added urgency to filling staffing gaps. From the very beginning, Taylor was alongside Devon to ensure that she had all the information she needed. “She has been very responsive and gets back to me quickly,” Devon shared. “That is so important to me. I don’t have a lot of time to spare, so it really is helpful.”
Knowing the critical nature of getting shifts filled quickly, Taylor set Devon up for success by walking her through the entire onboarding process, including ensuring that the shifts could be targeted to pros with certain experience. “We helped them set up a strong job post template so pros know the kind of detox experience they’re walking into,” Taylor shared. “It’s helped a lot with setting expectations upfront.” Ensuring pros have the right experience up front has helped Devon find quality nurses and health professionals who fit seamlessly into her facility. “I have had core staff tell me that certain nurses were really good, and with other companies, I did not have them saying that often,” Devon shared.
As a drug and alcohol rehab center, having continuity of care is crucial to the success of their patients. To allow for continuous care, Devon has utilized Medely’s Favorites Feature to find standout nurses and health professionals who can integrate seamlessly with little direction. “For the most part, they have been great. Several, I wish I could hire full-time,” Devon shared. “We love Winnie. She is wonderful, and I trust she will show if she picks up the shift.”
Outcomes with Medely
With a strong list of trusted nurses and health professionals who use Medely, Devon has been able to utilize favorites about half the time, cutting down on extra time spent orienting nurses and health professionals. Thanks to the easy-to-use templates for posting, when she goes to post a shift, it takes her under a minute, which is critical for a busy DON who doesn’t have a lot of extra time.
“I like the quality of the nurses, [the platform] is user-friendly, and typically all shifts are picked up pretty quickly.”
On average, shifts at Virtue Recovery Center are filled within 13 minutes, and the facility has reached a 98% fill rate. The consistency and reliability Devon has found with Medely has alleviated some of the administrative burden she was facing and allowed her more control over her staffing options.
Ready to find reliable coverage for your behavioral health facility? Create your free profile here!
