Workforce Shortages

Significant workforce shortages at facilities, such as those in post-acute and behavioral health, is making it more difficult for hospitals to efficiently and appropriately discharge patients. Hospitals have to bear the costs of caring for patients for those excess days without any reimbursement.
Health care organizations experiment and pilot changes that can help support their current workforce in providing needed care in their communities.
In April, leaders at Sanford Health, a rural system in Fargo, North Dakota, began rolling out an augmented intelligence software tool the organization co-developed with the tech firm Flexwise Health to begin scheduling its 10,000-plus nurses more effectively.
Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., yesterday introduced AHA-supported legislation that would direct the Government Accountability Office to study the travel nursing industry’s business and payment practices, including their impact on workforce shortages and potential price gouging during the COVID-19…
Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., today introduced AHA-supported legislation that would direct the Government Accountability Office to study the travel nursing industry’s business and payment practices.
The median labor expense per discharge has increased by more than one-third since 2019, with the median wage rate for contract nurses over three times higher than for employed nurses.
NHSC-approved sites can recruit and retain qualified providers through NHSC scholarship and loan repayment programs.
Hospital employment remains over 90,000 below its March 2020 peak, but has grown in 16 of the past 25 months for a slow but steady job recovery.
The COVID-19 pandemic has put extreme stress on the health care workforce in the United States, HHS reports.