Contract labor is a fact of life for many hospital systems, especially as the Affordable Care Act transcends among us, and bed count rises exponentially. Using a managed service provider is one of the many ways acute care facilities and hospital systems are managing appropriate staffing levels.
If you read my previous blog, "Two Little Curse Words," then you realize that finding a partner to help manage your float pool and contract labor does not need to be as hard as some hospitals make it out to be. Quite frankly, it can be very simlair to the dating game and finding a potential spouse.After working with many different MSPs and implementing many hospital systems over the last few years, here is some valuable advice I’d like to pass along to locate the right MSP partner.
Have specific measurable goals communicated during the research and discussion phase of the sales cycle. Then ask the MSP how they plan to reach those goals for you.
Fill Rate
Staff Quality
Total Labor Cost Reduction
It is important, especially for hospitals in certain parts of the country, to have your FTE’s embrace the contingent labor pool because this can be the driving force for high cancellation rates.
Holds the same values as your hospital system.
Has a strategic culture alignment with cultural standards for the staff they are providing.
Evaluates and reevaluates those values and cultures before placement.
Has a history of providing great staff and plans a long partnership with you to manage that staff.
In summary, whether you are partnering with a vendor or you are the vendor finding the right partner is key, just like in a marriage. In fact, BlueSky does the same thing when entering a partnership with staffing agencies that provide MSP services. We focus on having clients who provide excellent nurses and hold their vendors to the same level of quality.
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