During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, several provider organizations turned to so-called internal staffing agencies or float pools, through which workers are paid a premium to rotate to different facilities within the health system. The organizations using such strategies often do so when they aren’t able to bring on full-time employees. The practice allows them to shift individuals—usually nurses—to the areas of highest need, without having to pay a third party. While use of external contract labor remains above pre-pandemic levels, the number of filled travel nurse positions and the rates paid to staffing agencies both declined by about 25% over the course of 2022, said Erik Swanson, senior vice president of data analytics at Kaufman Hall, a healthcare consulting company.
Read the full article: Health Systems Weigh Future of Internal Staffing Agencies //
Source: https://www.modernhealthcare.com/labor/hospital-float-pools-contract-labor-internal-staffing-agencies