AMN Healthcare staffing matters

Safety and Savings: The Value of More Staff Time with Patients

January 31, 2012 - We’ve all heard the expression that “Time is money.” This rings true in industry and in healthcare in regards to the importance of overall efficiency. But a clinician’s time with patients can mean more than that--it can literally mean the difference between life and death, or between a good outcome and a bad one.

Staff Care Selects Keith Morrow, DOS, 2011 Country Doctor of the Year

January 9, 2012 - When an E-F5 tornado devastated the town of Hackleburg, Ala., including both his medical offices, Dr. Keith Morrow, DOS, continued to do what he has done for over 25 years--treat patients and serve as a pillar of his community.

New Survey Finds Medical Residents Have ‘Buyer’s Remorse’

October 25, 2011 - For medical residents about to complete their training, it appears that now is both the best of times and the worst of times to be entering the job market.

Do You Know the Country Doctor of the Year?

October 4, 2011 - Do you know a great country doctor? The kind of physician who still makes house calls and accepts the occasional apple pie or roast turkey for a fee?

ACOs: It’s All About the Doctor

September 14, 2011 - In the months since CMS released its proposed accountable care organization (ACO) regulations, a growing chorus of policy makers, health association leaders and others have shared their views on why ACOs won’t work – or at least why they will be problematic as currently conceived.

The CFO’s Role in Evaluating Managed Services Programs

August 4, 2011 - A financial manager’s job is not just about crunching the numbers anymore. Healthcare labor constitutes such a large portion of a facility’s annual expense budget—usually around half of the total—that hospital CFOs and other budget-conscious leaders are making sure they are part of the advisory team when it comes to developing workforce plans and signing contract labor agreements.

New Physician Recruiting Incentive Survey Shows National Market Shift

July 13, 2011 - Every year for the last 18 years Merritt Hawkins has released its Review of Physician Recruiting Incentives, a document which tracks nationwide trends in physician recruiting.

EMRs and the Transformation to Patient-Centered Care

May 11, 2011 - Over the past few years, technology has changed healthcare delivery in ways that even healthcare leaders could not have envisioned. Just a decade ago, for instance, how many of us would have thought that mobile phones and other handheld devices would have so many clinical applications? Or that telemedicine would provide a viable solution to expanding access to care?

What Hospitals Can Learn About RN Satisfaction and Burnout from Travel Nurses

April 13, 2011 - Sometimes people in an organization can perceive things in a way that is colored by their internal culture or experiences, and not see all of the forces that impact their employees. Gaining a new perspective from a visitor can often help unearth some truths that may not be so self-evident, and help them make changes for the better. Thus is the case with travel nurses. A new study suggests that hospitals can learn a lot about nurse job satisfaction, burnout and retention from these temporary employees.

Workforce Solutions at the Heart of Hospital Efficiency Programs

March 23, 2011 - While the latest high-tech medical equipment and electronic recordkeeping systems have gone a long way toward increasing hospital efficiency, the human side of healthcare continues to hold the most potential for improvement. That’s because healthcare is still a hands-on, labor-intensive industry, with an estimated 60 to 75 percent of hospital expenses going toward labor.

Hospitals and Candidates Find Ways to Connect Through Social Media

February 10, 2011 - Whether you see it as an evolution or a revolution, social media is changing the way job seekers network and look for jobs.

New Report: How Health Reform Will Reshape the Way Physicians Practice

January 19, 2011 - Health reform will usher in a new era of medicine in which physicians will largely cease to operate as full-time, independent, private practitioners accepting third party payments. Instead, they will work as employees, as part-timers, as administrators, in cash-only “concierge” practices, or they will walk away from medicine altogether.

AMN Acquires Medfinders: Building for the Future of the Healthcare Workforce

September 14, 2010 - AMN Healthcare has reached another milestone in our history as we welcome Medfinders to the AMN family. The acquisition, completed on September 1, 2010, expanded our service capabilities for healthcare providers across the country and strengthened our position as the nation’s largest provider of comprehensive healthcare staffing and workforce solutions. We are now celebrating the union of these two very strong and successful organizations.

Healthcare’s Wild Ride: How Locum Tenens Can See You Through

June 16, 2010 - No one knows exactly what healthcare reform will look like when it gets to the level of individual sites of care; we do know that pressure is building on many fronts and that life, as we know it, is going to change. Already faced with a short supply of qualified clinicians, healthcare employers are anticipating a bit of a rollercoaster ride in the coming months.

By the Numbers: New Aiken Study Highlights Benefits of California’s Nurse-to-Patient Ratios

May 5, 2010 - What if there were a way to lower your hospital’s mortality rate by as much as 14 percent while improving job satisfaction and retention rates among your largest group of employees? There is, according to new research, and it doesn’t involve investing in new technology, revamping facilities or hiring outside consultants.

New Publications Reflect Physicians’ Insider Views and Revenue Information

March 24, 2010 - What do physicians really think about medical practice in the United States? And how much revenue are they generating on behalf of their affiliated hospitals? These are just two of the questions that we set out to answer recently on behalf of hospitals and other constituents in the field of healthcare.

New Survey Offers Snapshot of Nurses’ Job Satisfaction and Career Plans

Many feel that a career in nursing is a calling. Others see it as a great employment opportunity. However you define it, most would agree that a nurse’s job isn’t easy. Despite managers’ best efforts, these caregivers deal with large patient loads, physical demands, emotional stress, technical learning curves and bureaucratic challenges.

7 Things That Will Change How You Deliver Healthcare in 2010

Jan. 20, 2010 - Every January signals a new beginning. This particular January, as we begin a new decade, healthcare providers are about to experience some major changes, and the coming year will be shaped by a number of outside forces. But will these forces overwhelm you, or will you be ready with new staffing plans that can weather the storm?

Hospital CEOs Report on Staffing Shortages and Recruitment Trends

Dec. 2, 2009 - Everyone seems to be talking about changes in health care these days, from casual observers to the highest government officials. Some of the most compelling evidence about current trends, however, may come from the chief executive officers of our nation's hospitals. CEOs have a unique, first-hand perspective on the challenges of providing quality patient care in an era of staffing shortages, economic recession and impending health care reform.

7 Ways that Nurse Staffing Impacts Profitability

Because quality is increasingly linked to a hospital’s financial health, adverse outcomes related to inadequate staffing will have a growing impact on a hospital’s bottom line. The most direct example of the quality–finance link can be seen in the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) 2008 Inpatient Prospective Payment System rules, which state that hospitals will no longer be reimbursed for any patient care needed as a result of a hospital-acquired condition, such as certain mistakes called “never events.”

Physician Shortage a Growing Concern In Emergency Medicine

Patients in the United States visit a physician approximately one billion times a year, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Of these visits, some 120 million, or 12 percent, take place at hospital emergency rooms. Yet only 4 percent of the nation’s physicians are emergency medicine specialists.

Safety in Staffing: Improving Patient Care and Nurse Satisfaction

In their quest to recruit nurses, healthcare facilities highlight features such as shared governance, reduced overtime and increased efficiencies. Yet there is one area that perhaps should be more heavily promoted in the recruitment efforts: safe staffing levels.

False Hope for an End to the Nursing Shortage

A sense of relief has seemed to prevail in many hospitals during the past few months. After struggling with extremely difficult recruitment and turnover of registered nurses in recent years, the recession has seemingly eliminated the most serious nursing shortage the U.S. has ever experienced. Literally thousands of nurses have returned to the nursing workforce, increased the number of hours they work or delayed retirement. This behavior has led to reduced vacancy rates in hospital staff nurse positions across the country. This reprieve from the shortage, however, will be short-lived.

California to Mandate Doctor Appointment Wait Times

According to a recent article in The Sacramento Bee, California will soon become the first state to impose timely access rules on HMOs and other healthcare providers.

Guidelines for Staff during the Flu Scare

For the past week, the media has been filled with stories about the swine flu epidemic. While speculation abounds, patients are becoming fearful and your staff may be facing an increase in case loads. During this time, it’s important that your staff know the facts about the swine flu so they can better care for their patients and prevent the possible spread of infection.

Building a Stronger Workforce: The Importance of Studying Nursing Job Satisfaction

Historically speaking, nursing shortages come and go. The current nursing shortage, however, is not projected to end anytime in the next two decades. Rather, it is predicted to become the most severe shortage ever. Given a sustained and critical shortage of nurses, it has become practical and even necessary to learn more about what motivates nurses. Why do nurses choose the career, how happy they are in their jobs and, maybe even more importantly, what causes them to be dissatisfied and leave their jobs and/or the profession altogether?

Funding the Future: Expanding Nursing School Access

Friends—or friends of friends—often ask for advice on how best to pursue a nursing career. In many cases, they are seeking direction on educational choices. It was recently that I spoke to a person who aspires to become a nurse and wanted my suggestions on being accepted into a nursing program.

A Case for Using Travelers: Unpredictable or Uncertain Census

Across the country I am hearing reports of hospitals experiencing census that is lower than expected. Even in the midst of flu season, which normally brings census to its peak, hospitals are finding themselves with fewer patients, lower nursing vacancies and lower turnover; all of which are likely early symptoms of the current degradation of the economy. Consumers are holding off from having elective or non-emergent health treatments, and there are more nurses available because they are more willing to go back to work full time, put in overtime, or postpone retirement and job changes because of the actual or potential reduction of their family’s income. Among the first reactions by hospital administrators, in a situation that is producing lower than expected revenue, is the desire to reduce expenses. Usually that desire is pointed directly at reduction of temporary staff first.

Women in the C-Suite: The Healthcare Imbalance

In an industry where a single profession (nursing) is heavily dominated by women, you might expect to see a higher than average number of women holding high-level leadership positions in hospitals and healthcare settings. Unfortunately, even when the numbers should support a preponderance of women in leadership, the proverbial glass ceiling is very much still in existence.

Breaking It Down: What is the Real Cost of a Travel Nurse?

There are a lot of myths circulating about the cost of travel nurses. Between workplace gossip, blogs and misinformed Web sites, it’s hard to tell what is real and what is an exaggeration. I’ve personally seen articles that state that travel nurses make $75 per hour and that they get fantastic housing benefits that outweigh any benefits that permanent nurses might have. I’ve also heard that nurse staffing firms make up to $50 per hour of the bill rate they charge. Well, as with most things, the truth lies in the middle.

Crucial Conversations: The Most Potent Force for Eliminating Disruptive Behavior

The Silence Kills study, conducted by VitalSmarts and the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, reveals that more than three-fourths of caregivers regularly work with doctors or nurses who are condescending, insulting or rude. A full third of study participants say the behavior is even worse and includes name-calling, yelling and swearing.

Healthcare Reform Likely to Gain Little Traction amid Financial Market Crisis

Timing is everything. Before the financial system crisis raised its ugly head, it appeared that the coming year would likely see some serious healthcare reform debate at the federal level. Now, as Congress grapples with a bailout of the financial markets, it looks like healthcare reform will once again not get the attention it desperately needs.

AIDS in South Africa: The Impact of Nurses

I recently had the good fortune to visit South Africa with the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) through their professional exchange program People To People. During this trip, I had the opportunity to visit a variety of healthcare settings where I could meet and talk with the nurses working in each; and visit one of the largest nursing schools in the country.

Nursing: THE Recession Proof Profession

Read anything about recession-proof jobs today and nursing is at or near the top of the list. We are in the throes of the most serious nursing shortage in history – today's count is close to 125,000 hospital positions vacant across the country.

Old is New: Transitioning the Older New Graduate RN into Practice

Twenty years ago, the average age of a new graduate nurse was 24. Today, it is 30. While the age difference in years doesn't seem vast, it often translates into additional work experience and expectations. New nurses have different dreams and demands and require a different workplace environment. Generation X is coming; is nursing ready? With a systemized approach to transitioning new nurses to the workplace, it can be.

Managing Patient Identification: The Right Patient, Every Time

In any unit, one of the most important safety checks is making sure the right patient receives the right treatment. The Joint Commission knows the importance of identifying each patient before tests are run, medications are administered or procedures are performed. Being able to locate the proper identification in a timely fashion to guarantee patient safety is absolutely critical in medical error prevention.

National Patient Safety Goals for 2008

Healthcare environments are swamped with information. We educate on organizational information. We educate on clinical processes, procedures, policies and resources. We educate on new program implementations. The problem is, none of this matters if we don't educate on safety.
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Managing Mistakes: Learning From Them

When it comes to patient safety, we all have memories of events that are unsettling. Medical mistakes occur and are often tragic. What would be worse is if we did not learn for them. Read More

Transitioning from Staff Nurse to Nurse Manager

Rome wasn't built in a day; neither can a truly effective nurse manager by made in a day. Yet professional training for management-bound RNs is seldom comprised of more than a few disjointed days and/or weeklong development seminars. Such training is valuable but, by itself, inadequate. Read More

The Data-Driven Nursing Residency

Facing wave after wave of new-graduate nurses, many hospitals have instituted training or residency programs to improve the competence and confidence of their nursing staff, lower their costs and increase the quality of care patients receive. However, it is important to ask two key questions. First, are these residency investments paying off? And second, how can a hospital measure the effectiveness of its training programs with meaningful data? Read More

Managing New Program Development

As leaders within organizations, we are routinely faced with proposals from physicians and vendors to plan new programs for the institution. Some of these programs are fairly simple, while others have far reaching market impact and planning needs. Read More

Managing Leadership: A Challenging Necessity in Today’s Environment

The days of simply managing a unit or staff are over. Units that continue to follow this organizational style may find challenges in retaining staff or keeping them engaged and appropriately developed. A nursing unit full of professional staff needs sound leadership. Read More

Managing the Professional Growth of Your Staff

Promoting the professional development of staff is an ongoing process. A manager must understand and believe in the value of continuing education. Each staff member will have unique learning needs and goals. Your job, as a manager, is to facilitate their accomplishments. Read More

Team-style Nursing: The Strengths and the Challenges

Nursing has changed dramatically over the last 30 years. Nurses who have lived through these changes can testify to one fact: change is the only variable that has been constant. Technology has grown within surgical circles at a much higher rate than that of some other nursing specialties. All areas of nursing have felt the improvement in information systems and documentation. Read More

Risk Management and Working Together

Risk management in healthcare involves minimizing medical risks for patients, liability risks for staff and the institution, and financial risks for the facility and its various business units. Each of these risks has multiple approaches and in order to be most successful, patients as well as clinical and non-clinical personnel must work together. Read More

Managing Success: IT Implementations

Whether you are converting from paper to an electronic medical record (EMR) system, implementing new modules, integrating with other systems or installing an upgrade, there are several factors that are key to a successful project. Educating your executive team on these factors is an absolute for the success of your project. Their buy-in is critical; successful projects require dedicated resources and the support of the executive team will go a long way toward assuring required ingredients are present as your project progresses. Read More

Finding the Right Candidate

In today’s competitive recruiting environment, healthcare institutions are constantly faced with finding better ways to screen candidates for open positions. Managers and human resource departments in all hospitals are challenged with finding strong tools for screening applicants. Some other industries have had great success with this practice. Read More

Stop the Gap: Help Manage Academic Needs of Staff

While all nurses receive a broad level of education before they become applicants, different academic institution place emphasis on varying subjects such as critical thinking, crisis management, prioritization and resource management. Read More

Varied RN Skill Sets – Managing the Bounty of Talent

RNs in today’s market bring many skill sets to the table. When nurses enter the field of healthcare, it is very likely that they bring skills from previous positions. Applicants may have gone to nursing school as a second career; these candidates bring a broad range of ideas to the table. Read More

Mentors Benefit Organizations—and the Employees within Them

Most business leaders are familiar with the power of mentoring, a relationship in which a person with greater experience and wisdom guides another to a higher level of personal and professional excellence. Read More

Managing Customer Service: An Outpatient Approach

Next to preserving positive patient outcomes and maintaining standards of care, customer service may be the highest priority for an ambulatory surgery environment. Read More

Managing the Transition from RN to Nurse Management

Healthcare management is an industry where skill sets are incremental. Nurses must gain their clinical skills before they develop their management skills. In nursing, being able to walk the walk is most important. Read More

Managing Our Future

Nursing has been a very rewarding career for many of us. I have had the blessing of knowing many individuals that have touched lives all over the world through the care they have so selflessly given. Each one of these individuals has an awesome tale to tell. Taking opportunities to develop a love for nursing in our youth is an outstanding way to nurture our future nurses. Read More

A Proactive Approach to Orienting with a Preceptor

AMN Healthcare is offering this course free of charge, provided by RN.com. Take it yourself and offer it to your staff! Read More

The Changing Role of Managers

In today’s increasingly complex business world, companies are seeking ways to make sure they have the talent they will need to compete now and in the future. Read More

Managing a Work/Life Balance

Today’s workforce frequently searches for a meaningful balance of work and personal life. Families are striving for full lives with plenty of time for children and extended family members. The days of the baby boomers living at work and living for work have gradually changed. Newer generations want more and more time at home. Job sharing has become increasingly popular for parents to work “just enough.” Read More

Don’t Forget the Benefits of Recognition

In today’s fast-paced business environment, managers often tend to be too busy and too removed from their employees to notice when they have done exceptional work, or to thank them for it. Yet, now more than ever employees need to be told by their managers that their efforts are appreciated, and that they plan an important role in their organizations. Read More

Managing Medication Safety: An Interdisciplinary Approach

By Lori Robertson, RN, CNOR, contributor Medication safety has gained significant attention in recent years. The Joint Commission invests a considerable amount of time and resources into the management of medications in all care environments. Several of the 2009 National Patient Safety