Real solutions for rural issues
Welcome back to Locums Digest, Locumpedia’s free bi-weekly roundup of industry news and trends that helps locum tenens agencies make informed decisions and increase revenue.
In this edition of Locums Digest: Limited access to healthcare in rural areas has led to higher rates of chronic conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension, and even higher mortality rates. The root causes? Too few providers, poor transportation, and unreliable internet access. Here, we explore how improving internet access, deploying mobile units, offering health monitoring devices, and utilizing locum tenens providers can help.
Also in Locums Digest 81: CHG Healthcare shares insights on the next generation of telehealth, Weatherby plans to move headquarters and invest $7.5 million in Raleigh, N.C., Jackson Healthcare named a “Global Top 100 Inspiring Workplace,” new AMN technology suite created to streamline staffing processes, and more.
Thanks for reading!
Shortfalls in Rural Healthcare Require a Holistic Strategy
October 6, 2024 | MedCityNews
Nearly 70 million people, or 20% of the US population, have limited access to healthcare simply because they live in rural areas. In these communities, chronic health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension are all found at higher levels than in urban areas, as are drastically higher mortality rates.
The reasons why are numerous:
- There are fewer providers, including specialists, and therefore fewer options for preventative care, let alone treatment for ongoing conditions.
- Many need reliable access to a car, and most do not live in areas with public transportation.
- Internet access may be spotty, making even telehealth appointments difficult or impossible.
To tackle this issue holistically, high-quality, affordable solutions must be implemented across several fronts. First, widespread internet connections are essential, enabling patients to consult with primary care doctors and specialists virtually while empowering them to research treatment options independently.
For in-person care, flexible solutions like mobile care units and locum tenens staffing ensure that healthcare can reach underserved areas. Personal screening and monitoring devices—such as those for blood pressure or glucose—allow patients to track early warning signs without needing an in-person visit. Additionally, mail-order pharmacies, including those utilizing drones, help deliver medications to even the most remote patients, ensuring access for all.
There needs to be ongoing and robust studies on rural healthcare to continue understanding rural communities’ changing needs and efficiently offering them appropriate solutions. Data analytics platforms that track community health metrics and search for patterns help healthcare organizations and their providers identify and account for trends and disparities, leading to smarter resource allocation. They also help agencies develop flexible, patient-centric solutions specific to rural facilities.
La Vida Locum
Physicians and APPs of All Ages are Incorporating Locums into Their Careers
October 8, 2024 | LocumTenens.com
A recent survey found that millennial, Gen X, and baby boomer providers gravitate toward working locums. These physicians and APPs are drawn to the work-life balance the assignments offer and the competitive compensation. With more and more healthcare facilities incorporating locums into their staffing strategies, providers are better positioned to supplement or replace their permanent positions with locums assignments.
There’s only a slight difference across generations in the number of people who have incorporated locum tenens work into their careers. Around 28% of millennials reported doing locum work for at least a quarter of their jobs, compared to 26% of Gen X and 24% of baby boomers.
Of the three generations surveyed, boomers have worked locums the least, with just under half saying it accounts for less than 10% of their careers. Locums has seen a recent boon in popularity so that late-career providers would have had fewer locums opportunities than those just now settling into their careers. Most providers and facilities want some experience before they try locums, which may help explain why younger providers with fewer years in the medical field have yet to work in locums. A quarter of millennials say they have never worked locums compared to 17% of Gen X and 12% of baby boomers.
It Can Take More Than Half a Year to Fill Some Positions—Locums Can Help
September 19, 2024 | Hayes Locums
After several years of upward momentum in accepted physician employment offers, there has been a decrease, according to the 2023 annual report from the Association for Advancing Physician and Provider Recruitment. On average, APPs accept 82% of offers extended to them, physicians only 71%. This is attributed to providers having more options than ever—from traditional hospital systems and private practices to insurance companies, private equity groups, and urgent care centers.
Of the nine specialties that take the longest to fill, it still takes an average of well over a month to fill an anesthesia position, the quickest of the nine. Emergency medicine takes more than two months, and hospital medicine takes nearly three months.
The two slowest, OB/GYN and cardiology, take 178 and 192 days, respectively. The issue compounds as positions that stay open for too long are often canceled, removing any possibility of being permanently filled. Locums can help fill the gaps. In 2022, about 14% of open APP jobs were ultimately canceled or put on indefinite hold; it was only 8% just three years before. About 13% of physician jobs were canceled, up from the previous year’s 8%.
When hiring managers incorporate locums into their staffing strategy, they can maintain revenue even when they have open positions and reduce the likelihood of the organization indefinitely freezing that position. Locums can also ensure greater continuity of care for patients and minimize burnout of staff who would otherwise be picking up additional shifts.
Transforming Telehealth from Version 1.0 to 2.0
October 9, 2024 | CHG Healthcare
Telehealth got a foothold in the mainstream during the pandemic lockdowns. At one point during the pandemic, nearly half of all healthcare visits happened virtually, and the technology supported the increased demand for urgent care. It grew out of necessity in a heavily restrictive time. To continue to be a valuable tool across healthcare, it must be adaptable to what patients, providers, and healthcare organizations need.
- Part of a hybrid approach: Patients want to continue to engage with telehealth but not at the expense of their in-person appointments with their doctors.
- Able to support a continuum of care: The telehealth infrastructure needs to manage complex conditions and foster long-term patient-provider relationships.
- Helpful with provider recruitment and retention: Telehealth options have been signaling to providers that an organization is interested in easier work processes and more flexible scheduling.
The continued study of telehealth, from its effect on patient access to specialty care to its hidden costs and unexpected savings, is also critical. Recognizing telehealth is a tool, not a one-size-fits-all complete solution, encourages each organization, provider, and patient to use it only to the extent that works for them.
Locum Leaders
Agency Expansion to Grow North Carolina Economy
October 9, 2024 | Staffing Industry Analysts
Weatherby Healthcare, part of CHG Healthcare, has received a nearly $2 million Job Development Investment Grant from North Carolina to support the relocation of its headquarters from Durham to Raleigh. The company is also investing in its expansion and plans to add new jobs.
The staffing firm plans to invest more than $7.5 million to meet the state’s incremental job creation and investment targets tied to the grant’s 12-year term. It will relocate from Durham to Raleigh by June 2025, adding up to 155 jobs, mostly in sales and recruiting.
Those salaries will be around $200,000, well above Wake County’s current average wage of $75,000. The project is expected to grow the state’s economy by $434 million.
Agency Leader Returns, Adding New Responsibilities
October 3, 2024 | AMN Healthcare
Brian Scott has been named chief financial officer and chief operating officer of AMN Healthcare. He previously spent nearly two decades with AMN, including his most recent role as CFO and chief accounting officer, leaving the company in 2021. He had most recently been the CFO for Jack in the Box.
Scott returns to an expanded role leading AMN’s finance and enterprise operating functions as the company continues to evolve its model to be more automated and scaled.
Scott’s earlier tenure with AMN was marked with accomplishments, notably a fourfold increase in quarterly revenue and a 13x increase in adjusted EBITDA from 2010 to 2021.
Agency Recognized as Among the Top Inspiring Workplaces in the World
October 1, 2024 | Jackson Healthcare
Jackson Healthcare has been named to the 2024 “Global Top 100 Inspiring Workplaces” list. This recognition follows on the heels of its inclusion earlier this year in the North American list.
Inspiring Workplaces runs the award program. The international organization, headquartered in the United Kingdom, evaluates companies based on culture and purpose, leadership, well-being, inclusion, employee voice, and employee experience. It seeks to encourage positive change by recognizing those organizations that demonstrate it.
Hire Power
With Fewer Residents Entering the Workforce, Locums Offer Solutions
September 24, 2024 | Becker’s Physician Leadership
AMN Healthcare’s “Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives” provides insight into the growing competition within recruiting. More than half (56%) of those completing their residency receive at least 100 first job offers, the highest percentage since AMN began studying this in 1991. This is because there are more healthcare sites than ever looking to hire—not just hospitals but urgent care centers, insurance programs, and pharmacies such as Walgreens.
There is also higher turnover in the workforce, opening more jobs at a quicker rate. Three years ago, when the competition trend became noticeable, nearly half of all open jobs were those of departing physicians. The number of completing residents is not keeping pace, and there is more opportunity for agencies to present locums candidates to fill these gaps.
New Technology Creates Staffing Efficiencies
October 2, 2024 | AMN Healthcare
WorkWise, a new technology suite from AMN Healthcare, integrates with facilities’ internal systems to streamline workforce processes, help source talent, and manage costs. This can lead to a more patient-centered and provider-supportive system and the ability to do longer-range financial planning. Leveraging automation and data analysis, WorkWise offers:
- Predictive scheduling
- Automated workforce management
- Enhanced clinician engagement
- Optimization of personnel for any type of job
- Review of sources of providers both internally and externally
- Precise predictions of staffing needs
Thanks to its focus on personnel and scheduling optimization, among other efficiencies, WorkWise supports healthcare organizations in building more diverse staffing strategies.
Webinar: AI in Physician Staffing: Transforming Talent Sourcing and Placement
November 13, 2024, 2 p.m. Eastern | National Association of Physician Recruiters (NAPR)
Anthony Yarussi of Noon AI will discuss how AI can benefit the physician staffing industry:
- Streamline candidate sourcing
- Improve match accuracy
- Optimize placement process
This webinar is free. NAPR members can also access past conversations in the Webinars Library.
Making the Rounds
Locums Meet Needs in the OB/GYN Shortage
September 26, 2024 | Medicus Healthcare Solutions
The number of OB/GYNs active in the US is approximately 46,600, almost 1,000 fewer than the Health Resources and Services Administration predicted the industry would reach by 2030. In the past 10 years, more than 200 hospitals nationwide have closed their maternity departments.
Limited residency positions and intensifying burnout rates contribute to the shortage. Locums can fill the need caused by both. Agencies that cultivate OB/GYN providers will be well-positioned to support clients experiencing hiring difficulties and can provide coverage across multiple facilities with a single resource.
Bucking Overall Industry Trends, Certain Healthcare Sectors Saw Job Growth
September 26, 2024 | Becker’s Hospital Review
According to the latest Jobs Report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the growth of healthcare jobs has slowed over the previous 12 months. Although it increased by about 45,000 in September, that is about 12,000 fewer jobs than the average monthly. Individual sectors fared better than the whole:
- Ambulatory healthcare services grew faster, adding more than 24,000 jobs, compared to hospitals, which added just under 12,000 jobs.
- Home healthcare was another significant growth area, with 13,000 jobs and physician offices adding another 2,000.
- Nursing and residential care facilities grew by more than 9,000 jobs in total.
- In February 2020, there were 29% more job openings in healthcare and social assistance than there were immediately before the pandemic.
Sponsored Content
A Guide to Locum Tenens & Full-Time APP Salaries in 2024
October 10, 2024 | OnCall Solutions
Drawing from sources such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Salary.com, ZipRecruiter, and their own staffing experts, OnCall Solutions has written a guide to salary trends for APPs. This comprehensive review provides crucial insights for those negotiating NP, PA, or CRNA contracts. These include vital factors that are currently influencing compensation as well as trends to watch. Beyond years of experience, which affects compensation in most fields, there are several indicators to pay attention to:
- Location—Areas with higher costs of living, such as New York and California, and those in dire need of providers, such as rural areas, generally offer robust salary-and-benefits packages.
- Specialty—Those with additional training, such as CRNAs or PAs and NPs working in cardiology or oncology, tend to earn more.
- Type of employer—Hospital systems offer higher salaries and better benefits than private practices, but those may offer providers greater scheduling flexibility or profit-sharing arrangements.
- Telemedicine and increased practice scope—Virtual appointments allowing APPs to work remotely and states updating APP responsibilities, granting them greater independence with a broader work scope, are both trends reshaping the future of healthcare and contributing to increases in compensation.
Interim Physicians Secures Immediate, Long-Term Hospitalist NP Coverage for a Rural New Hampshire Hospital
September 21, 2024 | Interim Physicians
Rural healthcare is one of the areas in which locums can have the most significant positive impact. Interim Physicians knows this well and acted fast when one of their healthcare system clients acquired a community hospital in New Hampshire and immediately sought to add a hospitalist NP to the team.
Within one week of the conversation about the need, Interim had three candidates lined up to cover a five-month assignment. The client selected their top candidate but found all three of them to be of such high caliber that Interim is credentialing all of them to ensure the position stays filled, even if there are unexpected hiccups. Impressed by that effort, the client next asked Interim to fill a hospitalist vacancy in rural Maine. Interim found a candidate within two days. Part of what sets Interim up for success in these fast-moving situations is the agency’s commitment to communication and maintaining ongoing relationships with its clients, even when there are no immediate needs.
