Last Updated: March 27, 2024
Staffing shortages continue to plague the U.S. healthcare system. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent burnout caused many healthcare professionals to leave the industry, exacerbating a shortage that had already begun to grow even before the first SARS-CoV-2 cases were identified.
There appears to be no end in sight to the healthcare workforce deficit, either. Forbes projects that over 6.5 million U.S. healthcare professionals will permanently exit their roles by 2026, with only 1.9 million anticipated to fill those vacancies.
As a result, healthcare organizations are searching for innovative ways to overcome these shortages and mitigate the impact of reduced capacity. Fortunately, group purchasing organizations (GPOs) are on hand to provide efficient and cost-effective solutions for their members.
Harnessing the power of their CNECT membership, our members are employing these strategies to combat their staffing issues.
1) Utilizing Discounted Staffing Solutions
Among the many contracts GPOs negotiate with suppliers, agreements with human resources experts and recruitment firms have become crucial to members.
These companies provide HR management and healthcare recruiting services for providers seeking to fill vacancies. Their healthcare recruitment support can cover both temporary and permanent roles, as well as locum tenens, and span the full spectrum of positions, including:
- Administrators
- Nurses
- Physicians
- Specialists
- Support Staff
- Technicians
2) Outsourcing Tasks to Increase Capacity
By hindering recruitment, the healthcare labor shortage has meant healthcare teams are having to do more with less. This reduced capacity stifles organizations and their productivity, preventing growth and impacting patient care.
Most GPOs have a vast portfolio of agreements that goes far beyond med-surg products and pharmaceuticals. By outsourcing tasks to contracted experts, facilities can increase the capacity of their teams without having to hire new staff. Examples of tasks that can be outsourced include:
- Accounting, Payroll, and Tax
- Construction and Maintenance
- Cybersecurity
- Foodservice
- Human Resources
- I.T. Support
- Medical Billing
- Patient Transportation
- Revenue Cycle Management
3) Increasing Staff Pay by Reducing Operating Costs
In recent years, a combination of inflation, rising costs, and lagging reimbursement has meant healthcare organizations are working with razor-thin margins. The demand for healthcare professionals has also driven up wages, meaning many can’t afford to compete for staff.
As part of a GPO, members have access to discounted prices on the items they purchase regularly, such as medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and more. By taking advantage of these discounts, members can reduce their procurement costs immediately after joining, generating savings that can be allocated to the staffing budget, allowing them to be more competitive in the labor market.
Retention as a Strategy: Increasing Employee Satisfaction
During the workforce shortage, a lot of attention has focused on being best positioned to attract the best candidates, but retention is just as important when qualified staff are scarce. Increasing employee satisfaction can help facilities retain their best staff and reduce the need to enter the competitive job market.
A retention strategy has many elements. One that’s critical is a strong employee benefits program. Research has found that 78% of employees report being more likely to stay with an employer because of their benefits program. Insurance policies play a huge role in these programs, but there are other ways to make packages stand out.
CNECT members have found our contracted employee discount programs helps them retain their best staff, as well as additional perks such as our earned wage access partner, which helps staff access their wages before payday. If you’d like to discuss the solutions we can provide to boost your retention strategy, get in touch today!
Do More with CNECT’s Operations Support
In addition to the solutions above, CNECT members also benefit from the support of our contracts and operations team. They help to minimize our members' administrative workload and are always working in the background to:
- Consistently monitor members’ spending, making sure they are accessing the biggest discounts they’re eligible for.
- Regularly review members’ purchasing patterns to identify more savings opportunities, particularly on items and services they’re already buying.
- Work directly with suppliers to connect members to contracts as quickly as possible.
- Analyze member purchasing to identify categories in which to pursue new contracts.
- Provide accessible documentation for members who need to comply with procurement regulations.
If you’re interested in joining CNECT GPO, at no cost to your organization, and finding innovative ways to combat healthcare staffing shortages, contact our team today!