Staffing Robot - Web design and marketing services for companies in the staffing industry

Health IT Status Report: Interactive Map

iWatch - the center for public integrity, put out an interactive map providing a visual on the status of EHR implementations in the U.S. This map provides a status report on where states stand in distributing Medicaid incentive payments for adoption of health information technology.

It's pretty interesting to look at the data this way on such a hot topic right now. You can see it here:

http://www.iwatchnews.org/2011/12/07/7567/interactive-status-report-health-information-technology-states/?utm_source=iwatchnews&utm_medium=site-features&utm_campaign=most-active

The 2009 economic stimulus law signed by President Barack Obama contained $27 billion in federal funds for eligible health providers who install electronic health records and follow government “meaningful use” guidelines to improve patient care. This portion of the law — known as the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act — allows incentive payments to providers in  both the Medicare and Medicaid programs.  Medicare is administered by the federal government, while Medicaid is a partnership between federal and state governments.  In the case of the health information technology payments, the Medicaid funds are being distributed by the federal government to the states, territories, and the District of Columbia, for re-distribution to the providers.

Updated Nurse Wage and Job Location Data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics

Really great data on nurse employment over at the Bureau of Labor and Statistics site. The site is posting location and wage data for nursing occupations. The site will also let you look at and customize other data with its customized data feature. Nice!

Images and data sourced from: Bureau of Labor and Statistics website

 

Top Healthcare Staffing News of 2010 and Predictions for 2011

At the end of 2009 we recapped the top stories in the healthcare staffing industry and made our predictions for healthcare staffing industry trends in 2010. As 2010 now comes to a close, it's interesting to see how we did on these predictions, reflect on industry events in 2010 and make some predictions on healthcare staffing trends in 2011.

The Healthcare Staffing Industry in 2010

Healthcare Staffing and the Economy 2011
The macro economic effects on the healthcare staffing industry were still the big stories this year. The SIA's 2010 Healhtcare Staffing Summit gave us all some great insight and data on this topic. While not as dire as the economic downturn in 2009, the news was still mostly a downer.

In 2010 hospitals still struggled with everything from reduced budgets to nationwide nursing strikes. All of this caused hospital job growth to slow dramatically and negatively impacted the revenue for the entire industry. While the revenue dropped for almost every company (large and small) in the healthcare staffing industry, perhaps the most notable news was learning Medical Staffing Network filed for bankruptcy in 2010.

The bad economy also claimed a few tech companies in the healthcare staffing industry in 2010. One of the largest was Healthcare VMS provider, Symbio Solutions, who filed for bankruptcy in 2010.

Negative changes in the economy produce acquisitions in every industry and the healthcare staffing industry was no exception. ABRY Partners made news with their acquisition of Comforce late in the year. However, the biggest merger news of 2010 was AMN's acquisition of Medfinders. This alliance will definitely be a game changer in 2011, particularly on the vendor management side of things.

There was also a lot of news this year regarding healthcare staffing tech company acquisitions. Concerro was one of the first, expanding their client base and service offerings by acquiring Res-Q Healthcare Systems. More significantly, however, were the acquisitions of Medefis by OnWard Healthcare and Symbio Solutions by Broadlane. Broadlane picked up the remaining assets from Symbio's bankruptcy and Onward Healthcare made a bold move by acquiring the once, vendor neutral, Medefis VMS technology.

New Technology Products for Healthcare Staffing in 2010
2010 also brought the introduction of some new software applications to the industry. Tweetdeck announced a new tool for recruiters called Job Deck, while Concerro launched their new IPhone scheduling app. Amistaff also launched a fantastic new product called Prophecy to help hospitals with employee hiring assessments. Finally, we can't leave out our or own product - ePromoter. Staffing Robot launched ePromoter in September as the first email marketing software designed and created specifically for managing healthcare staffing email marketing campaigns.

Successful Marketing Strategies for Healthcare Staffing Companies in 2010
This year, healthcare staffing companies found their most successful marketing efforts on the web. There were many changes to both search and social marketing this year that companies had to pay attention to. While Bing made itself a respected search competitor, Google decided it was time for their searches to get more social. And then Bing got really social by being the first search engined allowed to search facebook.

Although many things changed this year for social media marketing, the top stories were all about Facebook. Facebook is perhaps the best place for healthcare staffing companies to market on the web. The biggest news from Facebook was the announcement of their new 'Like' button. This simple button is changing a lot on the web in terms of how companies interact with their audience. It even started getting people asking which was more important - search engine or social network optimization.

Another marketing strategy some healthcare staffing companies took in 2010 was rebranding. Access Nurses became Aya Healthcare and Broadlane rebranded their VMS division to Prolucent. The biggest news, however, was the fact that AMN rebranded after some large acquisitions and expanding their service offerings.

Staffing Robot
Our company also went through a lot of changes this year. The most significant change being that we went from simply being a healthcare staffing blog to a full service website design and marketing company for the healthcare staffing industry. We also launched a healthcare industry news service called The Healthcare Staffing Report. Look for more changes from us in this next year as we continue to grow, expand our service offerings and launch new staffing related software products.

So, like we said, 2010 was a very eventful year for the healthcare staffing industry. So what will the next year bring?

Our Predictions for Healthcare Staffing in 2011

Further Consolidation of Staffing Agencies and Tech Companies
Although there was a lot of acquisition activity in 2010 we haven't seen the end of it. Unfortunately, many healthcare staffing agencies are still hoping for a major rebound in the economy to keep them in business. When this doesn't happen they will be looking to sell. In addition, stronger partnerships and mergers amongst small to medium players are going to be necessary to compete with the size of companies like AMN.

Tech companies in the healthcare staffing industry will be no exception. In the last decade, many tech companies have started in the healthcare staffing industry. Several of them have realized that considerable capital backing is necessary to fully realize their opportunity. Therefore, we'll see a lot of these companies forming partnerships or selling to larger, better capitalized players who can successfully deliver their offerings.  

Note to future self: Be honest about revenue and its cost of acquisition. If it's not working out - call it a day or change your game.

Success of the MSP Model
The SIA predicts that by the end of 2011 over 90% of hospitals will have adopted a VMS solution. While we don't believe it will be quite that high, hospital adoption of VMS is certain to continue increasing. In the last two years the vendor neutral, tech model has failed to prove its success when competing against the MSP model at large health systems. In addition, the MSP model has had a major resurgence of success in the last two years as hospitals have cared less about vendor neutrality and more about the successful outsourcing of their entire staffing operation.

As big companies like AMN continue to improve these offerings through technology, process and acquisitions, they will become more of a dominant service offering in the industry. If you're not AMN, figuring out your strategy on how to thrive in the presence of this new model is highly advised.

Note to future self:  Starting your own VMS offering is not the answer.

Greater Success with Web Marketing
2011 will be the year healthcare staffing companies realize the value of marketing on the web. More and more companies in the space are developing mobile web applications and launching successful social media campaigns as a way to grow their audience and increase their revenue. In 2011, understanding how to succeed on the web will become more critical than ever before. Many companies in this space are still wondering if there is any real value here and spending months analyzing (read: guessing) at the ROI they'll receive on their efforts. Beat them by doing the opposite.
 

Note to future self:  Stop guessing - start acting.

 

 Healthcare Reform
How healthcare reform effects the healthcare staffing industry will once again become a major topic as companies prepare to deal with some of the reform aspects that begin in 2012.

Note to future self:  Start preparing for this in 2008 - the good and the bad. 

Industry Innovation
At the end of 2009 we predicted that 2010 would bring about some new innovation for the healthcare staffing industry. Sadly, we were wrong here. It was mostly business as usual in this area as most tech companies just focused on how to stay in business. Hopefully this year we will see new tech innovations from some of the larger players or new comers in the market.

Note to future self:  Make your idea a reality.

 

The Market Will Rebound
Oh! A very bold prediction indeed! In 2009 we predicted the market would return in mid 2011. We're holding to that prediction. Almost every company we speak with is seeing positive signs that the market is turning around. Although no one expects this year to return to pre 2008 levels, any improvement will be welcomed. The SIA also put out some encouraging data for next year supporting this prediciton:

Note to future self:  Innovate and run a better business so I'm prepared for the market return.

 

Your Predictions
It's been another exciting year being in this industry. Time will tell what 2011 has in store for all of us. What are your predictions for healthcare staffing in 2011? If you have any, please share them here.

We wish you all happy holidays and much success in the new year. See you in 2011!

Related Posts

Top Healthcare Staffing Stories of 2009 and Predictions for 2010

The Healthcare Staffing Report - Headline News (6.14.10 - 6.18.10)

This weeks headline news stories from The Healthcare Staffing Report.

This week's big Breaking News Story was about Medical Staffing Network declaring Chapter 11 bankruptcy. I have posted stories previously on this blog as Medical Staffing Network has been navigating previously these waters. The news broke on The Healthcare Staffing Report on Tuesday.

Here is a list of this weeks top Headline News:

Monday: Nurses Strike Highlights Hospitals' Big Profits, Poor Outlook 

Tuesday: Hospital Employee Morale Low 

Wednesday: Are There too Many Nurses?

Thursday: Preventing Nurse Burnout

Friday: Nurse Managed Health Clinics Get Boost in Federal Funding

This Weeks Top 5 most popular categories (based on number of articles read):

1. Hospitals and Health Systems
2. Healthcare Professionals
3. Top Industry News
4. Staffing Agencies
5. Social Media

Please follow The Healthcare Staffing Report on Twitter.

The Healthcare Staffing Report - Headline News (5.17.10 - 5.21.10)

This weeks headline news stories from The Healthcare Staffing Report.

Here is a list of this weeks top Headline News:

Monday:  Nurses Key to Quality Patient Care Improvements

Tuesday:  Increase in Temp Hires Point to Recovery

Wednesday: Labor Shortage Still a Problem for Healthcare

Thursday: Hospitals Under Budget, Regulation Pressures

Friday: Hospitals Fined for Putting Patients at Risk

This Weeks Top 5 most popular categories (based on clicks):

1. Staffing Agencies
2. Healthcare Professionals
3. Top Industry News
4. Hospitals & Health Systems
5. Social Media Marketing
6. Vendor Management

Please follow The Healthcare Staffing Report on Twitter.

Shortage of Physicians in the U.S. Only Getting Worse

This article from the Wall Street Journal talks about the increasing shortage of physicians in the U.S. and how it looks as though it will only get worse. To make matters worse, many people believe that the new healthcare reform act will cause more people to consume healthcare resources, thereby increasing the need for healthcare professionals even more.

"It will probably take 10 years to even make a dent into the number of doctors that we need out there," said Atul Grover, the AAMC's chief advocacy officer.

Obviously an increased need for healthcare professionals will benefit the healthcare staffing industry. However, many measures need to be taken to ensure the shortage doesn't grow to severe. Even though healthcare reform will positively affect the healthcare staffing industry, too severe of a shortage will hurt us all as a country. Unfortunately, the healthcare reform bill did not go far enough in addressing the growing need for healthcare professionals.

Proponents of the new health-care law say it does attempt to address the physician shortage. The law offers sweeteners to encourage more people to enter medical professions, and a 10% Medicare pay boost for primary-care doctors.

This map is a great visualization of the shortage of physicians across the country.

Healthcare Reform, Healthcare Staffing & Civility

Last week Healthcare Reform legislation was finally made into law. It's no secret that I've been a big proponent of this idea and written several blog posts on how healthcare reform will affect healthcare staffing agencies. Although I'm happy this legislation exists and will hopefully continue to improve I am disappointed it didn't go far enough. My hope was that we would have a universal healthcare system with coverage for all. Not yet it seems.

I've already blogged about how I believe healthcare reform will benefit the healthcare staffing industry and mentioned articles where some of the nation's largest medical staffing agency CEOs also state that healthcare reform will benefit the industry. Therefore, there's no reason to repeat myself. Now that the legislation is on the books and more details are known, I'm sticking with my prediction that this legislation will be positive for the healthcare staffing industry.

Of course, how this legislation is carried out will determine the exact changes we all see and feel. There are several sources around the web that have posted summaries on some of the most immediate changes the healthcare reform legislation will make.

To me, the biggest question here is about the cost and potential tax increases we will all face as individuals and businesses. According to this interactive tool from the Washington Post, neither my premiums nor my personal taxes will increase due to healthcare reform. The really good news is that my premiums were expected to rise between 10-15% before "Obamacare," so I'm going to see this as being positive.

For businesses, it now appears that not providing health insurance to your employees will earn you a penalty. It will be interesting to see if this legislation changes the classifications or definitions of employees as to when insurance has to be provided. However, most large companies already provide insurance for all of their internal employees and offer it as a benefit to their field staff who meet qualifying hours. Therefore, there should be no impact to most healthcare staffing agencies in this regard. For new and small healthcare staffing companies (under 50 employees) there is even better news. Not only will these companies avoid potential penalties for lack of employee insurance provisions, they can qualify for stipends to provide insurance to their employees. This will offer tremendous assistance to start-up companies who otherwise couldn't offer coverage.

Unfortunately, big businesses will most likely see a tax increase to help pay for all the new legislation. Although I'm not a fan of paying more in taxes, I'm also not 'anti-tax' across the board. Paying taxes for certain things that benefit society, such as healthcare, is a good thing. I'm one of those crazies that believes in the greater good so I'm willing to pay a little more for it.

Many people disagree with this view completely and feel that healthcare reform is nothing short of socialism and the end of the American Empire. During a recent webinar hosted by the Staffing Industry Analysts, many CEO's of large staffing companies were discussing how detrimental this legislation will be to their business and all the other horrible things healthcare reform will bring. I've even had people on my blog leave comments and send me emails suggesting the same. For example, Randy Mensinger from Custom Healthcare left a comment on one of my healthcare reform blog posts stating he feels this will put the company he works for (and many others) out of business. He was so upset with my opinion that he even followed up on my comment with an email full of obscenities and calling me all kinds of things I won't repeat here.

So obviously not everyone shares my opinion. I'm willing to admit I could be wrong. If I am and businesses have to start carrying such a heavy tax burden that it puts them out of business I'll be right back here advocating against healthcare reform. I completely respect an opposing view and honest debate on healthcare reform. However, there are several things I don't understand, such as:

1. Being disrespectful and unprofessional to each other. It doesn't matter who you are, but, if you work for or represent a staffing company in our small industry I don't think it benefits you in any way to be unprofessional and disrespectful.
2. Where was the vociferous anti-tax movement during the bush years when we were spending trillions of dollars on an unjust war that was started for made up reasons? Perhaps if we hadn't spent so much money then (and now) we'd have money for things like healthcare for our citizens.
3. Many people are up in arms about the mandate that every American will be required to have health insurance. However, the health insurance mandates are actually a Republican idea. These mandates are only going to benefit the health insurance industry and those politicians beholden to this industry. So clearly their outcry is merely political posturing.
4. Even if you're against the new legislation what exactly is getting people so angry about healthcare reform? How is providing health coverage to our citizens something to get violent over?

No matter how you feel, what we all really need is information, facts and a real debate. Much of the information coming from the media is full of sensational, unfounded claims. It's not only irresponsible, it's dangerous. Unfortunately, without reinstating the Fairness Doctrine it's only going to get worse. For example, this video:

I'm all for free speech but when this much hateful, misinformed rhetoric is pumped through the media for several hours a day, every day, it's no wonder people are resorting to violence against members of congress over something like healthcare reform. There are many reasons justifying the call for revolution. However, I assure you, healthcare reform is not one of them.

In summary, I truly believe that healthcare reform will benefit us as individuals and as a country. It will be a huge win for the healthcare staffing industry. That said, I'm not a fan of the government and will watch the outcomes of this legislation closely and with a critical eye. I am also willing to admit when I'm wrong. Therefore, if the sky starts falling or we witness the collapse and devastation of the medical staffing industry, you'll see me at the next tea party rally.

I hope the opposite is also true. If you're an opponent of this legislation and none of these horrible things come to pass it would be great to hear you admit you were wrong someday.

Time will tell.

Bankruptcy Possible for Medical Staffing Network

The economy continues to take its toll on the healthcare staffing industry. Even the largest healthcare staffing agencies can't seem to find any shelter.

Yesterday, one of the largest healthcare staffing firms in the nation, Medical Staffing Network Holdings Inc., warned investors that it could file for Chapter 11 in bankruptcy court to fend off its lenders from enforcing a default. MSN also stated that they are continuing discussions with lenders over a default.

MSN's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday, said it has been out of compliance with the terms of its first lien credit agreement with General Electric Capital Corp. since Dec. 27. MSN's situation was exacerbated by a significant drop in their 2009 revenue.

As of today, Medical Staffing Network has yet to report its full 2009 results. However, in 2009 MSN lost $20 million of revenue in the first three quarters, on revenue of $265.2 million. This was a 37% decline in sales from the same period in 2008.

“The company believes that based on currently projected cash inflows generated from operations, it is possible that the company may be unable to pay future scheduled interest and principal payments due to its senior lenders as such obligations become due,” Medical Staffing Network stated in the SEC filing.

Boca Raton FL-based Medical Staffing Network Holdings ranked No. 4 on Staffing Industry Analysts' list of largest healthcare staffing firms.

Medical Staffing Network also runs a Managed Services Program (MSP) called One Source. Hopefully the staffing suppliers that subcontract with them have their money secured with an escrow account. It would be incredibly detrimental to the industry to have yet another VMS/MSP go bankrupt and leave their staffing suppliers with millions in owed revenue.

Revenue Continues to Drop for Major Healthcare Staffing Firms

The top two staffing agencies in the industry continue to see their revenue decline.

Yesterday, Cross Country Healthcare Inc. reported a fourth-quarter revenue decline of 39.7% to $124.1 million from fourth quarter 2008 revenue of $205.9 million. In addition, Cross Country's nurse and allied staffing revenue fell 47.1% on a year-over-year basis to $65.4 million. However, on a slightly positive note, their revenue in this area rose 2.1% sequentially from the third quarter. They also reported fourth-quarter net income of $398,000 compared with a net loss of $161.3 million in the same period in the previous year.

Today, AMN Healthcare announced similar numbers. AMN reported fourth-quarter revenue fell 51.1% on a year-over-year basis to $144.7 million. However, their relative good news was that their gross margins improved, reporting improvements from 25.7% to 28.4% from the previous years quarter. AMN's fourth-quarter nurse and allied healthcare staffing revenue also fell 64.3% to $74.0 million from $207.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Unlike Cross Country, revenue in the segment fell 9.9% sequentially from the third quarter.

"I'm certain most would agree that 2009 represented the most challenging year in the history of the healthcare staffing industry," President and CEO Susan Nowakowski said. "The unprecedented rise in unemployment and severe economic contraction wreaked havoc and resulted in precipitous drops in demand volumes unlike any other time."

Sadly, signs of economic recovery for the healthcare staffing industry still seem distant.

What if Booking A Plane Ticket Worked Like Our Healthcare System?

Whether you're for or against healthcare reform I think it's difficult to argue that our current system is working.

Think about the services you make use of every day from business to personal. Booking a hotel, finding a photo online, sharing information with your friends, or managing your internal work projects. Imagine if any of these services were as difficult to work with as our current healthcare system. Would you continue to use them?

Not being a big fan of the government, what shocks me is that, in this case, we're not talking about the government running something inefficiently. We're talking about private business. It's the private insurance companies that have failed to deliver a viable model or useful service when it comes to healthcare. How people can continue to support this broken system when they would have no tolerance for a similar level of service from the services they use everyday is beyond me.

This video is a parody of what it would be like to book a plane ticket with a travel agency that had a business model similar to our current healthcare system. Makes you think.