October 3, 2016 – Filling open shifts can be a hectic, emotional, and financially challenging process for provider organizations. The practice of doing so can vary by department, as can the incentives offered for picking up open shifts.
The result can be a chaotic, inefficient, and last-minute process that pits units against one another to compete for resources instead of the organization working together in a coordinated effort to meet demand.
Through successful practice, we have found that an open shift methodology that adheres to the following five criteria is successful at filling open shifts in a fair, efficient, cost-effective, proactive, and standardized manner.