Technically, all hospitals adhere to acuity-based staffing. Staffing grids are created by each unit with the purpose of developing a financially responsible ratio of staff to provide care for the average acuity of patients. Every year these grids are evaluated and the average acuity may be adjusted based on patient population.
When a patient on a unit has an acuity level greater than the average the unit responds (with the help of properly sized and layered float resources) by providing additional staff. These adjustments should be simple, documented within the system, and made within the flow of the shift.
Vendors that offer acuity-centric staffing tools generally craft a compelling message regarding the necessity of a complex staffing system. In our experience, and more importantly, our clients’ experiences that have deinstalled these systems, the labor management solutions that have drifted deeply into the clinical world only serve to duplicate work that already exists within clinical operations.
Our clients have told us that the duplication of what already exists within the EMR system is heavy lifting and doesn’t address the operational components of staffing in a timely manner. Further, this complexity results in low user adoption and, consequently, a system that is ineffective at both of the things it was intended to do.
Rather, a healthcare scheduling software solution built on the principle of staffing to patient demand that can interface with an EMR system provides the best of both worlds.
- More accurate, more timely, less complex than labor management solutions that have drifted deeply into the clinical world
- Consistent, yet unit-specific staffing grids, accounting for average patient acuity levels and case mix
- Demand forecasting that provides an accurate, long-term forecast of volume, facilitating proactive staffing
- Incorporation of multiple daily feeds of actual patient volumes to continually refine forecasts in the weeks, days and hours leading up to the shift
- Simple, real-time logged adjustments based on actual patient acuity
Please feel free email me directly at jackie.larson@avantas.com to learn more about our approach of staffing to patient demand and how it works for our clients, including those in states that have patient acuity legislation.