The healthcare staffing landscape is constantly evolving, shaped by workforce shortages, technology advancements, and caregiver needs. For healthcare organizations and staffing agencies, understanding trends in shift staffing (like per diem assignments) and travel nurse staffing is crucial to building adaptable, effective strategies. Both approaches aim to address critical gaps, but each carries unique advantages and challenges. With the rise of digital platforms and automated solutions, there’s an increasing opportunity to optimize the way we connect healthcare talent to patient care needs.
Below, we’ll explore the latest trends in healthcare staffing, compare the two primary models, and highlight how innovative tools can create efficiencies to help meet staffing demands.
Emerging trends in shift staffing
Shift staffing focuses on short-term assignments, often filled locally through per diem nursing arrangements. These flexible roles cater to immediate needs, ensuring healthcare facilities can remain operational during peak demand or unforeseen scheduling gaps. Several key trends are shaping this model today.
1. The rise of on-demand staffing platforms
On-demand digital platforms have revolutionized how shifts are filled. These apps enable facilities to post open shifts in real time. Nurses can claim them instantly, simplifying the process. Survey data indicates that 98% of healthcare executives are already using or exploring these types of tools to bridge staffing gaps. These platforms cut down administrative overhead and allow agencies to deploy resources quickly during patient volume surges.
2. Flexibility as a priority
The demand for workplace flexibility has never been higher. Many nurses prefer temporary or per diem roles over permanent full-time positions. Why? Because these roles offer more control over schedules, which helps mitigate burnout. Flexible scheduling reduces reliance on mandatory overtime. Studies show that when shifts exceed 12.5 hours, the likelihood of errors significantly increases.
3. Leveraging local talent
Cost efficiency is another key driver of shift staffing’s popularity. By focusing on local talent pools, agencies and facilities avoid costs like relocation and housing stipends. Many organizations are building internal float pools and partnering with regional staffing firms as part of their post-pandemic stabilization plans. This approach not only reduces expenditure but also ensures continuity of care, as local nurses are already familiar with facility protocols.
4. Real-Time credentialing and compliance
Credentialing used to be a time-consuming process, but modern platforms have automated this critical step. Real-time verification of nursing credentials equips facilities to fill last-minute needs without delaying patient care. These features also ensure facilities remain compliant with regulatory standards, even in the face of rapid staffing changes.
5. Tackling burnout and retention
Staff burnout remains a significant concern, driving turnover across the healthcare industry. Flexible staffing models can help spread workloads and alleviate stress, ultimately protecting both full-time and contingent staff from overwork. For example, one hospital system recently reduced nurse overtime while increasing retention simply by using contingent talent to fill open shifts.
Key developments in travel nurse staffing
Travel nursing occupies a different niche. These longer-term assignments, usually lasting 8–26 weeks, are often used to address chronic staffing shortages or recruit specialists for underserved areas. Travel nursing remains essential, though recent trends have caused shifts in how it operates.
1. Post-pandemic market adjustments
At the height of the pandemic, travel nursing demand skyrocketed, resulting in a 430% growth from 2018 to 2022. However, 2023 and 2024 saw significant market corrections, with revenue dropping 30% as hospitals sought to rely more on permanent hires. Despite this, travel nursing continues to grow in critical areas like ICUs or emergency departments, where shortages persist. Looking ahead to 2025, the segment is anticipated to grow modestly by 5%, driven by the need for specialty skills.
2. Competitive compensation
Travel nurses often earn significantly more than their full-time counterparts, with average salaries ranging between $90,000–$100,000 annually. These roles also come with added benefits like housing stipends and bonuses, making them attractive even during fluctuations in demand. For healthcare facilities, however, the higher cost of travel nurses can strain budgets, particularly over the long term.
3. Expanding telehealth opportunities
One emerging area for travel nurses is telehealth. Remote job assignments are becoming more prevalent, allowing nurses to care for patients via video platforms while still based in another location. This trend continues to grow, offering flexibility for nurses and new avenues for facilities to deliver care.
4. Specialized skill demand
Alongside traditional roles, there’s increasing demand for travel nurses with specialized expertise in areas like mental health, geriatrics, and chronic disease management. Facilities are also placing a greater emphasis on cultural competence, ensuring traveling nurses can provide equitable care in diverse settings.
5. Challenges with integration
Hospitals often report cultural disruptions when integrating travel nurses into their teams. Executives also cite financial pressures, as travel nurses accounted for nearly 39% of labor costs at peak demand in 2022—up from just 5% in 2019. These challenges emphasize the need for cost-effective staffing alternatives, even as travel nurses remain essential for hard-to-fill positions.
Shift staffing vs. travel nurse staffing
Both staffing models have strengths, but choosing the right one depends on specific needs. Here’s how they compare across key dimensions:
1. Assignment length
- Shift staffing: Focuses on short-term needs, typically daily or weekly.
- Travel nursing: Fills longer-term gaps, often 8–26 weeks.
2. Cost efficiency
- Shift staffing: More affordable as it leverages local staff and eliminates stipends
- Travel nursing: Higher costs due to premiums and travel-related expenses
3. Flexibility vs. stability
- Shift staffing: Attracts professionals seeking flexible schedules
- Travel nursing: Provides stability and better pay for those willing to relocate
4. Integration into teams
- Shift staffing: Keeps continuity of care by using local professionals familiar with the facility
- Travel nursing: Faces challenges with integration due to short-term tenures
5. Application of technology
Both models benefit from tools that streamline operations. Automated systems, for instance, can ease pay rate calculations, compliance oversight, and credential management.
Harness technology to optimize staffing outcomes
Whether focused on shift staffing or travel nursing, one universal truth is clear—technology is transforming the industry. Features like real-time matching, automated deal creation, and integrated credentialing make it possible to fill shifts faster, ensure compliance, and improve cost management. Platforms with configurable rules for pay types, overtime, and stipends help staffing agencies optimize efficiency while retaining profitability.
Investing in robust systems not only simplifies processes but also supports agencies in providing scalable, flexible staffing solutions.
The future of healthcare staffing
The healthcare staffing market will continue to grow, propelled by factors like an aging population and persistent workforce shortages. Localized models like per diem staffing will remain a top choice for cost-conscious facilities, while travel nursing will thrive in specialized and underserved sectors.
To stay competitive, agencies and organizations must leverage the latest tools to streamline operations, reduce costs, and improve caregiver experience. Achieving the right balance between these staffing models will be key to addressing today’s healthcare challenges efficiently.
For solutions that streamline staffing processes and improve outcomes, explore relevant tools and resources designed for healthcare staffing needs.
