Labor Costs in Healthcare
Operational costs are always a topic of discussion in hospitals, healthcare facilities in ambulatory surgical centers. Some of the drivers for operational costs expenditures to rise or labor costs. Some key drivers of labor costs can be drilled down to inclusivity of the labor market and salary demands. The growing population that encompasses the aging patients and increasing acute clinical needs , and consumerism. Within these categories there can be specifics tied to the increase and costs to align with productivity and improvement, technology and innovation and employee benefit design.
Initially looking at the labor market and the competitive and noncompetitive wages that many of our front line and nursing staff did form. Excusing the pun there is a wage war that exists within itself between hospital facilities, and healthcare enterprises with some of the same stuff shuffled back-and-forth in order to increase their income and bottom line by seeking employment in between different organizations. This is simply done with the hopes of eventually gaining in increasing their salary pennies on the dollar. Many organizations that are aware of this tactic or increasing added benefits to employment that would contribute to retention of great employees and reduce turnover which is costly. Some organizations are offering flexible work schedules, working from home for some positions as well as reimbursements for additional education and training in lieu of competitive salaries when budgetary constraints prevent competitive salaries for being an option.
According to an article published in Health Economics entitled, The impact of financial incentives on health and health care: Evidence from a large wellness program written by Einav, Liran Lee, Stephanie; Levin, Jonathan, The answer to the growing population that includes the aging population with increased chronic clinical needs would be to promote a wellness program. This business decision would be less costly than caring for some of the chronic clinical needs that a patient would have. Organizations are looking at value added benefits that are covered through insurance companies and leveraging that as a program offered through community health practices that are connected to local hospitals. Amplifying these resources can help to reduce chronic diagnose care and replace it with preventative wellness care as a marketing and cost saving initiative.
Consumerism is the economic and social position that promotes the interests of the consumer. In healthcare the consumer would be the patient. Often times under the informed consumer market patients will shop for healthcare and request estimates prior to them obtaining care or treatment. This level of patient and knowledge and powers patients to make informed decisions that would affect their out-of-pocket costs, but it also pivots the decision making from the healthcare providers to include patients. Many hospitals are now offering single case agreements, full estimates to patients upon request and are working with hospitals and networks in order to drive patient care to their facility and network of providers based on insurance coverage network. Consumerism has forced facilities to create a forward patient user friendly atmosphere that starts from booking an appointment through different digital and non-digital platforms to arriving onsite at the facility and be greeted by patient navigators that will assist patients in navigating the facility to get to their appointments.
There costs associated with retaining staff and reducing turnover, hiring digital innovation team and patient navigators. Creating a budget to support training and technology for a flexible work schedule. Most of these things will drive up the cost for labor. In the end much of it is recoupable if we become front runners to maintaining a facility where employees and patients find value in the organization overall
References
Einav, L., Lee, S., & Levin, J. (2019). The Impact of Financial Incentives on Health and Health Care: Evidence from a Large Wellness Program. Health Economics, 28(2), 261–279.
Dugan, J. (2015). Trends in Managed Care Cost Containment: An Analysis of the Managed Care Backlash. Health Economics, 24(12), 1604–1618.
Coombs, C. K., Newman, R. J., Cebula, R. J., & White, M. L. (2015). The Bargaining Power of Health Care Unions and Union Wage Premiums for Registered Nurses. Journal of Labor Research, 36(4), 442–461.
Operational costs are always a topic of discussion in hospitals, healthcare facilities in ambulatory surgical centers. Some of the drivers for operational costs expenditures to rise or labor costs. Some key drivers of labor costs can be drilled down to inclusivity of the labor market and salary demands. The growing population that encompasses the aging patients and increasing acute clinical needs , and consumerism. Within these categories there can be specifics tied to the increase and costs to align with productivity and improvement, technology and innovation and employee benefit design.
Initially looking at the labor market and the competitive and noncompetitive wages that many of our front line and nursing staff did form. Excusing the pun there is a wage war that exists within itself between hospital facilities, and healthcare enterprises with some of the same stuff shuffled back-and-forth in order to increase their income and bottom line by seeking employment in between different organizations. This is simply done with the hopes of eventually gaining in increasing their salary pennies on the dollar. Many organizations that are aware of this tactic or increasing added benefits to employment that would contribute to retention of great employees and reduce turnover which is costly. Some organizations are offering flexible work schedules, working from home for some positions as well as reimbursements for additional education and training in lieu of competitive salaries when budgetary constraints prevent competitive salaries for being an option.
According to an article published in Health Economics entitled, The impact of financial incentives on health and health care: Evidence from a large wellness program written by Einav, Liran Lee, Stephanie; Levin, Jonathan, The answer to the growing population that includes the aging population with increased chronic clinical needs would be to promote a wellness program. This business decision would be less costly than caring for some of the chronic clinical needs that a patient would have. Organizations are looking at value added benefits that are covered through insurance companies and leveraging that as a program offered through community health practices that are connected to local hospitals. Amplifying these resources can help to reduce chronic diagnose care and replace it with preventative wellness care as a marketing and cost saving initiative.
Consumerism is the economic and social position that promotes the interests of the consumer. In healthcare the consumer would be the patient. Often times under the informed consumer market patients will shop for healthcare and request estimates prior to them obtaining care or treatment. This level of patient and knowledge and powers patients to make informed decisions that would affect their out-of-pocket costs, but it also pivots the decision making from the healthcare providers to include patients. Many hospitals are now offering single case agreements, full estimates to patients upon request and are working with hospitals and networks in order to drive patient care to their facility and network of providers based on insurance coverage network. Consumerism has forced facilities to create a forward patient user friendly atmosphere that starts from booking an appointment through different digital and non-digital platforms to arriving onsite at the facility and be greeted by patient navigators that will assist patients in navigating the facility to get to their appointments.
There costs associated with retaining staff and reducing turnover, hiring digital innovation team and patient navigators. Creating a budget to support training and technology for a flexible work schedule. Most of these things will drive up the cost for labor. In the end much of it is recoupable if we become front runners to maintaining a facility where employees and patients find value in the organization overall
References
Einav, L., Lee, S., & Levin, J. (2019). The Impact of Financial Incentives on Health and Health Care: Evidence from a Large Wellness Program. Health Economics, 28(2), 261–279.
Dugan, J. (2015). Trends in Managed Care Cost Containment: An Analysis of the Managed Care Backlash. Health Economics, 24(12), 1604–1618.
Coombs, C. K., Newman, R. J., Cebula, R. J., & White, M. L. (2015). The Bargaining Power of Health Care Unions and Union Wage Premiums for Registered Nurses. Journal of Labor Research, 36(4), 442–461.