case study

How Deaconess Health System Reduced Incentive Spend and Cut Nursing Turnover in Half with Works

DEACONESS HEALTH SYSTEM

ABOUT DEACONESS

20+ Hospitals
150+ Care Sites
$2.8B Net Operating Revenue
1,200 Staffed Beds

DEACONESS’ CHALLENGES

High Nursing Turnover
Siloed Labor Pools
Unsustainable Premium Labor Cost
Manual Staffing Processes

DEACONESS’ GOALS

Reduce Nursing Staff Turnover
Reduce Dependence on Contract Labor
Deliver In-Demand Flexible Work Options
Proactively Manage Labor Spend with Data

SOLUTIONS IMPLEMENTED

Centralized Workforce Management Platform
Automated Staffing & Scheduling Processes
AI-Powered Dynamic Shift & Incentive Pricing
User-Friendly Nurse-Facing Scheduling App

Indiana-based Deaconess Health System needed a solution to control escalating labor costs and optimize their nurse staffing strategy. The organization wanted to reduce reliance on external labor, get a handle on premium spend, and improve nurse morale and retention. Key challenges identified included the high burden on frontline managers trying to fill or cover open shifts, Nursing turnover rates approaching 20% annually, and high spend on external agency labor.

Leaders at Deaconess found Works, an AI-powered platform that has allowed Deaconess to manage all open shift filling needs across multiple workforce groups within a single, automated platform. As a result, Deaconess operates today with significantly reduced burden on frontline managers, greatly improved flexibility for their clinical staff, and a data-driven approach to lowering labor rates systematically while simultaneously improving fill rates month over month.

The Works platform has allowed Deaconess to scale a Resource Team, which includes multiple types of flex work that can accommodate employees’ needs, from 140 members to over 350. Each having a direct relationship with Deaconess - reducing cost and supporting quality of care. Since deploying Works, Deaconess has reduced Nursing staff turnover to below 9% annually - key to their financial stability.

This case study showcases how Works has enabled Deaconess to streamline workforce management, manage labor costs down while improving fill rates, improve clinical staff engagement, and be positioned for sustainable growth and operational efficiency.

WHAT Deaconess HAS TO SAY

The major shift that we have undergone with the use of Works is a move from being highly reactive in how we managed staffing and labor costs, to being very proactive - we use a data-driven methodology. Works surfaces the necessary data and makes it easy to adjust our incentive policies.

KATIE BURNETT

MBA, PHR, SHRM-CP,
VP Human Resources

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Expand on demand capacity across your health system using your existing staff with Works.
Request a demo here or email sales@works.ai and get started in as little as two weeks.

The Need:

Improve Staff Retention and Engagement in Shift Coverage

Post-pandemic, Deaconess sought a creative solution to control staffing costs and reduce dependence on external labor to maintain safe staffing levels. They relied on external agency staff and an internal agency (where they employed staff at a higher contracted rate) to fill shifts. They wanted to encourage their internal core staff to pick up more shifts, but their old incentive system motivated internal nurses to delay shift pick-up to secure higher rates. Across all labor pools, costs were rising.

“We reached a point where we had to say, what’s our strategy going to be? We wanted to phase out our external agency and convert our internal agency to permanent staff. We wanted to stop feeling held hostage by rates and encourage internal staff to pick up shifts.” Katie Burnett, MBA, PHR, SHRM-CP, VP Human Resources said.

Deaconess had tried to manage incentives themselves, but the lack of real-time data and tools to manage incentives in an agile manner kept leadership in a reactive mode. With Works, Deaconess saw an opportunity to streamline shift rate and nurse scheduling decisions. Works would also provide the tools to systematically manage costs down over time.

The SOLUTION:

An AI-Enabled Workforce Management Platform

Works’ proven track record of reducing contingent labor costs and automating manual processes attracted Deaconess. Now 2+ years into managing multiple workforce layers across Nursing and Allied Health on Works, the data generated from the platform informs real-time decision making by leadership.

Works has been key to Deaconess’ retention and engagement strategy. Clinicians have visibility into available shift options across the health system, including transparent, real-time information on shift incentives that consistently direct staff to the health system’s most acute staffing needs - all without manual intervention.

"Works has allowed us to manage staff appropriately and even the playing field. We want to treat our clinical staff well and do the right thing for them, which includes rewarding them for picking up shifts - but we want to do it in a sustainable and manageable manner. One of the most satisfying results of the project has been seeing over 77% of our clinicians claim and work a shift through Works.” Burnett said.

READY TO GET STARTED?

Works connects to the systems you already use, including biweekly payroll data, daily shift scheduling data, and more. Request a demo here or email sales@works.ai and get started in as little as two weeks.

Key wins

Reduced Frontline Manager Burden

Works fills shifts automatically and reduces last-minute coverage needs.

Optimized Incentive Pricing

Works uses shift demand, eligible clinician supply, and other factors to apply incentives only where they are most needed.

Flexibility Delivered

Preference-driven mobile alerts and intuitive app ensure clinicians own their schedule.

How Works Helped Deaconess Achieve these Wins

Process Automation

Works moved arduous manual staffing and scheduling processes to automated workflows that require no manager intervention, reducing admin time. Key to driving cost savings, Works also sequences shift visibility by workforce group - ensuring that core staff and lower cost flex pool workers can access the shifts prior to higher cost PRN and gig staff.