Recruiting revenue-cycle talent carries significant financial and time-efficiency costs. Filling senior-level revenue cycle talent vacancies has proven the most difficult for medical practices. They take a remarkable mean of 207 days to fill, with an average cost of $5,699. When it comes to mid-level revenue-cycle positions, fulfillment averages 153 days at a mean cost of $3,581. Entry-level positions are also hard to fill, as it takes a mean of 84 days and a cost of $2,167 to secure entry-level talent.
According to a survey from AKASA, developer of artificial intelligence (AI) for healthcare operations, difficulty recruiting revenue-cycle talent both adversely affects a practice’s productivity and increases burnout. Researchers found that revenue-cycle talent recruitment challenges are due to the larger Great Resignation trend that has led to increased staff turnover, especially in the healthcare industry. Researchers also observed that longer hours, more pressure to be productive, and the healthcare industry’s desire to make the patient financial experience better are putting stress on revenue-cycle management teams.
Survey results from Jackson Physician Search and Medical Group Management Association suggest that nurses, physicians, and other healthcare professionals present with higher-than-normal turnover rates. A significant number of survey respondents indicated high burnout levels, with almost 50% of respondents pondering retirement. According to a Mayo Clinic Proceedings study, 20% of physicians plan to leave their jobs within the next 2 years. Many administrators and clerical staff are also choosing to reduce their hours over the next year.
AKASA’s survey found that employing automation in revenue-cycle management can aid in resolving some of the above issues. Malinka Walaliyadde, co-founder and CEO of AKASA, suggests that medical practices change the way they work, urging physicians to dispose of repetitive activities and to employ staff to work on the most cognitively complex tasks. Although revenue-cycle automation is trending, outsourcing vendors to make up for vacancies in the revenue-cycle workforce is another strategy used by some medical practices. Revenue-cycle management company NextGen’s CEO David Sides notes an increased number of customers calling on his company for outsourcing services.
Whether via automation or outsourcing, reworking revenue-cycle talent recruitment strategies can help practices workforce gaps so that they can devote time needed for patient care.
