Schedule360 – Gaps Grid Update Feature
October 26, 2022
One of the many things that sets Schedule360 apart from the rest is that we offer the most user friendly and configurable nurse scheduling software on the market. We continually develop new features and provide updates to existing features based on feedback from those working with our software out in the field.
One of the challenges associated with self-scheduling is that nurses tend to pick up shifts more often in the middle of the week. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday shifts fill up first, often leaving scheduling gaps on Mondays and Fridays. Recently we updated the gaps grid feature to help schedulers “smooth out” or balance the schedule shortly after self-scheduling occurs.
While it’s understandable that employees prefer having Mondays and Fridays off, it is better for the shifts, patients, and other nurses if the admins take some of the people who filled in the mid-week shifts and re-assign them to gaps on Monday and Friday. It is advantageous for everyone to have the gaps and filled shifts more evenly distributed so there isn’t an excess of gaps on Mondays and Fridays and no gaps mid-week. In short, this helpful shift balancing tool update allows admins to have better insight into openings and directly manage these shifts when unit resources are extremely sparse on certain days.
This update also makes it easier for management to pinpoint those employees who are supposed to be picking up weekend shifts but aren’t signing up for them. It also gives admins the ability to move employees who haven’t met their weekend targets into those unfilled shifts.
Why the Need for Shift Balancing Tools like Gaps Grid?
Insufficient staffing and scheduling processes contribute to poor workplace morale, burnout, and high turnover rates in nursing units. The challenges nurse schedulers face are immense. The unique demands of healthcare make it difficult to eliminate gaps in coverage that require 24/7 skilled staffing.
Using a scalable and configurable nurse scheduling software solution that speaks directly to common nurse scheduling pain points can bridge the gap between your current staff and the coverage needed to meet the growing demands for high-quality 24/7 patient care. By leveraging a robust software scheduling balancing tool designed specifically for healthcare staffing, you can streamline and optimize your resources, eliminating costly fall-out due to inefficient staff scheduling:
- Avoid unhealthy shift patterns that can influence morale.
- Decrease agency labor dependence.
- Reduce OT costs.
- Reduce HOT shifts.
- Improve quality of patient care.
- Increase nurse retention rates.
- Forecast patient demand in real-time.
- Automate redundant scheduling tasks.
- Dispatch credential and license renewal alerts to avoid lapses.
- Combat nursing shortages with optimized staff schedules for a better work/life balance.
Optimized Scheduling
Schedule360’s nurse scheduling software enables you to optimize shifts utilizing your current staff, therefore significantly reducing costly agency needs. In addition, you can take inventory of the resources you already have at your disposal using our scheduling software solution. Quickly track and organize the skills and credentials your organization already has available, eliminating the need to search elsewhere.
Reduction in OT
The right scheduling software allows you to dramatically cut down on mandatory OT by sifting out employees who are currently below target hours. Using Schedule360, you can easily spot gaps in coverage and optimize your current staff before turning to an outside agency or approving overtime.
Gap Reporting
Our robust gap reporting feature gives scheduling managers complete schedule transparency to see which shifts need to be filled and quickly reconcile the schedule efficiently.
Boost Staff Morale
Employee satisfaction is one of the most significant factors in staying or leaving a job. Workers want to feel appreciated and heard. However, schedulers need to be able to effectively communicate workplace needs regarding shift scheduling as a department can’t operate efficiently without staff there to do the work. Schedule360 scheduling software helps employees and schedulers overcome many of these barriers by streamlining the scheduling process and boosting employee morale as a result.
Improve Patient Care and Safety with Schedule360
Increase your levels of patient care significantly by partnering with Schedule360. Schedule balancing and optimizing your resources are crucial to improving patient care and safety, as well as boosting employee morale by providing a fair and balanced scheduling process. This is easily achievable by implementing a robust Schedule360 scheduling software solution. Our scheduling software is designed to help make employee scheduling a quick and easy process that everyone can feel good about.
Schedule360 is here to create efficiency in your current processes by providing tools to make it straightforward and painlessly easy for you to streamline and optimize your staff.
Contact Schedule360 to learn more about our simple, stress-free implementation process and to get acquainted with our outstanding 24/7 customer support team. Schedule a customized demo today.
