Introduction to the Healthcare Workforce Crisis
The healthcare industry in the United States is grappling with an unprecedented labor crisis. Rising patient volumes, tighter budgets, and persistent workforce shortages have placed immense pressure on hospitals and healthcare systems. These challenges have made it increasingly difficult to maintain high-quality patient care while ensuring clinician satisfaction and operational efficiency. To address these issues, Medical Solutions, a leading healthcare workforce solutions provider, conducts its annual Voices of Care Survey to gather critical insights from clinicians. In this episode of Healthcare Workforce Unplugged, a Medical Solutions podcast, host Kristin Dahl explores the findings of the 2025 survey, which collected feedback from nearly 4,000 clinicians, including registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs), allied health professionals, and certified nursing assistants (CNAs). The survey delves into how healthcare professionals perceive technology, support, and the factors influencing their job satisfaction.
Joining Kristin are two key figures from Medical Solutions: Chase Farmer, Chief Commercial Officer, and Karin Selfers, Chief Client Officer. Together, they unpack the survey’s findings and discuss how Medical Solutions leverages data, human interaction, and technology to address the evolving needs of clinicians and healthcare organizations. This article expands on their conversation, providing a comprehensive analysis of the survey results and their implications for the healthcare workforce.
The Voices of Care Survey: A Snapshot of Clinician Perspectives
Understanding Clinician Priorities
The Voices of Care Survey is designed to capture the authentic voices of healthcare professionals, offering a window into their experiences, preferences, and challenges. By surveying a diverse group of clinicians—ranging from RNs to CNAs—Medical Solutions aims to understand what truly matters to those on the front lines of healthcare. The 2025 survey, with responses from nearly 4,000 participants, provides a robust dataset that highlights key trends in the healthcare workforce. These insights are critical for healthcare leaders navigating the labor crisis, as they reveal the factors that drive clinician satisfaction, retention, and performance.
The Human-Technology Balance
One of the most striking findings from the survey is the overwhelming preference for a combination of human interaction and technology. Karin Selfers notes that 66% of respondents value both human support and digital tools in their work environment. This high percentage underscores the enduring importance of personal connections in healthcare, even as technology becomes increasingly integrated into daily operations. Only 11% of clinicians prefer engaging solely with a platform without human interaction, indicating that while technology is valued, it cannot replace the human element.
This finding challenges the notion that technology alone can solve workforce challenges. Clinicians, whether they are new to the profession or seasoned veterans, seek a balance that allows them to leverage digital tools for efficiency while maintaining meaningful human interactions. Karin reflects that this preference may evolve over time, but for now, the human touch remains a cornerstone of clinician satisfaction. This insight is particularly relevant for healthcare organizations looking to implement technology solutions without alienating their workforce.
Implications for Workforce Strategies
The survey’s emphasis on the human-technology balance has significant implications for healthcare organizations. For clinicians, the ideal work experience combines the efficiency of digital tools with the empathy and understanding of human support. This balance is especially critical in the context of travel nursing, where clinicians often work in unfamiliar environments and rely on their employer for both logistical and emotional support. Medical Solutions has incorporated this insight into its model, ensuring that clinicians receive personalized support tailored to their needs, whether they prefer a high-touch service or a more tech-driven approach.
Medical Solutions’ Approach to Clinician Support
Meeting Clinicians Where They Are
Chase Farmer emphasizes that Medical Solutions’ core philosophy is to meet clinicians where they are in their career journey. This approach recognizes the diversity of clinician needs, which vary based on experience level, personal preferences, and career stage. For example, a nurse embarking on their first travel contract may require extensive guidance and support, often described as a “white glove” service. In contrast, a seasoned traveler with 15 or 20 contracts may prefer the efficiency of a technology platform that allows them to manage their assignments independently.
Most clinicians, however, fall somewhere in the middle, seeking a blend of human support and digital tools. Medical Solutions invests significant resources in understanding these preferences and anticipating clinician needs. By doing so, the company ensures that clinicians can focus on delivering high-quality patient care rather than navigating logistical challenges. This clinician-centric approach not only enhances job satisfaction but also contributes to better patient outcomes, as satisfied clinicians are better equipped to provide compassionate and effective care.
Technology as an Enabler
Medical Solutions’ ability to balance human support with technology is a key differentiator in the healthcare workforce industry. The company’s recruitment process is designed to be flexible, accommodating the unique needs of each clinician. For example, technology platforms streamline tasks such as scheduling, credentialing, and contract management, allowing clinicians to focus on their core responsibilities. At the same time, dedicated support teams provide personalized guidance, ensuring that clinicians feel valued and supported throughout their journey.
This dual approach is particularly important in the context of contingent labor, where clinicians may work in multiple facilities and face unique challenges in each setting. By offering both technological efficiency and human empathy, Medical Solutions creates a seamless experience that empowers clinicians to thrive in their roles.
Partnering with Hospitals and Healthcare Systems
Beyond Technology: A Holistic Approach
While technology plays a critical role in workforce solutions, Karin Selfers stresses that Medical Solutions goes beyond providing a self-service platform. The company works closely with hospitals and healthcare systems to understand their specific pain points, using a combination of face-to-face interactions and data analytics. This collaborative approach allows Medical Solutions to develop tailored solutions that address the unique challenges of each client.
For example, hospitals often struggle with workforce shortages, high overtime costs, and inefficiencies in talent acquisition. Medical Solutions partners with these organizations to analyze their needs and implement strategies that optimize their workforce. This may involve augmenting full-time staff with contingent labor, streamlining recruitment processes, or leveraging technology to improve operational efficiency. By combining human expertise with data-driven insights, Medical Solutions helps clients achieve their workforce goals while maintaining a focus on patient care.
The Pitfalls of Technology-Only Solutions
One common mistake in the healthcare industry is the assumption that technology alone can solve complex workforce challenges. As Kristin Dahl points out, many companies provide hospitals with technology platforms and expect them to implement these solutions independently. However, healthcare teams are often stretched thin, with limited time to learn and adopt new systems. This approach can lead to frustration and inefficiency, as clinicians and administrators are forced to divert their attention from patient care.
Medical Solutions takes a different approach, recognizing that technology is most effective when paired with human support. By working alongside clients, the company ensures that technology is implemented in a way that aligns with their workflows and strategic objectives. This partnership model allows hospitals to maximize the value of technology while minimizing disruption to their operations.
Leveraging Data for Strategic Decision-Making
Transforming Data into Insights
Chase Farmer emphasizes that technology is a tool, not an outcome. Dashboards and spreadsheets, while useful, have little intrinsic value unless they are used to generate actionable insights. Medical Solutions focuses on extracting meaningful data from its technology platforms and using it to drive decision-making. This process begins with a deep understanding of each client’s organizational goals, whether they involve reducing costs, improving clinician retention, or enhancing patient care.
By analyzing data from the Voices of Care Survey and other sources, Medical Solutions identifies trends and patterns that inform its workforce strategies. For example, the survey’s finding that 66% of clinicians value human interaction highlights the need for personalized support in recruitment and retention efforts. Similarly, data on overtime costs and workforce shortages can help hospitals identify opportunities to optimize their staffing models. By turning data into insights, Medical Solutions empowers clients to make informed decisions that align with their long-term objectives.
Addressing Industry-Wide Challenges
The healthcare industry is facing a perfect storm of challenges, including rising patient volumes, tighter budgets, and persistent workforce shortages. These pressures have made it difficult for hospitals to maintain adequate staffing levels while controlling costs. Medical Solutions addresses these challenges by serving as a strategic partner, helping clients navigate the complexities of the labor market.
For example, the company uses data to analyze the impact of overtime on full-time staff and explore whether contingent labor could offer cost savings. This holistic approach ensures that workforce strategies are aligned with the broader goals of the organization, such as improving patient outcomes and maintaining financial sustainability.
The Role of AI in Healthcare Workforce Solutions
Augmenting, Not Replacing, Clinicians
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a buzzword in 2025, and its potential in healthcare is undeniable. However, Chase Farmer cautions that AI is not a replacement for human clinicians, particularly in bedside care. Instead, AI should be viewed as a tool to augment clinical work, enhancing efficiency and reducing administrative burdens. For example, AI can automate tasks such as documentation, coding, and scheduling, allowing clinicians to spend more time with patients.
One of the most promising applications of AI is in virtual care models, such as remote monitoring and telehealth. These technologies enable healthcare organizations to improve care delivery while reducing the workload on bedside nurses. By leveraging AI to monitor patients remotely, hospitals can allocate resources more effectively and ensure that clinicians can focus on high-priority tasks. Medical Solutions is actively exploring these innovations, working with clients to integrate AI-driven solutions into their workforce strategies.
Managing Expectations Around AI
While AI holds significant promise, it also comes with uncertainty. Many healthcare organizations are excited about the potential of AI but unsure how to implement it effectively. Medical Solutions plays a critical role in helping clients navigate this landscape, providing guidance on how to integrate AI into their operations without compromising the human element. By focusing on practical applications of AI, the company ensures that technology enhances, rather than detracts from, the clinician experience.
Strategic Partnerships: A Path to Success
The Shift Toward Fewer, Stronger Partnerships
Karin Selfers highlights a growing trend in the healthcare industry: organizations are seeking fewer but more strategic partnerships to manage their workforce needs. Rather than working with multiple vendors, hospitals are looking for a single partner that can provide comprehensive solutions. Medical Solutions fills this role by offering a combination of human expertise, data-driven insights, and advanced technology.
This approach is particularly important in today’s environment, where healthcare systems face mounting costs and operational challenges. By consulting on the entire workforce strategy—not just contingent labor—Medical Solutions helps clients address issues such as overtime, staffing shortages, and talent acquisition. This holistic approach ensures that workforce solutions are aligned with the organization’s broader goals, delivering maximum value.
Building a Cohesive Workforce Strategy
A cohesive workforce strategy requires a deep understanding of each client’s needs and objectives. Medical Solutions achieves this through close collaboration, using data to inform decisions and identify opportunities for improvement. For example, the company may analyze the cost of overtime in a hospital’s full-time workforce and recommend strategies to augment staffing with contingent labor. By taking a holistic view of the workforce, Medical Solutions helps clients build a more resilient and sustainable staffing model.
Key Takeaways for Healthcare Leaders
The Importance of Human Interaction
Karin Selfers hopes that healthcare leaders take away a key lesson from the Voices of Care Survey: human interaction remains critical to clinician satisfaction and retention. While technology is essential, it cannot replace the empathy and support provided by human connections. Medical Solutions is committed to delivering this balance, combining advanced technology with personalized support to create a positive experience for clinicians and clients alike.
Navigating Generational Shifts
Chase Farmer emphasizes the importance of understanding generational shifts in the healthcare workforce. With four generations currently working in healthcare—and Generation Alpha set to join in the coming years—organizations must adapt to diverse expectations and work preferences. The Voices of Care Survey highlights these differences, providing insights into how clinicians of different generations prioritize their work. Medical Solutions works with clients to navigate these shifts, ensuring that workforce strategies are inclusive and effective.
Preparing for the Future
As the healthcare industry continues to evolve, organizations must stay ahead of emerging trends and challenges. Medical Solutions is well-positioned to help clients navigate this landscape, offering data-driven insights, strategic partnerships, and innovative solutions. By focusing on the needs of clinicians and healthcare systems, the company is helping to build a more resilient and sustainable workforce for the future.
Conclusion
The Voices of Care Survey offers a powerful glimpse into the priorities and challenges of healthcare clinicians, highlighting the importance of balancing human interaction with technology. Medical Solutions leverages these insights to deliver tailored workforce solutions that address the needs of both clinicians and healthcare organizations. By combining data-driven strategies, human expertise, and innovative tools like AI, the company is helping to navigate the complexities of the healthcare labor crisis. As hospitals face mounting pressures, Medical Solutions remains a trusted partner, committed to building a stronger, more cohesive healthcare workforce.
