Top 6 Nurse Staffing Software For Your Facility
byPaper-based schedules and spreadsheets can’t handle the complexity of managing nurse schedules in 24/7 healthcare facilities. Plus, understaffing and shift conflicts plague medical facilities and agencies. The best nurse scheduling software maximizes your nursing workforce by balancing patient needs, staff preferences, and adequate shift coverage.
That’s where nurse staffing software comes in—to simplify the scheduling process, reduce the administrative burden on managers, and ensure that your facility has the right staff in the right place at the right time.
Here are the key things to know about choosing the right nurse staffing software for your facility:
Key takeaways:
- Scalability across multiple locations and facilities is crucial for large healthcare systems.
- Seamless integrations with payroll, timekeeping, and other systems streamline processes.
- Real-time data insights and labor cost reporting help optimize staffing and control expenses.
- Automated shift templates and flexible scheduling rules simplify building compliant schedules.
- Top solutions offer self scheduling, open shift management, and mobile apps for staff.
Explore the top nurse staffing software solutions for your healthcare facility in detail.
Table of contents
- Key features to look for in nurse staff scheduling software
- Nurse staffing comparison table
- Best nurse staff scheduling software 2024
- Discover efficient nurse staff scheduling with When I Work
Key features to look for in nurse staff scheduling software
As you evaluate nurse scheduling solutions, look for powerful yet user-friendly platforms. The right software can dramatically streamline processes and reduce staff burnout. Here are some crucial features to prioritize in your search:
Ability to scale across facilities
When your healthcare organization expands, having nurse staffing software that accommodates growth and manages multiple facilities from a single platform becomes essential.
Scalable software allows you to add new facilities, places, or departments without retraining and ensures consistent scheduling practices across all locations. Streamlining your approach saves time and resources, allowing your organization to focus on what matters most—providing high-quality patient care.
Advanced reporting and analytics features are often included in scalable software, empowering you to gain insights into your staffing needs across all locations.
Using these invaluable insights, you can efficiently allocate resources, identify staffing gaps, and make informed decisions to maintain optimal care standards. Your healthcare organization can optimize its workforce, reduce costs, and improve overall operational efficiency when you leverage the power of data-driven decision-making.
Payroll, time clock, and other integrations
It would help if you had a staffing solution that seamlessly integrates with payroll, time clocks, and HR databases. Look for software that syncs your payroll with employee data, hours, and pay rates to save time and prevent errors. Time clock integration automatically tracks clock ins, clock outs, overtime, and attendance, ensuring accurate schedules.
Integrating your staffing software with HR systems, EHRs, and scheduling software creates a cohesive ecosystem where data flows freely. You can consolidate all the necessary information in one place, improving visibility, compliance, and staffing decisions based on real-time data.
The right integrations transform your staffing software into a central hub for all your healthcare management systems, streamlining processes and enhancing overall efficiency.
Real-time data insights and labor cost reporting
Making informed decisions in healthcare facilities is crucial. When you seek out software that offers up-to-the-minute data on staffing levels, patient needs, and workload across all units and facilities, you empower yourself to identify issues like understaffing and reallocate resources before they escalate into major problems. You can also use real-time analytics to improve efficiency by highlighting bottlenecks and inefficiencies, enabling prompt corrective action.
A robust staffing software solution meticulously monitors all labor expenses, including regular hours, overtime, contract workers, and agency usage. With this level of transparency, you can optimize staffing and control inflated budgets. With accurate cost data, you can make strategic staffing decisions that align with your organization’s financial goals and ensure top-tier patient care.
Automated shift templates
Creating nurse schedules from scratch can be time-consuming and error-prone. Staffing software addresses this issue with automated shift templates. You can define and save your facility’s typical shift patterns, staff-to-patient ratios, break rules, and other important parameters. Once you set up these templates, you can automate scheduling with just a few clicks, saving valuable time and effort.
Automated templates go beyond mere time-saving—they ensure consistency across all schedules, guaranteeing proper staffing levels. The templates also automatically factor in staff preferences, skills, and certifications, so you don’t have to remember which units qualify each nurse for manually. Templated schedules give you confidence that each shift has the right team to deliver exceptional patient care.
Nurse staffing comparison table
Here’s an overview of the leading nurse staffing software platforms:
| Product | Price | Features | Benefits | Pros | Cons | Free Trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| When I Work | Plans start at $1.50/user/month | • Employee scheduling • Time clock • Team messaging • Payroll | • Streamlined workforce management • Cost control • Efficiency | • Seamless scheduling • Cost-effective | Billing structure | ✅ |
| Zoho Shifts | $1/user up to $2/user | • Scheduling • Time tracking • Team messaging | • Simplified analysis • Chat system | • Notifications • Easy access | • No payroll • Export needed | Yes |
| ScheduleFlex | Must contact company | • Schedule automation • Worker engagement • Leave management | • Centralizes storage • Enhances transparency | • User-friendly • Improved support | Lack of tutorials and customer service | No |
| QGenda | Must contact company | • Advanced scheduling • Credentialing • Time tracking | • Seamless integration • Transparent access | • Responsive support • Customizable visibility | • Poor interface • Limited troubleshooting | No |
| Deputy | $4.50/user up to $6/user | • Scheduling • Time tracking • Leave management | • Efficient scheduling • Integration with Xero | • Customer service • Seamless integration | • Integration challenges • Mandatory monthly fee | Yes |
| Sign In Scheduling | Starting at $460 per site, per year | • Multi-channel reminders • Customizable booking system • Integration with 5,000+ apps | • Reduces no-shows by up to 90% • Streamlines appointment management | • Highly customizable • Extensive app integrations | • Relatively expensive compared to other options • No free version is available | Yes |
Best nurse staff scheduling software 2024
With so many options on the market, it can be challenging to choose the right nurse scheduling solution. Check out these six platforms to narrow your search.
1. When I Work
Rating: 4.3/5 (G2)
Key features:
- Cloud-based for anytime, anywhere access
- Mobile apps for iOS and Android
- Drag-and-drop scheduling
- Automated scheduling rules and templates
- Time clock integrations
- Labor forecasting and budgeting tools
- Built-in messaging and communications
When I Work provides a unified system of employee scheduling, time tracking, and payroll calculations to eliminate the need for manual data entry and reduce the risk of errors.
With When I Work, you can use automated, customized schedule templates that address your facility’s scheduling demands. Plus, the ability to process payroll in real-time and gain visibility into labor costs allows you to access up-to-the-minute payroll calculations and process payday with just a few clicks.
User-friendly dashboards enable you to forecast budgets, monitor expenditures, and make well-informed staffing decisions.
The software simplifies generating year-end W2 and 1099 filings by automatically creating them for you. Having scheduling, time tracking, and payroll within a single platform enhances efficiency and provides a comprehensive overview of your workforce management, allowing you to optimize resources and control costs.
Pricing: When I Work starts at $1.50 per user with an Essentials plan.
2. Zoho Shifts
Key features:
- Flexible scheduling rules and policies
- Mobile apps for staff scheduling and time tracking
- Team messaging and communication tools
With Zoho Shifts, you can tailor your scheduling rules and policies to accommodate even the most complex schedules. The user-friendly mobile apps allow your staff to access schedules, request time off, swap shifts, and clock in and out remotely.
Zoho Shifts’ team messaging capabilities enable communication regarding scheduling matters, keeping everyone on the same page. However, the platform lacks native payroll processing functionality, requiring integration with a third-party provider for a complete payroll solution.
Pricing: Zoho Shifts offers pricing plans starting at $1 per user and going up to $2 per user, depending on the required features and number of users.
3. ScheduleFlex
Key features:
- Flexible scheduling methods (top down, self scheduling, etc.)
- Real-time communication and schedule change management
- Intelligent staffing allocation across employee types
ScheduleFlex stands out for its flexibility to support various scheduling methodologies, from top-down manager scheduling to employee self scheduling. It lets you implement best-practice processes tailored to each department’s needs.
With the platform’s real-time communication tools and visibility into your entire workforce pool, you can intelligently allocate staff across employee types. However, some users cite some downsides, like an outdated web interface that could use modernization and a learning curve for new staff.
Pricing: ScheduleFlex does not provide pricing information on its website—contact their sales team directly to get accurate pricing details.
4. QGenda
Key features:
- Intelligent rules-based provider scheduling
- Credentialing and privileging management
- Centralized on-call scheduling
QGenda is a healthcare workforce management solution that significantly reduces the time required to create and manage dynamic schedules across the enterprise. It generates optimized schedules that minimize premium labor costs while improving staff retention.
The mobile-first approach ensures ease of use, flexibility, and transparency, engaging nurses and staff. QGenda’s integrated Time and Attendance functionality aligns pay rules with shifts worked, resulting in accurate payroll processing.
Pricing: QGenda does not provide pricing information on its website—contact their sales team directly to get accurate pricing details.
5. Deputy
Key features:
- Intuitive staff scheduling and shift management
- Mobile apps for staff schedule access and communication
- Open shift swapping and callout management
Deputy’s scheduling tools let you create schedules in minutes based on employee availability, skills, labor costs, and more. Your staff can trade shifts, pick up open slots, and access schedules from anywhere with mobile apps and open shift management capabilities. It reduces the administrative burden on managers.
Some users have reported lagging data syncs, difficulties integrating with other systems like payroll, the requirement to pay for admin accounts, and frustrations with automatic unpaid break deductions as some of the software’s downsides.
Pricing: Deputy offers a free starter plan, with paid plans starting at $6/user.
6. Sign In Scheduling
Key features:
- Multi-channel reminders to reduce no-shows
- Customizable booking system with 100+ features
- Integration with 5,000+ apps, including Zoom and Salesforce
Sign In Scheduling is a powerful and feature-rich scheduling software that helps businesses streamline their appointment management processes. Its advanced reminder system, which includes multi-channel notifications, can help reduce no-shows by up to 90%. Use your staff’s time efficiently and effectively, minimizing the impact of missed appointments on your organization’s productivity.
One of the standout features of Sign In Scheduling is its highly customizable booking system, which offers over 100 features to tailor the software to your specific needs.
Pricing: Sign-In Scheduling offers a 15-day free trial, with subscription plans starting at $460 per site annually.
Discover efficient nurse staff scheduling with When I Work
When I Work is a unified solution that seamlessly combines scheduling, time tracking, attendance, messaging, and payroll processing into one powerful platform. This eliminates redundant data entry and provides real-time visibility into staffing needs, labor costs, and budget forecasting.
Nursing managers can create staffing rotations that comply with qualifications and staffing ratios using intuitive scheduling tools, automated templates, and mobile staff apps.
When I Work can streamline your facility’s staff scheduling—just start a free trial today to experience the benefits of simplified, cost-effective workforce management.
