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Strengthening Hospital Medicine Workforce Stability

Reducing Reliance on Temporary Staffing

Background

An 80-bed, non-profit community hospital in the northeastern United States partnered with ApolloMD to stabilize its Hospital Medicine program. At startup, leadership aimed to quickly build a sustainable staffing model to reduce reliance on locums and traveler coverage, improve continuity of care, and support long-term clinical operations.

Four clinicians walking down a hospital hallway while discussing a case. Four clinicians walking down a hospital hallway while discussing a case.

The Challenge

At launch, the Hospital Medicine program faced significant staffing instability and heavy dependence on non-core providers.

Core Team at Startup:

  • 3 full-time physicians
  • 3.75 full-time APCs

Operational and Clinical Challenges:

  • Disrupted continuity of care for hospitalized patients
  • Scheduling strain and workflow inefficiencies
  • Higher costs associated with temporary staffing
  • Difficulty establishing a cohesive, culture-driven team

Leadership needed to scale coverage quickly while building a stable, long-term workforce.

The Approach

ApolloMD implemented a targeted recruitment and stabilization strategy designed staff the Hospital Medicine team within the first year.

Key initiatives included:

  • Dedicated ApolloMD Hospital Medicine recruiters assigned specifically to the site
  • Strategic recruitment campaigns targeting both physicians and APCs
  • Close collaboration between ApolloMD Hospital Medicine leadership and onsite medical director support
  • Structured onboarding and dedicated credentialing support to accelerate clinician integration and retention
  • Ongoing workforce planning to minimize reliance on locums and travelers

The approach prioritized not only rapid hiring, but long-term retention, provider engagement, and operational stability.

“Establishing a strong core Hospital Medicine team had a significant impact on the stability of the program. ApolloMD helped us steadily move away from reliance on temporary providers and build a sustainable workforce that improved continuity of care and strengthened collaboration across the care team.”

Chief Operating Officer at Time of Transition

The Results

Within one year of startup, the Hospital Medicine program experienced rapid and measurable growth.

Core Team Growth (Within One Year)

  • Physicians increased from 3 full-time to 18 full-time
  • APCs increased from 3.75 full-time to 11 full-time

Sustained Staffing Stability (Jan–Sept 2025)

  • 95.03% of shifts staffed by core/PRN providers
  • 2.44% locum coverage
  • 2.53% traveler coverage

Impact: This hospital transitioned from heavy reliance on temporary providers to a fully staffed, stable core team covering 95% of shifts within one year.

Program Impact

By combining clinician-led leadership with national recruiting infrastructure, ApolloMD helped the hospital build a sustainable Hospital Medicine program capable of supporting long-term patient care.

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