Agencies interview and screen nurses to make sure they are qualified, and the agencies also coordinate schedules. And while hospitals lament the strain that agency hires place on their budgets, staffing managers maintain that the benefits outweigh the costs. InteliStaf's DeChance says if hospitals didn't use agencies to supplement their work force, they couldn't care for as many patients and would be forced to cancel even more surgeries, translating into lost revenue. Staffing agencies have several advantages over health care institutions and draw a steady stream of nurses. Agency nurses cannot be required to stay beyond their scheduled shifts.
Nobody likes to be mandated.
And most agencies pay higher wages. MSN regularly advertises its rates. Some agencies even provide benefits. InteliStaf places mostly RNs and LPNs, but also CNAs, respiratory therapists and X-ray technicians. Its roster has grown from about 50 people eight years ago to more than 300 now.