Almost every long-term care operator uses agency staff at some point. Used well, agency coverage is a bridge: it keeps a unit safe and staffed while hiring catches up or while a spike in census passes. The risk is that a bridge quietly becomes a road. When the same shifts on the same units are covered by agency week after week, the gap has become a habit.
A dashboard that tracks agency use makes the shift from bridge to habit visible, which is the first step to deciding what to do about it.
What to Track
A useful agency view does not need to be complicated. Start with:
- Agency hours by building, unit, shift and role, shown weekly.
- Agency hours as a share of total hours, so buildings of different sizes can be compared.
- Number of distinct shifts covered by agency each week, and how many were recurring.
- Cost per hour compared with employed staff, if your finance team can share it.
- Open positions that would otherwise fill those shifts.
Spot Patterns, Not Just Totals
A monthly total can hide the story. Look for patterns:
- Recurring shifts. If the same Tuesday night shift on the same unit is filled by agency every week, that is a vacancy in practice.
- Role concentration. Heavy agency use in one role may point to a pay, market or recruiting issue specific to that role.
- Building concentration. One building pulling far more agency hours than similar buildings suggests a local issue worth understanding.
- Seasonality. Some gaps cluster around holidays or certain times of year.
Separate Bridge From Habit
A helpful way to frame the data is to divide agency use into categories:
- Bridge: short-term coverage for a known, temporary need.
- Pattern: the same shifts repeating over many weeks.
- Emergency: last-minute coverage for call-offs.
Each category has a different response. Bridge needs a plan for ending. Pattern suggests a hiring or schedule change. Emergency suggests looking at call-off practices and float options.
Connect to Quality and Continuity
Beyond cost, there is a care continuity angle. Residents benefit from staff who know them, and employed staff generally build that familiarity more readily. Pairing agency data with feedback and call-light response patterns can show whether heavy agency use correlates with other operational concerns. Treat that as a question to explore, not a conclusion.
A Hypothetical Example
Picture a hypothetical 110-bed building where agency use looks modest as a building-wide share. Broken out by unit and shift, however, one night-shift position on a single unit has been covered by agency nearly every week for several months. Leadership realizes the posting has been open a long time and that the shift differential is not competitive in the local market. They adjust the offer and track whether the recurring agency shift declines.
A building-wide share would never have revealed that.
Use the Data in Hiring Conversations
When recruiters and administrators can see exactly which shifts are most often filled by agency, they can target their efforts. A specific list of hard-to-fill shifts is easier to act on than a general sense that the building needs more staff.
Coordinate Across Buildings
In multi-facility groups, a view across buildings can reveal opportunities such as a float pool or shared hiring events. Seeing which buildings struggle with which roles helps leaders plan shared solutions.
Keep the Conversation Practical
Agency staff are often skilled and valuable members of the care team. The goal of tracking is not to criticize their use but to ensure it is intentional. Share the data with administrators as a planning tool and ask what support they need to reduce recurring gaps.
A Simple Review Routine
- Review agency hours weekly in your staffing huddle.
- Flag recurring shifts and assign an owner to each.
- Check progress monthly against hiring and retention efforts.
- Revisit pay and schedule offers if gaps persist.
Seeing Your Own Picture
CarePulse Analytics combines scheduling, payroll and census data so agency use can be tracked by unit, shift and role. If you would like to see where your own gaps are becoming habits, a demo can show you.