Travel nurses cost 2.5 to 4 times more than employed staff. And often that spend is preventable — panic-buying driven by a lack of visibility into internal capacity. While an important and solid option, it should be your last option. CareTeams' GigPool™ is the programmatic engine that perfects the order of talent deployment. Core staff first. Float second. PRN third. Agency only when everyone else has declined. Internal capacity exhausted before a single agency dollar is spent — by design, automatically, at scale.
GIGPOOL™ - INTELLIGENT WORKFORCE TIERING
Your most expensive clinician shouldn't be
the one you just met.
THE ECONOMICS - WHY AGENCY SPEND IS THE MOST PREVENTABLE LINE ITEM ON YOUR P&L
2.5 - 4X
cost multiple of travel nurses vs. employed staff
$102–$160/hr vs. $41/hr —
Syntellis 2024
$13.4B
U.S. healthcare travel nurse market in 2024 — growing 7.8% annually
Staffing Industry Analysts
40%
average reduction in agency spend when internal tiers are exhausted first
CareTeams Customer Data
Most agency spend could be more strategic; it is currently driven by a lack of visibility into internal workflows. Implementing the right intelligence layer solves this, unlocking hidden efficiency.
The hospital CFO sees agency spend on every monthly financial report. The CHRO sees it in every workforce planning meeting. The CNO sees its consequences on every shift where a travel nurse arrives not knowing the unit, the team, or the workflow. Everyone sees the problem. Almost no one has the governance tools to solve it systematically. That's the gap GigPool™ was built to close.
MEET MAYA
A float nurse whose career just became a lot more flexible — and a lot more valuable.
THE FOUR-TIER GOVERNANCE MODEL. TECH-ENABLED.
Every open shift broadcasts through a programmatic sequence designed to minimize cost and maximize continuity of care. Each tier is fully configurable — you define the rules and the time windows, GigPool™ enforces them automatically.
TIER 1 -
Core Staff
Full-time employed clinicians with the right credentials and availability — first right of refusal on every open shift, at the best rate.
IF NO MATCH OR DECLINE WITHIN CONFIGURED TIME WINDOW
TIER 2 -
Float Pool
Internal cross-trained staff credentialed across units and facilities in the network — Maya's tier. Float differentials apply — deployed before external resources
IF NO MATCH OR DECLINE WITHIN CONFIGURED TIME WINDOW
TIER 3 -
PRN - Per Diem
Pre-credentialed per diem and PRN staff, plus alumni, who have opted into the shift pool and meet all qualification requirements.
Higher rate, still internal, drives engagement and retention
IF NO MATCH OR DECLINE WITHIN CONFIGURED TIME WINDOW
TIER 4 -
Agency | Travel | VMS
External agency staff — a valuable option, a valuable option, engaged when internal tiers cannot meet the need.
HIDDEN CAPACITY
Alumni reengagement — the workforce you already trained, quietly available again.
Most workforce systems treat former employees as deleted records. GigPool™ treats them as a distinct, valuable resource tier — reached via simplified re-onboarding when they're available, and automatically excluded from broadcasts when they're not. Retired nurses, parents on extended leave, clinicians who left for travel contracts and miss the team camaraderie — all of them are latent capacity. GigPool™ is how you reach them, credential them, and deploy them without reopening a full hire process.
~32%
of nurses who leave a facility do so for reasons other than permanent career exit — making them prime candidates for PRN reengagement with the right invitation and the right tools.
NSI National Healthcare Retention Report, 2024
WHAT GIGPOOL™ DELIVERS - BY THE AUDIENCE THAT MATTERS TO YOU
FOR
THE CHRO - A workforce strategy that actually works
Contingent labor is no longer a side program — it's 15–25% of total clinical labor spend in most health systems. GigPool™ treats it as a strategic discipline, not a monthly emergency.
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Unified governance across core, float, PRN, alumni, and agency — one system, one set of rules, one accountability model
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Cross-facility credentialing — employed staff become usable across your entire network, not locked into a single site
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Alumni reengagement programs tied to the Mobilize™ communication channel — bring former employees back as flexible capacity
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Workforce-mix reporting — visibility into internal vs. external labor ratios by unit, facility, and specialty, in real time
FOR
The CFO - agency spend as a managed line item, not a surprise
Agency labor is the largest preventable cost variance on most hospital P&Ls. GigPool™ turns it into a governed, forecastable spend category — with clear causality between the rules you set and the savings you realize.
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40% average reduction in agency spend when internal tiers are exhausted first
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Real-time cost-of-next-tier visibility — every broadcast shows the financial delta between Tier 3 and Tier 4 before escalation
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Configurable cost ceilings — set thresholds above which escalation requires approval, not automation
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Configurable time-lags - set thresholds for how long to wait or how many resources are needed before enlisting the next tier
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Overtime prevention built into broadcasts — no more discovering OT at month-end when it's already a sunk cost
FOR
The CNO — continuity of care, not a rotating cast of strangers
Every travel nurse on a unit is a clinician who doesn't know the team, the workflow, or the patients. GigPool™ keeps internal staff on your units more often — and makes the traveler the exception, not the default.
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Faster shift-fill rates — employed staff respond to broadcasts in seconds from their phone
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Credentialed, familiar clinicians on every shift — no unit orientation, no workflow ramp-up
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Reduced reliance on unfamiliar staff — your patients meet a nurse who knows the team
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Staffing mix visible by unit in real time — no more discovering the agency ratio from a report three weeks later
THE GOVERNANCE MECHANICS - HOW GIGPOOL™ ENFORCES THE RULES
Credential-based eligibility
Only clinicians with the exact credentials, specialty, and facility-specific badges required for the shift receive the broadcast. Unqualified staff are never offered shifts they can't work — a compliance and liability win in parallel.
Proximity-based filtering
Each clinician sets a travel radius. Each facility has a location. Broadcasts match the two automatically — so a float nurse in Sacramento isn't offered a 4 AM shift in Modesto.
OT exposure exclusion
Staff approaching configured overtime thresholds are automatically removed from the broadcast pool. OT is prevented at the point of scheduling — not reported at the end of the pay period.
Time-window escalation
Each tier has a configurable acceptance window. If no qualified clinician accepts within that window, GigPool™ escalates to the next tier automatically — no human chase required.
Shift incentive integration
Difficult or short-notice shifts can be broadcast with differential pay, badge points, or AnyTime Pay™ bonuses attached. Motivation Science drives voluntary pickup — turning hard shifts into opportunities instead of mandates.
VMS and agency integration
When Tier 4 is reached, GigPool™ integrates with your existing VMS or agency partners — keeping the process clean, compliant, and auditable. Agency is a valuable partner, engaged intentionally.
40%
Reduction in Agency spend
Faster shift-fill rates across internal tiers
60%
Reduction in unplanned overtime
30%