Opinion: Parkland nurse hiring spree helps hospital pass test

A year ago, Parkland Memorial Hospital had a 15 percent vacancy rate, causing it to rack up millions of dollars in unbudgeted overtime and temporary staffing costs. Nurse staffing levels were especially low, which was not a good thing, because state and federal inspections had determined a severe nursing shortage was one of the major factors causing inferior patient care. Since that time, Parkland has turned things around on the hiring front with assistance from a company called Supplemental Health Care, which hospital administrators hired to help them add staff fast. I spoke with Janet Elkin, president and CEO of Supplemental Health Care, about the process.