LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

(HFMA ANI Booth # 1661) Avantas, a leading provider of strategic labor management technology, services and strategies for the healthcare industry, today announced that Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and its associated Medical Group has selected its consulting services and solutions in an effort to improve labor performance across the entire university-based enterprise.

Penn State Hershey will partner closely with Avantas to ensure efficient operations across the entire organization while optimizing its largest expense, labor, through the implementation of Avantas proven Healthcare Enterprise Labor Management (HELM) methodology. As a large, educational health system, our labor management issues are incredibly complex and represent a very large cost for the enterprise, said Sherry Kwater, Chief Nursing Officer, Penn State Hershey. After careful consideration, we chose Avantas because we believe that implementation of its HELM model will help us achieve efficiencies and cost-savings across our entire enterprise including 58 practice sites within The Medical Group; all while continuing to provide high quality patient and family centered care to the residents of central Pennsylvania.

This implementation will be rolled out across three distinct phases, the first of which is currently underway. During this phase, Avantas labor management experts will provide in-depth analysis of the health systems labor workforce and operational practices. This includes identifying utilization trends, designing strategies based on demand information, outlining the workforce demographic, identifying trends in staff dissatisfiers and quantifying high-margin opportunities. Subsequently, Avantas will work with Penn State to re-design its resource plan and integrate proprietary, customized predictive analytics. We are excited that our HELM approach to labor management that we have been touting for years is finally becoming an accepted industry model, as evidenced by recent market demand for our consulting services and technology, said Chris Fox, Senior Vice President of Growth and Innovation, Avantas. When a premier academic medical center like Penn State Hershey invests in Avantas at this level, it is great validation of the value of our model.

HELM represents a disruptive innovation for the healthcare industry, challenging organizations to rethink what is possible with regard to labor management in all departments. The approach is comprehensive and sophisticated combining the science of workforce planning, demand forecasting, operational best practices, and a complete set of scheduling and staffing tools. Avantas has leveraged unique client experiences across large, multi-site healthcare organizations to detail effective methodologies that help them rise above departmental silos and implement a consistent and effective way to integrate labor across the enterprise.

To learn more about Avantas and its industry leading labor management solution and services, please visit booth # 1661 at HFMAs 2012 Annual National Institute at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention Center in Las Vegas June 25 & 26.

About Penn State Milton S. Hersey Medical Center

Founded in 1963 through a gift from The Milton S. Hershey Foundation, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is one of the leading teaching and research hospitals in the country. The 491-bed Medical Center is a provider of high-level, patient-focused medical care. The Medical Center campus also includes Penn State College of Medicine (Penn States medical school), Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, and Penn State Hershey Childrens Hospitalthe regions only childrens hospital. The Medical Center campus is part of Penn State Hershey Health System, which also includes the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute, Penn State Hershey Rehabilitation Hospital, and other specialty facilities.

About Avantas

Avantas is an Omaha, Neb.-based company devoted to serving the healthcare industry. Its proprietary scheduling and productivity solution, Smart Square, is the only comprehensive labor management platform developed by healthcare professionals for healthcare professionals. Additionally, its consultation services provide its clients tailored best practice labor management strategies designed to drive substantial and sustaining cost and quality improvements across the enterprise. For more information, please visit the Avantas website at http://www.Avantas.biz.

Read more from the original source:
Penn State Hershey Medical Center Selects Avantas for Healthcare Enterprise Labor Management Solution