Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems added more than 1,000 bedside nurses as part of its centralized clinical recruitment strategy in 2023, executives said during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call on Feb. 21.
"We also expanded their activities to allied health, building 1,500 physicians in clinical support, technician and other roles," CEO Tim Hingtgen said. "The impact was real, with the $260 million reduction in contract labor in 2023 compared to the prior year.”
The 71-hospital system will continue to focus on graduating and recruiting nurses through its education partnership, which is expected to graduate 1,000 new nurses a year.
In 2023, CHS reported $957 million in operating income (7.7% margin), improving on the $821 million gain (6.7% margin) recorded in 2022.