Opinion | Top 3 Nurse Staffing Predictions for 2025 You Can’t Ignore!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of nurse.org. This is an opinion article submitted by Brandon Atkinson, CEO, of CareRev

In my opinion, how most health systems manage their nursing workforce and schedule shifts are antiquated, rigid, and demoralizing. Nurses—especially nurse managers—have been straining against outdated and ineffective staff management workflows like spreadsheets and call lists for decades. 

Then, the Covid pandemic hit, upending the way health systems manage their nursing workforce entirely. Hospitals across the country scrambled to meet unprecedented demand for patient care. Workforce shortages, burnout, and escalating financial pressure forced health systems to rethink how they support their nursing staff. So, they turned to external staffing solutions—some innovative, some old hat—to source nurses and maintain continuity of care in the face of unrelenting pressure.

When the pandemic waned, the burgeoning bubble of staffing solutions burst, but the lesson hospitals learned was loud and clear: there is no going back to the old pen-and-paper ways of managing full-time and external nursing staff. The future of workforce management will be flexible, adaptable, and innovative. 

2025 Staffing Trend Predictions

Until now, the path to that future has been muddy, coursing through a crowded market brimming with solutions and strategies that all promise the same thing. In 2025, that path will become much more navigable. 

Welcome to the year of blending— a year that will be marked by consolidation in the staffing market, the widespread integration of workforce management technologies, and the unification of historically siloed segments of the staffing pool. 

1.Staffing companies are consolidating

In December of 2024, staffing technology firm Aya Healthcare announced it will be acquiring staffing agency Cross Country Healthcare. This is just the beginning of what will be a surge of mergers and acquisitions in the staffing market in the coming year. This trend will accelerate, driven by the demand for unified, technology-led solutions that promise simplicity and efficiency. 

But what does this mean for nurses and the health systems they work for?

While larger, consolidated platforms can deliver consistent end-to-end support and short-term cost savings, they often sacrifice agility and adaptability. These one-size-fits-all solutions may streamline operations initially, but risk falling short as the unique needs of health systems and clinicians evolve. Nurse managers, in particular, need solutions that not only address current challenges but can also adapt to future demands.

As consolidation advances, demand for workforce management platforms tailored to health systems’ specific needs will climb in response.

2. Integrated platforms are emerging 

Interoperable solutions are surfacing as a critical counterbalance to the rigidity of conglomerate platforms. To maintain flexibility for nurses and nurse managers, health systems must seamlessly integrate multiple staffing solutions within their workforce management strategies. This approach is especially vital for hospitals operating on thin margins, where paying for bundled services they don’t fully utilize isn’t feasible.

The majority of hospitals will come to prefer integrated platform solutions for per diem staffing, specialized travel needs, and internal workforce management. When these interoperable solutions integrate within a hospital’s vendor management system (VMS), they function cohesively, giving nurse managers the simplicity and efficiency they need while preserving flexibility and choice.

In 2025, interoperability won’t just be a preference—it will be a necessity. Empowering hospitals to adopt best-in-class technologies without vendor constraints ensures adaptability and cost-effectiveness, enabling nurse managers to make staffing decisions that meet the demands of their teams and patients alike.

3. Workforce management strategies are unifying

The way health systems classify and manage nursing talent will finally transform in 2025. Traditional silos—permanent, float pool, and contingent—will dissolve, giving way to a unified, flexible talent pool. This shift will empower nurses to work how and when they want, fostering the flexibility they’ve long sought.

The distinction between per diem and travel nursing will also blur. Both segments address the need for on-demand staffing, but individual nurses have diverse preferences—from single shifts to multi-week schedules. Breaking down these silos will enable hospitals to offer more dynamic staffing options, providing added flexibility for both facilities and nurses alike.

This long overdue transformation will be fueled by AI-enabled technology. Real-time self-scheduling and precision staffing solutions have proven they can help health systems scale talent up or down on demand. For nurses, these advancements bring greater autonomy and work-life balance, reducing burnout and enhancing job satisfaction. For hospitals, a motivated and engaged workforce translates to optimized costs and improved patient care.

The Path Forward

As nurse managers and health systems navigate the blending to come in 2025, the challenge will be staying ahead of each of these trends. In the year ahead, hospitals must decide what will work best for their nurses and patients—a consolidated, one-size-fits-all staffing solution or a meshwork of integrated tailored solutions.

The measure of success will be health systems’ ability to usher in a new era of workforce management by building motivated, resilient, and most importantly, unified teams of full-time and on-demand nurses that are capable of delivering consistently exceptional care.