9 Best Healthcare HR Software Solutions in 2023

Before buying any new software, it’s worth asking what are its use cases. Generally, companies use HR software for streamlining their workflows, hiring new talent, processing payroll, and other common HR functions. But when you’re running a healthcare organization, you might be motivated to buy an HR software for slightly different reasons. Here are some of those: 

• Save time: For workers in the healthcare industry, even a minute of delay can deteriorate the health of their ailing patients. Time is therefore the most precious resource for healthcare professionals and using an HRMS can monumentally help in this regard. Contemporary HR systems use automation to eliminate repetitive HR tasks like payroll processing, sourcing, onboarding, and attendance so you could focus on delivering quality patient care.‍
• Stay Compliant: In an industry such as healthcare, where the slightest of negligence can cost a patient their life, being compliant with laws and regulations is extremely important. HR systems designed for healthcare organizations ensure that you’re not only following all the necessary rules and regulations but also being up-to-date with any statutory changes.‍
• Reduce employee turnover: Employee turnover is one of the biggest challenges that the healthcare industry is facing right now. According to a report by NSI Nursing Solutions, the national hospital turnover rate stands at 25.9% for the year 2021. In 2017, this figure was 18.2%. Given the kind of stressful work environment that healthcare workers find themselves in everyday coupled with the stress of COVID-19 pandemic, this increase in the employee turnover is warranted. A good HRIS can help increase employee retention by enhancing the employee experience in multiple ways. It can accelerate the pace of otherwise frustrating HR tasks, help you compensate your employees on time, give employees the access to manage their benefits, and improve internal communication.‍
• Training and development: Healthcare professionals need to keep up-skilling themselves so that they can accurately use new medical instruments or techniques and deliver quality patient care. HR systems designed for healthcare organizations are usually equipped with a learning management system or LMS. Such HR software allows employees to take self-assessments, track their progress, and check their certifications. ‍
• Improve employee experience: HR software is not just built for human resources professionals but for employees too. Instead of depending on HR managers all the time, employees can perform some of the HR tasks on their own like requesting time-off, marking absence, availing benefits, picking up open shifts. Giving employees some control leads to transparency, builds trust, saves time, and reduces their stress— all of which ultimately leads to better performance and overall productivity. ‍
• Get reports and trends: Modern HR tools have analytics and advanced reporting features. You can get insights about everything ranging from employee turnover and the number of incidents to attendance and employee engagement. You can then use this data to make decisions and strategies for improvement. ‍
• Streamline your workflows: One of the biggest advantages of using an HRMS is that it acts as a centralized solution for all your HR tasks. You can hire, onboard, compensate employees, do background checks, and performance evaluations all from one place, instead of using different applications for each task. Moreover, you could also map out an employee’s compensation and PTO based on their attendance, performance, and other such metrics.  
• ‍Manage shifts and schedules: Healthcare professionals usually have constantly-changing schedules. HR software made specifically for healthcare companies is cognizant of this fact and incorporates features that let employees fill open shifts quickly and give managers insights on scheduling needs.

• Lack of employee self-service: Modern HRMS are equipped with employee self-service which means that your employees can access, edit, and update some of their information on their own; a task that was previously reserved for the HR team. In an industry as demanding as healthcare where employees always need to be on their toes to fill an emergency shift, it’s absolutely vital to steer clear of HR systems that don’t have employee self-service. ‍
• Low data security: The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, commonly referred to as the HIPAA, necessitates organizations to protect patients’ sensitive information. Make sure the vendor you’re purchasing your HR software with keeps your sensitive information secure and is able to comply with these regulations.‍
• Interface that’s not user-friendly: Working in the healthcare industry can certainly entail working in a high stress environment. You don’t want to take on more stress by trying to decode an incomprehensible HR software. Besides, HR managers are not the only people who have to deal with the HRIS but also the nurses, doctors, and other staff workers who have to directly deal with the patients.  
• No mobile app: Since the majority of workers have to be in direct contact with patients, healthcare professionals don’t have a lot to do with computers. Besides, it’s always less time-consuming to carry out routine tasks from a smartphone. If there’s no mobile app for the HR software you’re intending to buy, it could cause logistic issues later. ‍
• Inability to integrate with other applications: Most HR technologies integrate with myriads of third-party applications. While the HRIS you’re interested in buying might have the ability to integrate with popular applications, it may not integrate with the system that your company uses regularly. If you fall prey to this common pitfall, you’ll be spending your days manually entering data from one software to another, causing an unnecessary roadblock for your core HR responsibilities.
• ‍Bad customer support: Due to the time-bound and compliant nature of work that healthcare professionals do, it’s imperative to look for an HRIS that delivers speedy and robust customer support service. You don’t want your employees to be wound up in a situation where they fail to deliver quality patient care due to an unresolved technical glitch.

On the surface, an HR software product may not seem like a necessity in an industry that has little to do with computers and software. But, on a closer look, it becomes apparent that no other industry needs a people management software as much as healthcare. This is because the way employees in a healthcare practice are managed has a direct impact on the quality of care delivered to patients. Therefore, the right HR software for your healthcare company is worth every penny and could help your organization cut down stress, time, and money.

If you’re still not convinced and need some numbers to change your mind, consider this simple stat: The average salary of an HR administrator in the US is $50,000 per year. If you compare the amount of money you’ll spend on an HR software vs the cost of hiring a few administrators, you’ll see that it’s completely worth buying good HR software for your healthcare organization. Besides, unquantifiable benefits such as accuracy, quick scheduling, elimination of duplicate entries, or avoiding compliance risks should not be overlooked.

Pricing for HR software varies from vendor to vendor as well as on the features that your organization requires. Some vendors can cost you as little as $4 monthly for each user, while others can cost you upwards of $99. For most vendors, the pricing model is per-employee per-month. Some vendors will also charge you a monthly fee in addition to the per employee charge. 

Many vendors don’t disclose their pricing upfront and you can only get a custom quote after getting a demo of their HR software. Sometimes HR tech vendors also charge you for setup, implementation, customer support, or consultation. Make sure to ask about these charges from your potential vendor. 

Although pricing will vary according to your organization’s needs, below is a chart of estimated price ranges:

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There are hundreds of HR tech vendors out there, rich with features to make your work as an HR manager easy. But when it comes to healthcare HR software, there are certain core features that you must not compromise on. Here are some of those:

• Employee self-service: In a fast-paced environment such as a healthcare company, the option to let your employees carry out recurring HR tasks like marking absence or benefits enrollment is a must-have. Not only would it help you save a lot of time as an HR manager, it would also bring clarity to the work of your employees.‍
• Multiple pay rates: In hospitals, workers may have to take on emergency shifts at night. Such shifts take place at odd hours and usually compensate employees more than their regular shifts. This is why a single individual can have different pay rates depending on the job and the hours it is performed at. Look for an HRMS whose payroll tool comes with a multiple pay rates feature. ‍
• Training and development: Staying up-to-date with the methodologies and brushing up on old knowledge is absolutely critical in a field like healthcare. Make sure that the HR software you end up buying has a training and development tool where employees and managers alike can track their progress and access learning resources. ‍
• Attendance & time tracking: Modern HRIS have an attendance tool that’s linked with the payroll. In healthcare practices, where there can be fluctuating working hours, a time tracking tool will help you avoid duplicity errors and pay your employees accurately. ‍
• Scheduling: In healthcare practices, employees need to be on their toes to fill an emergency shift. A good HR software would make it very easy to schedule and fill open shifts fast. ‍
• Employee database: Think of an employee database as your one-stop solution for quickly storing data and pulling up information about your employees ranging from their contact details and age to their salary and performance history. In healthcare practices, this feature can come in handy when responsibilities need to be delegated under a time crunch. ‍
• Legal guidance and HR advising: In an industry that’s as highly-regulated as healthcare, compliance can be the most critical component of healthcare companies. HR systems designed for healthcare practices usually have a full-fledged compliance tool that helps companies stay abreast of legal changes and take actionable steps to avoid hefty costs. 
• Reporting: It’s extremely important to report incidents in healthcare organizations to improve safety and patient care. A healthcare HR software would not only let you log incidents but also other data like employee satisfaction, retention, and growth. ‍
• ‍Recruitment and staffing: The healthcare industry is rife with staffing problems and HRMS built for healthcare companies usually come with solutions to tackle this problem. Some would argue that HR software for healthcare should be equipped with a recruitment tool. This would involve features such as sourcing, applicant tracking, and automated onboarding; among others.

We hope that the information on this page has acquainted you well with the various HR vendors out there and that you have shortlisted a couple of them. Your next step should be to get first-hand experience of the HR software you’re interested in buying. You could do this with the help of a demo, which most of the HR tech vendors provide. 

Depending on the vendor, you could expect to get a live demo or a recorded one. In either case, what’s going to set you up for success is coming up with a list of questions to ask during your demo session, so that you could find the HR software that most meets your needs. 

To help you get started, below is a list of questions that we think every healthcare company should ask from a potential vendor. Feel free to use this list to ideate more questions: 

• If my team is already using an HRMS, what is the process and timeline of transferring data from our previous HR software?
• Do you provide legal guidance to help us stay updated with new laws?
• How secure is our patient data and other sensitive information?
• Do you help with HIPAA training and certifications? 
• Does this HR tool integrate with the applications that we’re currently using for our healthcare practice?
• Do you have a mobile app for this HR software product?
• How do you help us stay legally compliant?
• Do you provide HR advising?
• How robust is your reporting tool? 
• How quickly does your customer support team respond and resolve issues?
• Is training required for using this HRIS? If so, is it free?
• Can you show us what your software looks like, from the point of view of someone outside the HR department? 
• How extensive is employee self-service? 
• Can you customize this HR software according to our organization’s needs?
• Do you have a tool for internal communication?

Depending on whether you’re buying HR software for the first time or switching to a new one, your implementation process would slightly differ. There are also variables such as your organization size, training requirements, and the vendor you choose that would dictate your timeline and process. Thus, implementation of a new HR software could take as little as a day to a couple of weeks. 

Most vendors start with an installation, which is followed by data migration (if you’re switching from another vendor), configuration, testing, employee training, and finally officially bringing the software onboard. Later, the vendor may follow up for feedback. 

In most cases, the implementation team would ask you the following information:

• Basic company information such as your EIN (employee identification number)
• Basic employee information such as their name, SSN, address, compensation etc.
• Payroll and information about already paid taxes, if you’re switching vendors mid-year. 

Do note that although this is the typical process, it’s best to ask the vendor you’re interested in about their implementation process and timeline before proceeding with them.

What is HR software?

An HR software is a suite of tools that helps a company’s human resources department perform everyday HR tasks.

What software is used in healthcare?

There are many HR vendors that cater to healthcare companies and our list mentions some of the top healthcare HRMS such as Zoho, Workday, Rippling, and BambooHR. 

What is included in HR software?

Modern HRMS act as an all-in-one HR solution and can help your company with all your basic HR needs ranging from payroll and recruiting to benefits and talent management.

What are the three main types of HR software solutions?

The three main types of HR software solutions are HRIS, HCM, and HRMS.

What does HRIS stand for?

HRIS stands for Human Resource Information System. 

What does HCM stand for?

HCM stands for Human Capital Management.

What does HRMS stand for?

HRMS stands for Human Resource Management System. 

What’s the difference between HRIS, HCM, and HRMS?

These terms are often used interchangeably because on the surface, there isn’t a huge difference between HRIS, HCM, and HRMS. The definition varies from vendor to vendor and even among HR professionals. While all three are all people management tools, the differences lie in their features and use cases. An HRIS takes care of your core HR needs and is limited in that sense. An HRMS has the same use case as an HRIS but goes beyond the core HR needs in terms of features. Strategic planning is the epicenter of an HCM while having most of the HRMS features. 

What are the advantages of using HR software in healthcare companies?

There are many benefits of using an HR software in a healthcare company, some of which are: 

• Helps you save time by automating repetitive tasks
• Reduces stress and Improves the overall employee experience
• Guides you with legal changes and Increases compliance
• Helps you overcome staffing problems
• Incident reporting, analytics, and key business insights
• Workforce management

What is the difference between an HRIS and ERP?

An ERP or Enterprise Resource Planning is a centralized software solution that helps organizations integrate the operations of different departments like sales, IT, marketing etc. An HRIS on the other hand, helps organizations integrate different HR processes and perform core HR tasks from one place. 

What is the relationship between HR and healthcare?

The role of HR in healthcare is paramount. In order to deliver quality patient care, healthcare employees need a management system that lowers their work stress and improves their overall performance. HR software made for healthcare companies solves this. 

What is the best HR software for healthcare?

While we’ve spent a lot of time researching and coming up with this list of the top HR software for healthcare, what is best for one organization might not be for some other. Hopefully, our comprehensive yet brief vendor reviews helps you shortlist what would be the ideal HR software for your healthcare practice.

If you’ve made it this far, we really hope we’ve covered all the gaps in your knowledge about HR software for healthcare companies. Your next step should be to shortlist 2-4 vendors and book demos with them. 

As a last piece of advice, we’d suggest that you factor in the various constraints and edge cases that by default come when you work in an environment as dynamic as a healthcare organization. 

Many HR software vendors provide a one-size-fits-all solution for all industries and lure prospective buyers in by simply marketing the relevant features. Take ample time to list down everything that your organization needs by talking to your doctors, nurses, and other healthcare staff who will be using the HR software. It’s always good to have clear objectives before setting up a demo. All the best!

If your healthcare practice is specifically focusing on staffing, our best recruiting software guide may help you.