Dropstat, an AI-powered workforce automation platform helping healthcare organizations combat clinical staffing shortages, has recently raised $5.5 million in a seed round led by Panoramic Ventures, an Atlanta-based firm that invests in category-leading technology companies.
The startup will use the new funding to expand its services across the US, targeting over 50 markets and helping more organizations better manage their staffing needs, with demand increasing since the pandemic’s start. According to Dropstat, the nursing industry has already lost 500,000 nurses due to Covid-19 fatigue, with 1 million more retiring in the coming years.
DropStat aims to leverage technology to create products and systems enabling safe care and staffing. The platform helps healthcare companies predict staffing requirements, visualize and access staff across multiple systems, fill shift gaps with cost and safety in mind and build internal float teams and agencies. The company uses open APIs to integrate with other travel and shift marketplaces. Its cost management technology ensures in-house resources are used before high-cost labour options. It provides business intelligence platforms, churn prediction technology and proprietary staffing feedback to help healthcare companies build stronger teams, fill more shifts and spend less.
Speaking about the company, Chief Executive Officer of DropStat, Sara Well, said:
The growing labour shortage negatively impacts patient outcomes and increases wait times and the cost of care, threatening to create a public health crisis. Healthcare facilities must be empowered to build stronger teams and reduce reliance on high-priced outsourced labour.
DropStat tries to differentiate itself from traditional systems that need staffing managers to identify shift gaps and then contact staff to fill them manually. This can lead to unfilled shifts and an increased workload for the nurses available. The firm claims its mobile and cloud-based systems can predict staffing needs months in advance, autonomously filling shift gaps using shared staff across departments and facilities to streamline processes and provide more effective cost controls.
General Partner of Panoramic Ventures, Paul Iaffaldano, added:
Dropstat helps healthcare facilities solve nurse shortages. The secret is that the software gives nurses more control over their schedule, which makes them happier to work more shifts. It also helps a facility understand much earlier in the process when they will need outside help. That awareness drives down the cost of labour and makes staff more satisfied with their work environment.
