InTouch Digital partners with AtStaff, Inc., to extend its innovative, interactive 
staff scheduling capabilities to the telephone

 

American Canyon, CA – July 7, 2003  ---- (BUSINESS WIRE)--In a move that builds on its leadership and innovation in employee-centric healthcare staff scheduling, AtStaff, Inc., announces today an agreement with InTouch Digital Systems that furnishes healthcare employees with real-time, interactive scheduling capabilities via the telephone.

 

"This partnership represents another step forward in our commitment to help healthcare organizations better address the needs of their employees, enhance staff satisfaction and retention, and reduce operating costs," says Beth Pickard, President and Chief Executive Officer of AtStaff, Inc. "Allowing employees to develop, review and refine their work schedules over the telephone, in addition to over the Web, gives workers even greater control over their lives, and delivers another value-added convenience, particularly for those employees who may have limited Internet access."

 

The agreement enables InTouch Digital to replicate to the telephone all of the powerful, interactive functionality that is now accessible to employees through NetForum™, the Web-based, employee self-service component within the AtStaff® enterprise-wide staff scheduling system.

 

With NetForum, employees are able to: assess how current schedules and staffing needs affect their individual work schedules and preferences; submit real-time schedule requests and notifications, view their schedules as well as their colleagues' schedules; communicate and collaborate with colleagues; and receive timely messages and feedback from managers on schedule requests.

 

Because of these interactive scheduling capabilities, employees' actual work experiences better reflect their individual needs and lifestyle preferences -- thereby improving employee satisfaction and supporting staff retention.

 

"The integration of the AtStaff software and InTouch Digital voice technology also brings measurable efficiencies to healthcare, with a clear return on investment," says Randal Barrick, Chief Executive Officer at InTouch Digital. "Given the many day-to-day, critical staffing emergencies and situations that arise, healthcare organizations need to be able to quickly and reliably communicate with their staffing resources to fill coverage requirements. Through the instantaneous connectivity that a telephone provides, hospitals have a greater opportunity of filling assignments with available staff, rather than having to rely on very costly agency resources.

 

"The always accessible, two-way nature of our integrated solution is particularly valuable," emphasizes Barrick. "Certainly, because employees can call in anytime at their convenience to gain schedule status or submit requests, they gain a lot of flexibility. It also gives managers immediate outbound communication in key situations and emergencies. In addition, the system provides some valuable proactive capabilities, such as sending call notifications to employees whose certifications are about to expire."

 

Delivering this comprehensive level of functionality requires a very sophisticated, expert staff scheduling and staff management system, Barrick says.

 

"The only company that we found that offers such leading-edge technology to its healthcare customers is AtStaff, Inc. Other vendors in the marketplace that we examined do not possess the advanced technology and commitment to open architecture needed to support this dynamic, integrated functionality."

 

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About InTouch Digital Systems
InTouch Digital Systems, based in American Canyon, CA, is one of the world's leading developers of specialized telephony products and next-generation voice delivery services.  

An innovator in converged voice and data solutions that support multiple markets, InTouch Digital’s open standards, digital voice technology help people communicate more easily, quickly and efficiently.

 

Through application gateways, and enhanced services, such as unified messaging, short messaging services (SMS), voicemail and the innovative FollowMe service, the company is transforming the way people and information connect.

 

More information is available at www.Intouchdigital.com.


About AtStaff, Inc.
AtStaff, Inc., based in Durham, N.C., is a world leader in enterprise-wide staff scheduling, nurse scheduling and physician scheduling software, serving more than 1,200 healthcare organizations, medical facilities, nursing departments and group practices.

 

The company leverages advanced Web connectivity and flexible scheduling technology to develop healthcare scheduling products that encourage staff participation, empowerment and teamwork as well as improve cost management and efficiency.

 

More information is available at www.atstaff.com.