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Kansas officials detail state-hospital staffing crisis, growing contract-nurse costs and steps to recruit and retain employees
Summary
KDADS officials told lawmakers that vacancies at state psychiatric hospitals required large amounts of contract staff; the agency reported $46.0 million in contract-staff spending at Larned and $15.4 million at Osawatomie in fiscal 2024–25, described a suite of bonuses and recruitment steps that increased state hires, and outlined workforce and
Scott Bruner, deputy secretary for hospitals and facilities at the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS), briefed the Legislative Budget Committee on the continuing staffing shortages at state psychiatric hospitals and the agency’s reliance on contracted nursing staff.
KDADS said facility vacancies have been high: campus-wide vacancies in direct-care classifications (registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and mental-health direct‑care staff) have been as much as one third of positions at some campuses; KDADS reported roughly 250 vacant direct-care positions at Larned and about 116 at Osawatomie in July. Agency slides reviewed by the committee show Larned’s on‑campus daily minimum staffing need at full capacity as roughly 27 RNs, 26 LPN‑equivalent roles and about 250 MHDD (mental-health/disability direct‑care) staff. KDADS said contracted staffing and agency nurses have made up the gap over recent years.
KDADS reported contract staffing totals of about $46.05 million for Larned and $15.4 million for Osawatomie during the most recent fiscal year; figures reflect use of agency nurses and contract direct-care staff (KDADS said Parsons remains staffed primarily with state employees and uses little contract labor). KDADS said an average contracted RN rate to the state has a cap at $90 an hour, with an estimated average contractor wage received by the nurse in the mid‑$60‑per‑hour range; KDADS estimated the all‑in hourly cost for a state RN (wage plus benefits) around $61.89.
KDADS described steps taken to reduce contract reliance and increase state staffing, including expanding signing and retention bonuses (a proviso raised annual bonus caps from $3,500 to $10,000 for eligible staff), pickup-shift premiums, targeted hiring and referral bonuses, and scholarship and workforce development investments. KDADS said those efforts produced tangible results: Osawatomie reported an increase in MHDD classification from 132 to 188 employees over one year and a reduction in weekly contract-labor spending following the bonus program rollout.
KDADS also outlined longer-term workforce actions: ARPA-funded grants and state investments to expand medical training and behavioral health capacity (including a South Central regional mental-health hospital in partnership with Sedgwick County), funding for the Wichita biomedical campus, nursing practicums and partnerships with community colleges to create micro-credentials and pathways into psychiatric nursing. KDADS asked the Legislature to consider statutory continuation of retention and hiring incentives and to support tuition/loan repayment and targeted training incentives tied to service at state hospitals.
Why this matters: State psychiatric hospitals provide competency restoration, civil commitment and acute psychiatric services the community system cannot always meet. KDADS said the choice has been between reducing capacity or continuing to rely on high-cost contract labor; it recommended a combination of short‑term funding for contract staffing while the state expands and retains a state‑hired workforce.
Ending: KDADS said it will continue implementing bonuses, workforce training partnerships and targeted recruitment; lawmakers asked for more detailed cost comparisons of contract nursing versus raising state pay and for follow-up reports as workforce investments and new facilities (including the South Central regional hospital) proceed.
