Nurse Nellie
Healthcare · SaaS
Duration
16 weeks
Team
5 engineers
Year
2024
Industry
Healthcare Staffing
Measurable Impact
Project Overview
Nurse Nellie is a healthcare staffing SaaS platform connecting nursing agencies with qualified nurses for care home and hospital shifts. The platform handles everything from shift posting and nurse application through scheduling, timesheet management, certification tracking, and automated payroll data export — replacing a fragmented process of phone calls, emails, and paper forms.
The Challenge
Nursing agencies were filling shifts through WhatsApp groups and phone calls — an unreliable, time-consuming process that regularly resulted in unfilled shifts, compliance breaches (expired certifications), and payroll errors. Nurses had no single place to see available shifts, manage their schedule, or submit timesheets. Agencies had no visibility into nurse certification status until a compliance issue arose.
Our Solution
We designed a dual-interface SaaS: agencies post shifts with requirements (qualifications, experience, ward type), and nurses apply through their app or web portal. The matching engine filters by proximity, qualification, and availability. Scheduled shifts auto-generate digital timesheets, which nurses sign off and agencies approve. Certification expiry tracking sends alerts 30 days before renewal deadlines. Payroll data exports to major payroll platforms weekly.
The Transformation
- Shifts filled via WhatsApp groups and phone calls
- Paper timesheets collected and stored manually
- Certification expiry discovered only after issues arose
- Payroll calculated from paper records over 2 days
- No visibility into real-time nurse availability
- Compliance checks were manual and inconsistent
- Shifts filled online in minutes, not hours
- Digital timesheets auto-generated for every shift
- Automated alerts 30 days before any renewal deadline
- Payroll data exported automatically in under 30 minutes
- Live nurse availability map with geolocation filtering
- 100% compliance tracking — always current, zero gaps
Key Features
Shift Marketplace
Agencies post shifts with full requirements; nurses see available shifts filtered by location, specialty, and pay rate — and apply with one click.
Certification Tracking
Nurse profiles store all certifications with expiry dates. Automated alerts notify both nurses and agencies 30 days before any certification expires.
Digital Timesheets
Shifts auto-generate timesheets. Nurses clock in/out via the app, supervisors countersign digitally — eliminating all paper-based timesheet processes.
Payroll Integration
Approved timesheets auto-generate payroll data exports compatible with major payroll systems — reducing payroll processing from days to minutes.
Location-Based Matching
Nurses see shifts within their preferred travel radius. Agencies see local nurse availability on a map — making geographic matching instant.
Ratings & Reviews
Mutual rating system: agencies rate nurses after each shift, and nurses rate agencies. Builds accountability and helps both parties make better decisions.
How We Built It
Platform Architecture
Weeks 1–2Designed the dual-interface architecture for agencies and nurses. Defined data models for shifts, certifications, timesheets, and the location-based matching engine.
Shift Marketplace
Weeks 3–6Built the shift posting engine, nurse application workflow, geolocation-based shift filtering, and real-time push notification alerts for new available shifts.
Compliance & Timesheets
Weeks 7–10Built certification tracking with automated 30-day expiry alerts, digital timesheet auto-generation per shift, and mobile clock-in/out with supervisor countersign.
Payroll & Billing
Weeks 11–13Integrated Stripe for agency subscription billing, built payroll data export compatible with major UK payroll platforms, and the financial reporting module.
QA & UK Launch
Weeks 14–16End-to-end compliance testing, a pilot with 5 agencies and 50 nurses, iterated on UX, then publicly launched with 500+ nurse onboarding in the first 90 days.
Tech Stack
Key Results
- Reduced average shift-filling time by 90% — from hours of calls to minutes on the platform
- Onboarded 500+ qualified nurses across the UK in the first three months
- Eliminated all paper timesheets — saving 20+ hours per week in admin across agencies
- Achieved 100% certification compliance tracking — no more expired credentials slipping through
- Payroll processing time reduced from 2 days to under 30 minutes per cycle
Impact Metrics
Visual Walkthrough
Project Screens
Agency dashboard — active shifts, nurse availability, and compliance status
Agency dashboard — active shifts, nurse availability, and compliance status
Nurse profile — certifications, availability calendar, and shift history
Nurse profile — certifications, availability calendar, and shift history
Shift marketplace — live available shifts with one-click apply
Shift marketplace — live available shifts with one-click apply
“We used to spend half our day on the phone trying to fill shifts. Now it just happens. The compliance tracking alone has saved us from several potential regulatory issues.”
Agency Director
Operations Director · Nurse Nellie
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