Preferred Healthcare Staffing

What Preferred Healthcare Staffing does

Preferred Healthcare Staffing is a privately held allied health staffing agency founded in 1994 in San Diego, California, by Melanie Reiten. The company places allied health professionals—including rehabilitation therapists (PT, OT, SLP), radiology technologists, radiation oncology specialists (medical physicists, dosimetrists, radiation therapists), medical laboratory professionals, and school-based clinicians—into travel, per diem, and permanent positions at healthcare facilities, school districts, and government healthcare sites. The firm operates across all 50 U.S. states for travel and permanent placements, with a concentrated per diem presence in California, and is organized into specialized divisions aligned to each clinical vertical. Preferred holds Joint Commission Gold Seal of Approval certification, maintains a GSA Schedule Contract for federal facility staffing, and is certified as a Women-Owned Business; it has won ClearlyRated's Best of Staffing Diamond award for both Client and Talent Satisfaction in nine consecutive years.

The company's service platform centers on a credentialed clinician database, a credential monitoring system that tracks and alerts on approaching license and certification expirations, and a public job search portal that lets candidates search by profession and state. Recruiter-mediated matching is the core placement workflow, supplemented by a referral program offering up to $1,000 for successful placements and a content marketing presence (Allied Alley blog, YouTube channel, association partnerships with APTA, AOTA, and ASHA). The company is positioned as a high-touch, relationship-driven boutique operator in a market dominated by large national staffing firms.

Revenue is generated primarily through billable hours and contract markups on travel assignments (typically 13-week terms) and per diem shifts, with transaction-fee economics on permanent placements. Preferred acts as the employer of record for temporary clinicians, handling payroll, taxes, benefits, workers' compensation, and compliance administration. The company has 51-100 employees, no disclosed institutional or private equity ownership, no disclosed revenue, and no recent funding or M&A activity based on available data.

Name

Preferred Healthcare Staffing

Legal name

Preferred Healthcare Staffing

Website

https://mypreferred.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Preferred Healthcare Staffing is a privately held, Joint Commission-certified allied health staffing agency founded in 1994 that places therapists, radiology, radiation oncology, laboratory, and school-based clinicians in travel, per diem, and permanent roles at healthcare facilities, schools, and government sites across all 50 U.S. states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Travel Staffing Contracts: Preferred provides allied health travelers to healthcare facilities nationwide through contract assignments, traditionally 13-weeks long, with terms ranging from 4 weeks to one year. The company acts as the employer of record for temporary employees, handling payroll, taxes, insurance, and workers compensation.
2. Per Diem Staffing: Local clinicians provided for short-term needs ranging from as little as four hours to ongoing registry coverage. Currently available only in California. Preferred serves as the employer, handling all administrative and compliance requirements.
3. Permanent Placement: Direct hire and temp-to-perm services where Preferred sources and recruits candidates for permanent positions at healthcare facilities. Includes recruitment, screening, and onboarding support.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Preferred Healthcare Staffing is a private allied health staffing agency that recruits, credentialing, and places healthcare professionals—including physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, radiologic technologists, radiation therapists, medical laboratory professionals, and school-based clinicians—into healthcare facilities, schools, and government facilities across all 50 U.S. states under three engagement models: travel contract assignments (typically 13 weeks), per diem shifts (California only), and permanent direct-hire placements. The company acts as employer of record, handling payroll, taxes, credentialing, and compliance, while dedicated recruiters match pre-screened candidates to client staffing requests.

Product overview

Preferred Healthcare Staffing is an allied health staffing agency operating as a unified platform offering three core staffing models: Travel Assignments (contract-based placements typically 13 weeks), Per Diem Staffing (daily shift-based work), and Permanent Placement (direct hire services). The company specializes in five main healthcare disciplines: Rehab Therapy (PT, OT, SLP, PTA, COTA, Respiratory, Laboratory), Radiology (CT, MRI, Mammography, Nuclear Medicine, Ultrasound, Radiologic), Radiation Oncology (Medical Physicist, Dosimetrist, Radiation Therapist), and School-Based Therapy. Staffing services are organized into specialized divisions (Therapy & Other, Radiology, Radiation Oncology, School) that provide vetted candidates across all assignment types nationwide. The platform also includes a job search tool for candidates and a referral program for staff recruitment incentives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Travel Assignments Contract-based allied health staffing placements typically lasting 13 weeks (ranging from 4 weeks to one year), placing healthcare professionals in facilities nationwide to address staffing fluctuations, census changes, and coverage gaps. Preferred serves as the employer of record, handling payroll, taxes, insurance, and workers compensation.
• Per Diem Staffing Day-to-day or shift-based staffing for healthcare facilities covering shifts from as little as four hours to ongoing registry coverage. Currently available only in California, serving as employer and handling all administrative and compliance requirements.
• Permanent Placement Direct hire staffing services that source, screen, and place qualified allied health candidates into permanent positions at healthcare facilities, with onboarding support included.
• Therapy & Other Division Staffing Specialized staffing services covering rehabilitation therapy disciplines (PT, PTA, OT, COTA, SLP, Recreation Therapist, LCSW), respiratory therapy (RRT, CRT), and medical laboratory professions (MLT, MT, Phlebotomist) across all engagement models.
• Radiology Division Staffing Staffing services for medical imaging professionals including CT Technologists, Mammography Technologists, MRI Technologists, Nuclear Medicine Technologists, Ultrasound Technicians, Radiologic Technologists, Cardiac Sonographers, and Vascular Technologists.
• Radiation Oncology Division Staffing Staffing services for radiation oncology professionals including Medical Physicists, Medical Dosimetrists, and Radiation Therapists for cancer treatment centers and medical facilities.
• School Division Staffing Staffing services for school-based allied health professionals including School OT, School SLP, School Psychologists, Special Education Teachers, Sign Language Interpreters, BCBAs, and ABAs for academic year and summer programs.
• Government Healthcare Staffing (GSA) Staffing services provided to federal, state, and county government healthcare facilities, including VA hospitals and other federal medical facilities, under a GSA Schedule contract as an approved government vendor.
• Referral Program Employee and external referral bonus program offering up to $1,000 for successful candidate placements after the referred candidate works 350 hours within 180 days of hire.

Quantifiable outcome

• Best of Staffing award for 9 consecutive years in both Client and Talent Satisfaction categories

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• American Physical Therapy Association (APTA)minorOthersProfessional association membership providing industry leadership, networking, and professional development resources for physical therapy professionals.
• American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)minorOthersProfessional association membership for occupational therapy professionals, offering certification support and industry advocacy.
• American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)minorOthersProfessional association membership for speech-language pathologists and audiologists, providing certification and professional development resources.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Soliant Health: Allied health staffing company placing therapy, imaging, and school-based professionals via travel and direct-hire models. Strongly comparable scale, discipline breadth, and school-district coverage.
• Med Travelers (AMN Healthcare): Allied health travel staffing brand within AMN Healthcare focused exclusively on therapy, imaging, and laboratory professionals. Most directly comparable single-brand competitor to PHS within the broader AMN portfolio.
• MedPro Healthcare Staffing: Allied health travel staffing firm placing therapists, radiology techs, and laboratory professionals nationwide. Near-identical service model and discipline mix to Preferred Healthcare Staffing, making it the closest direct competitor.
• Aureus Medical Group: Allied health and travel healthcare staffing firm with disciplines including therapy, radiology, and laboratory. Comparable three-model approach (travel, per diem, perm) and similar geographic footprint to PHS.
• Jackson Therapy Partners: Travel therapy staffing specialist placing PT, OT, and SLP professionals across the U.S. Direct overlap with Preferred's therapy division and per diem/travel mix.
• Therapy Source: Therapy-focused staffing company placing school-based and pediatric OT, PT, and SLP professionals. Comparable niche focus on therapy disciplines and K-12 customer segment.

Emerging players

• Health Carousel: Tech-enabled travel healthcare staffing firm expanding aggressively into allied health. Represents the digital-first competitive threat against PHS's traditional recruiter model.

Broad incumbents

• Cross Country Healthcare: National healthcare staffing firm with allied health, nursing, and locums lines. Overlaps with PHS on travel allied placement and competes for the same facility clients.
• Aya Healthcare: One of the largest U.S. travel healthcare staffing firms with a significant allied health division alongside nursing. Competes with PHS for allied travel candidates and clients at national scale with greater marketing and tech investment.
• AMN Healthcare: Largest U.S. healthcare staffing company offering allied (AMN/Med Travelers/Club Staffing) plus nursing and locums. Sets national pricing benchmarks that PHS competes against across all allied disciplines.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/phs-videos
• Xx.com/prefdhealth
• Facebookfacebook.com/preferredhealthcaresolutions
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/preferred-healthcare-registry-inc-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Preferred Healthcare Staffing