And I think until we start, the big, we start looking at opening up the top of the funnel, getting more PT students into the programs, and kind of breaking that cycle like other sectors have done. I think it’s going to take a little bit. So, I think ATI is going to do the job they need to do, but I also think the macro level trends are going to continue to be headwinds.
Mike Petusky: Yes, I mean, I’d assume it’s at least a three year sort of?
Sharon Vitti: Yes, it’s not going to be in my, when I first started, I was like, give it a year and it’ll loosen up like many other situations. But I’d be confident to say this isn’t going to break open, before the end of the year. And I think ’24 is going to be another hard year.
Mike Petusky: Yes, all right. Fair enough. Thank you so much guys. Appreciate it.
Sharon Vitti: Thanks Mike.
Operator: Your next question comes from the line of Bill Sutherland with The Benchmark Company. Your line is open.
Bill Sutherland: Thanks and hello everybody. Yes, I was going to talk about the labor issue too. The one remaining part of that set of questions that I was thinking about as the contractors, I think they were. Can you just talk about the level that you are at as percent of your workforce and where you want to get that to?
Joe Jordan: Yes, Bill it’s Joe. The roughly 6% of our workforce right now, 185 contractors at the end of Q2, I think the contractors will be with us for a little while, just given the overall labor dynamics. But at some point they are more expensive than ATI full-time PTs or PTAs. We’d obviously like to bring the contractors down. It won’t, it’ll never get to zero, but if it could get down to 1%, 2% of our workforce in the long run, I think that’s where we’d like to be. But in the short term, because we have so much demand for therapy at ATI, I think we’ll be living with the contractors for a bit.
Sharon Vitti: Yes, and Joe, we’re using them selectively. I know we’re using more than we would normally, but we’re using them selectively and Marcus that are just, they’re deserts for recruits. So, again, that is also playing into the fact that, to Joe’s comment that we’re going to probably need them for the foreseeable future.
Bill Sutherland: I’m remembering a couple of years ago, maybe during the roadshow, the affiliation you had with a couple of programs, I think one was Duke. Is that something that you can, or do you still have it or can you tool it up?
Sharon Vitti: Yes, great question, Bill. So, our university relations, if you will, as with any organization, kind of fell by the wayside during COVID but we have a multichannel approach, and I think I’m really excited about what we’re doing. On the other side of it, it takes a little bit for it to bear fruit. And so, I would say everything from the usual, right, so bringing in students precepting, having alumni relationships. But I would say the other thing that we’re focusing on is a little bit of where you’re going. How do we start working differently with the universities, especially as it relates to both the top of the funnel, the number of folks coming in, the diversity of candidates, and then the ability to prepare them to be successful both in the exam and when they graduate.
And so, that is a more comprehensive approach than just bringing in folks for their clinicals. And so I think that’s the way we have to go. And I think it’s a common, it’s a partnership. And I don’t think ATI’s the only one doing this. I think it’s a partnership with the universities to really, I would say modernize the way the whole PT university piece starts, and then how we transition those folks into being successful therapists in the marketplace.
