A market ripe for disruption — and a bold idea to disrupt it
Ireland's healthcare system runs heavily on temporary and agency staff. Hospitals, nursing homes, GP practices and community care providers regularly need nurses, healthcare assistants and support workers at short notice. For years, the only way to source this staff was through traditional staffing agencies — and those agencies charged facilities 20–35% on top of the worker's rate for the privilege.
The result? Facilities paid far more than the actual cost of the worker. Workers took home far less than the facility was paying. The agency captured the margin in the middle — for a service that, in the digital age, could be automated almost entirely.
Airix was founded to change this. Their proposition was simple: build a platform where facilities and healthcare workers connect directly, with compliance, verification and payments handled by the platform itself — at a fraction of the cost of a traditional agency.
They came to us with the idea and deep knowledge of the Irish healthcare market. We built the platform that made it real.
Why the traditional agency model was failing everyone
A complete gig platform — built for Irish healthcare compliance
We built the full Airix platform from scratch — worker app, facility web portal, compliance engine, direct booking system, in-app messaging and integrated payments. Every feature was designed specifically for the Irish healthcare regulatory environment.
How a Direct Booking Works on Airix
Facility Posts Shift
Role, date, hours, ward type and rate posted in under 2 minutes
Workers Notified
Verified, available workers nearby receive instant push notification
Worker Applies
One tap to apply. Full credential profile visible to facility instantly
Facility Confirms
Direct confirmation — no agency coordinator in the middle
Auto Payment
Digital timesheet approved, payment processed within 3–5 days
Worker Mobile App (iOS & Android)
Healthcare workers browse available shifts near them, filtered by role type, date and rate. One-tap application, instant confirmation notification, shift details and directions, digital clock-in and clock-out with GPS verification.
Facility Web Portal
Post shifts, review worker profiles and credential status, confirm bookings, manage shift history and download invoices — all from a clean web dashboard. Designed for ward managers and HR teams who need speed without complexity.
Compliance & Credential Engine
Full Irish healthcare compliance built in — Nursing & Midwifery Board (NMBI) pin verification, Garda vetting, manual handling certificates, infection control training, and right-to-work documentation. All verified once, trusted everywhere.
Direct Messaging
In-app messaging between facilities and workers for shift queries, directions and updates. No personal phone numbers shared. Full message history retained for compliance and dispute resolution.
Transparent Rate System
Rates posted publicly on every shift. Workers know exactly what they'll earn before applying. Facilities know exactly what they'll pay. No negotiation, no surprises, no hidden fees.
Digital Timesheets & Auto-Payroll
GPS clock-in and clock-out from the worker app. Digital timesheet automatically generated. Facility approves. Payment triggered automatically — workers paid within 3–5 days, compared to 2–4 weeks through traditional agencies.
Ratings & Review System
Two-way ratings after every shift. Facilities know which workers consistently perform. Workers know which facilities are well-organised and treat staff well. Trust built through transparency, not through agency relationships.
Repeat Booking & Favourites
Facilities can mark preferred workers as favourites and offer them shifts directly before posting publicly. Workers build relationships with facilities they enjoy working at. The platform gets smarter with every completed shift.
From Irish healthcare compliance research to live platform in 16 weeks
Irish Healthcare Compliance Deep Dive
Two weeks researching Irish healthcare staffing regulations — NMBI registration requirements, Garda vetting rules, HSE workforce standards, and GDPR implications for healthcare worker data. Getting compliance right was the foundation everything else was built on.
Weeks 1–2Platform Architecture & Scope
Fixed price, fixed scope, fixed timeline agreed before build started. Architecture designed for two-sided marketplace dynamics — balancing supply (workers) and demand (facilities) from day one.
Week 3Compliance Engine & Credential Vault First
Built the credential verification system and NMBI pin integration before any front-end work. The compliance foundation had to be airtight before any facility would trust the platform with their staffing needs.
Weeks 4–7Worker App & Facility Portal Build
Mobile app and web portal built in parallel with fortnightly demos to the Airix team, three healthcare workers and two facility managers giving real feedback throughout. Booking flow iterated until confirmation time was consistently under 30 minutes.
Weeks 7–14Soft Launch & Full Go Live
Pilot with 3 facilities and 30 workers for two weeks — real shifts, real payments, real feedback. Three rounds of refinements before full public launch across Ireland.
Weeks 15–16What changed for facilities and workers after launch
Cost reduction for facilities
By eliminating the agency markup, facilities pay significantly less for the same qualified worker. For a facility booking 50+ agency shifts per month, the savings are substantial — often covering the platform cost many times over.
More take-home for workers
Healthcare workers using Airix earn more per shift than through traditional agencies — because the platform fee is a fraction of what agencies charge. Workers who switched reported meaningful increases in their monthly take-home pay.
Average booking confirmation time
What previously took 3–24 hours through an agency now takes under 30 minutes on average. Urgent shift gaps that used to cause panics are now filled before the problem becomes critical.
Worker payment turnaround
Workers receive payment within 3–5 days of shift completion — compared to 2–4 weeks through traditional agencies. Faster payment was the single biggest driver of worker adoption after launch.
"We were paying agency fees for years without questioning it — it was just how the market worked. Airix completely changed our perspective. We now book directly, we know exactly who is coming and what their credentials are, and our cost per shift dropped significantly from day one. The platform is also just better to use than calling an agency and waiting. Everything is faster."
Built for Irish compliance and real-time performance
The platform handles real-time availability, instant notifications and secure payment processing — all while meeting Irish GDPR and healthcare data security standards. Designed to scale from Ireland to other European markets.