TPG Growth to acquire medical staffing firm Medical Solutions

TPG and Medical Solutions declined to comment on financial terms. The deal values Medical Solutions at around $500 million, according to people familiar with the matter.

News of the deal was first reported by Reuters earlier on Monday.

The transaction underscored how companies that supply skilled nurses are becoming increasingly popular with investors, as the supply of nurses entering the job market has failed to keep pace with the demands of an aging population.

“Faced with large patient volumes and nursing shortages, more and more hospitals are searching for reliable, qualified nurses,” said Matthew Hobart, a partner at TPG Growth.

Medical Solutions is a provider of healthcare staffing solutions for U.S. hospitals, with a focus on so-called travel nurses, who work relatively short stints in different hospitals. It provides nurses to around 1,600 hospitals throughout the United States.

In addition to its core travel nurse business, Medical Solutions also works with hospitals to manage their entire travel nurse staffing process.

Medical Solutions' previous majority owner, Beecken Petty O'Keefe & Company, which acquired it in 2015, will maintain an equity stake in the company.

TPG has invested more than $10 billion in the healthcare sector, including in Evolent Health Inc (EVH.N), IASIS Healthcare, Par Pharmaceuticals and Surgical Care Affiliates Inc SCA.N.

Jefferies LLC and Piper Jaffray advised Medical Solutions on the transactions. UBS Investment Bank (UBSG.S) and Sun Trust Robinson Humphrey Inc advised TPG Growth.

(Reporting by Carl O'Donnell in New York; Editing by Randy Fabi and Matthew Lewis)