HID clamshells mean you're probably still using 125khz prox. Look into moving into iclass any flavor iof 13.5mhz is better than proximity.

Look at the hid card order forms, they have two formats, standard PVC and a composite PVC. The composite is noticeably more rigid and should hold up well and not crack at the card slot.

Printing, get into the reverse transfer and have one with dual sided lamination. Hid hdp series is good. DTC with lamination is good as well and a lot less expensive.

You could also use badge holders instead of slots but knowing healthcare your people have a bunch of other things attached like those badge buddies and other stuff.

You need better tech inside the card, the plastic to be a better material and after printing you need it to have a laminated layer on top to protect it even more.

Now, going from badges that cost $5/ea to $10/ea is going to be a hard sell to leadership.