Academic Webinar: Hospital Supply Chain Management in the Future Healthcare Landscape

Wow – what a daunting task we all have ahead of us – to make sure we better connect all of the stakeholders in the healthcare supply chain to ensure better patient care and eliminate inefficiencies in the system.

Of course this is much easier said than done, but Ken Thomas highlights some great points about looking more globally and prospectively at future healthcare trends. Efficiency should be the goal of every part of the supply chain – from patients to providers to payers. Going forward, a successful healthcare organization will be judged by its performance in supply chain management. While we have various metrics today to rate hospitals, the dynamic nature of the industry will demand much stronger emphasis on efficiency in the supply chain.

At the end of the day, supply chain needs to balance patient care with the business objectives of the organization. I think many of us who have worked with Value Analysis in some capacity try to strike this balance every day. For example, when we try evaluate a safe, efficable product for patient use, we try to negotiate the lowest cost possible with our supply partners.

Ken notes that supply chain performance can actually impact patient care such as timeliness of diagnosis, delivery of therapy, and reduction of secondary effects. He believes that decreasing costs and improving efficiency will result in higher volume in patient care, and thus increasing revenue for an HCO.

I think that depends on the type of hospital and whether it is non-profit or for-profit.
We should have a collaborative patient-centric supply chain that addresses the clinical and non-clinical needs of all stakeholders.

Click here to read more about upcoming Academic Webinars or to order a copy of the Hospital Supply Chain Management in the Future Healthcare Landscape Academic Webinar on CD-ROM.

Academic Webinar: Physician Preference Item Management

I’m sure many of us cringe when we think about physician preference item management. After all, it is one of the toughest areas to focus on in healthcare supply chain.


Natalia Wilson offered a great perspective in this webinar because she has been involved in PPIM research, and is also a practicing clinician.

I could relate to this topic because I am currently working with a Teaching Hospital in Dallas, TX on PPIM in Orthopedics. We have decided to pursue a capitated pricing strategy for total hip implants. We are currently a sole-source, which doesn’t offer much leverage with price negotiations. After meeting with some of the physicians and VP Surgical Services, we have been given permission to “crack the door open” to achieve better pricing. While we realize the docs are not going to switch product, they will at least trial some competitive products to put pressure on our sole-source vendor to provide more savings.


We have followed much of Natalia’s suggested strategy of engaging our internal and external stakeholders, and have been fortunate to receive buy-in from our physicians. Many of you work with well-renowned physicians and do not have the luxury of strong engagement. That is why it is important to understand and support what brings value to your docs.


Natalia also mentioned one of the difficulties of PPIM is access to good data. I cannot stress enough the importance of good data. If nothing else, a physician is more likely to evaluate reports or statistics if they are backed up by supporting information. There are some good tools that can provide dashboards or benchmarking studies such as ECRI, MD Buyline, SpendLINK (UHC) or Spend Compass (Advisory Board).


Looking at the broader view of a PPIM strategy, however, Natalia summarized the evaluation of the following areas:
1) Management within Supply Chain
2) Role of Internal & External Stakeholders
3) Physician Engagement Strategies
4) Education and Communication


While I won’t go into any more detail of each of these, I did want to stress that Executive Support is crucial to Physician Preference Item Management. With the current economic malaise, HCO’s are looking at high cost areas in the supply chain, which may provide opportunities in PPIM that didn’t exist before.

Click here to read more about upcoming Academic Webinars or to order a copy of the Physician Preference Item Management Academic Webinar on CD-ROM.

Academic Webinar: Fundamental Shifts in the US Healthcare System

While most of us are probably focusing on our own functional roles within our organizations, it is easy to forget the big picture issues facing the healthcare supply chain.

Given the complexity of healthcare and the current political climate, I have personally started paying attention to issues and trends that may affect my company and part of the supply chain. I work for a GPO and they are again facing scrutiny from the Senate Subcommittee for supposed anti-competitive business practices. Of course I think any company or sector of healthcare is an easy target if they are large or profitable.

I thought Dr. Singh did a great job of discussing the major shifts (i.e. Demographics, technology changes, physician trends, etc.) that will be evolving over the next several years. One example he discussed was a shifting disease pattern and the continuously increasing cost of treatment. He suggested a shift from acute care to chronic care, which will put even greater strain in the supply chain in the coming years.

Another example that Dr. Singh referenced was a shifting technology focus. “Health care has not witnessed technology cost reduction”. I do not think anyone can necessarily make that generalization. Since I’ve been working with a large hospital in Dallas the past 2 years, I have seen them move from manual, paper-based ordering to utilizing EDI and also upgrading their MMIS system to Lawson. This is a perfect example of how technology has resulted in operational cost reduction.

One of the my biggest takeaways from Dr. Singh’s presentation is that we should all have a 10-15 year view instead of a 2-3 year view, keeping in mind all of the different shifts. We tend to be reactive in our roles instead of proactive. It is amazing what we can learn from someone from the outside looking in.

Click here to read more about upcoming Academic Webinars or to order a copy of the Fundamental Shifts in the US Healthcare System Academic Webinar on CD-ROM.

Academic Webinar - Supply Chains and the Surgical Suite: Measuring the Impact of Best Practices on Financial and Operational Performance

Dr. Vicki Smith-Daniels and Dr. Dwight Smith-Daniels have conducted extensive research into improving the financial and operational performance in the OR suite. One of the main reasons for their research is the lack of empirical evidence in the healthcare supply chain industry. To broaden the scope of their research, they looked at the manufacturing industry for evidence of best practices. Manufacturing uses an evidence-based approach and incorporates practices such as lean manufacturing or Six Sigma.


Measuring performance and quantifying the results is difficult - especially since many healthcare organizations rely on distributors, GPOs and/or consultants to provide tools and resources for performance measurement. In addition, best practices tend to be limited to one hospital provider or system, rather than a group of providers.

The research has shown that some of the important elements of high performance supply chains in the surgical suite include physician engagement, value analysis, analytics, and IS Integration. Clinical collaboration is essential in best practices because the stakeholders include end-users, physicians, as well as supply chain staff.

Through one of the online polls conducted, we learn that two of the greatest factors in surgical suite improvement include inventory monitoring and custom procedure packs. Since the results were taken across several hospital organizations, it allows us to start building evidence toward a best practice.

The presenters stressed that practices over time build capabilities which breed better performance. Successful supply chain strategies will move from short-term focus to long-term sustainability.

Click here to read more about upcoming Academic Webinars or to order a copy of the Supply Chains and the Surgical Suite: Measuring the Impact of Best Practices on Financial and Operational Performance Academic Webinar on CD-ROM.