Lean Hospital Materials Processes and Throughput Costs in an Increasingly Tightened Economic Market

Materials Cost Savings from Start to Finish Supplies, a close second behind labor when it comes to costs, travel along the supply chain each day, from manufacturers and distributors to group purchasing organizations (GPOs) and healthcare providers, and then directly to patients. Even though medical personnel are not within the conventional supply chain, they are the eventual users of products and equipment and remain a major part of any materials cost-savings process.

To start maximizing your cost-savings efforts, follow these action items Determine annualized savings goals at the beginning of each fiscal year. Classify areas of opportunity. Form or refocus your Value Analysis Committee to create internal value and physician buy-in. Estimate potential savings. Capture savings.

Organization and Standardization Global standards assist hospital materials management processes and procedures and have been proven to have positive benefits and effects for the safety of patients and supply chain operations, including:

Reduced pharmaceutical errors through better identification automation (the right product, in the right dosage, to the right patient, by the right route, at the right time) Well-organized traceability Proficient product verification Reduced manual documentation time

Lower costs due to operational efficiencies Better order/invoice procedures Enhanced receiving/distribution processes Higher-quality product recall Well-organized shelf management High productivity rates

Reduced inventory Enhanced service levels/fill rates Better benchmarking and administration of materials charges Eliminated need for relabeling and proprietary codes Regulatory compliance

Global Location Numbers Global location numbers (GLNs) are widely used throughout healthcare supply chain groups. This unique, thirteen-digit number links the name, industry, and address of a particular item that pinpoints the “legal, functional, or physical location within a business or organizational entity,” in particular, hospitals and healthcare organizations.

Association for Healthcare Resource and Materials Management (AHRMM) Stance on Comparative Effectiveness Research In today’s hospital setting, data and healthcare information is the most accessible it has ever been, making it necessary for healthcare professionals to assess and evaluate its accuracy.

AHRMM’s Issues and Legislative Committee has advocated the usage of comparative effectiveness research (CER) to offer substantial, evidence-based data to aid healthcare organizations in their purchasing decisions. CER data includes unbiased conclusions regarding healthcare products and supplies after the advantages, usefulness, and possible harm of numerous pharmaceuticals, medical devices, equipment, surgical procedures, and tests for specific disease states and treatments of care have been compared.

By utilizing the CER-provided data, healthcare materials management professionals can: Warrant top-performing value analysis committees. Verify the cost-effectiveness and ability of salvaging single-use items. Regulate medical/surgical products. Capitalize information technology efforts to decrease expenditures and inaccuracies.

Change supplies, services, and technologies to lower, budget-friendly, clinically acceptable options that endure needed specifications. Convert to supplies, services, and technologies that produce better patient outcomes at a lower total cost that meets needed specifications. Prioritize capital expenditures. Use third-party benchmarking methods to get the most out of resources