Tag: Supply chain

4 Tips For Creating Better Stakeholder Surveys

By: Brittni Straseske
Date: June 6, 2019
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Clinician Engagement, Collaboration, Interdepartmentalism, Performance Metrics, Supply chain, Surveys

As the oversight of supply chain expands, the department is increasingly tasked with developing innovative solutions for varying issues across an organization. Many times, these initiatives involve numerous departments, positions, and responsibilities. It is often difficult to gauge the pulse or opinions such a diverse group of stakeholders have regarding a specific topic, process, department, […]

Top Procurement Trends from 2018 For Supply Chain Leaders

By: Mitch Vomhof
Date: December 14, 2018
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Procurement, Supply chain, Vendor Relationships

Looking back at the Academy‘s strategies for contracting and vendor relationships this year. The resource crunch in other areas of healthcare operations has been felt in the supply chain as well, with organizations emphasizing consolidation and optimization in the procurement space. In 2018, the Supply Chain Academy covered strategies for standardizing contracting models, including centralization […]

Charting Value Analysis Expansion and Evolution

By: Mitch Vomhof
Date: October 19, 2018
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: best practice report, Supply chain, value analysis

The Supply Chain Academy’s Best Practice Report Preview In the context of broader cost containment efforts, healthcare organizations are identifying the supply chain and product optimization as opportunities for improvement. Specifically, standardization and value analysis are demonstrating the potential to save money and resources without reducing care quality or patient satisfaction, which makes them ideal […]

Using Geothermal Energy to Lower Consumption and Costs

By: Jon Bortin
Date: July 12, 2018
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Renewable energy, Supply chain, Sustainability

Use of renewable energy, produced from natural resources that are not finite like fossil fuels, is on the rise in the U.S. The federal government predicts that this trend will continue through 2040. For healthcare providers, which consume some of the highest levels of energy among buildings in the U.S., renewable energy presents an opportunity […]

The Importance of Visibility in Vendor Credentialing

By: Jon Bortin
Date: May 8, 2018
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Supply chain, Vendor credentialing

Vendor credentialing, the certification process that vendors and sales representatives go through in order to gain access to healthcare provider facilities, is necessary to guarantee the safety of staff and patients, protect a provider’s business interests, and comply with legal rules. At many hospitals and health systems, vendor credentialing is the responsibility of the supply […]

Point-of-use Cleaning in the OR: What Does Supply Chain Need to Know?

By: Brittni Straseske
Date: February 27, 2018
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: OR, Point-of-use cleaning, scrub technicians, Supply chain

Point-of-use cleaning, recommended by numerous industry organizations, is an OR process of rinsing instruments during the operation and preparing them for transportation to the decontamination area or sterile processing department after the procedure concludes. A number of industry organizations advise that all reusable instruments should be wiped—and any lumens flushed—with sterile water between uses during […]

Reducing Postoperative Opioid Prescription and Use with an Enhanced Recovery Program

By: Jon Bortin
Date: January 18, 2018
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Opioids, Pharmacy, Supply chain

Amid a national epidemic, the healthcare supply chain has come under scrutiny for its practices in the distribution and prescription of opioids. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly half of all opioid overdose deaths involve a prescription opioid. Under societal pressure, hospitals and health systems are examining their roles in this […]

Changing the Supply Chain Mindset from Supporter to Partner

By: Jon Bortin
Date: November 9, 2017
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Supply chain, Supply Chain Strategy

Supply chains at hospitals and healthcare systems, the thinking has traditionally been, are supporters, not partners, in carrying out the strategies of their organizations. But the growing scope, responsibility, and influence of the supply chain, in combination with ever-growing pressure to cut costs, has forced leadership to rethink the business model that puts supply chain […]

Needleless Blood Draws: Q&A with Intermountain Healthcare

By: Jon Bortin
Date: September 26, 2017
Category: Supply Chain
Filed under: Innovation, Intermountain Healthcare, Materials Management, Medical devices, Supply chain

Blood draws are the most common of medical procedures, helping clinical professionals diagnose diseases, evaluate organ function, and determine if treatments are working. As elemental as they are to care delivery, however, blood draws are also sources of pain, anxiety, and risk—for patients and clinicians alike. Small but significant parts of the patient population are […]