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When healthcare organizations analyze poor decisions that may have resulted in harm to patients, they are retrospectively identifying problems to help them optimize their decision-making processes. But how do they look ahead and analyze the possible impacts of new programs, products, or technologies? The ability to make reasoned predictions about patient experience and outcomes, costs, […]
Anytime we come into contact with healthcare, we will most likely encounter some type of patient monitor. Whether it is a basic vital signs monitor at the physician’s office or a multi-parameter, full-screen monitor in the Intensive Care Unit, physiologic monitors provide the foundational information for a multitude of care-related decisions. Until recently, the patient […]
DALLAS, TX—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Administrators at hospitals and healthcare organizations who negotiate contracts with vendors are the frontline in defending against rising prices. Aimee Jackson, Purchased Services Senior Analyst at TractManager and a seasoned contract negotiator on both sides of the table, has created a list of her Top 10 Contract Negotiation Strategies for Healthcare Providers that […]
When assessing performance, does your health system look in both directions—past and future? When it comes to value analysis, just one blind spot can lead to unforeseen consequences in patient outcomes and satisfaction, cost of care, and clinician engagement. The Comprehensive Safe Start is a structured framework that facilitates a true 360-degree view, embracing evidence-based […]
So, you received your MD Buyline Quote Analysis, and we recommend further discussion with the vendor prior to making a purchase decision for your organization. Now what? Negotiating with vendors can be intimidating, daunting, and stressful. However, a three-tiered strategy can provide you the confidence you need to find real savings on any capital equipment […]
This ultimate stage of Total Value Management is characterized by decision-making that relies upon unbiased, scored, and comprehensive evidence. Leadership must promote this mature, clinically collaborative process. To reach and maintain this stage, the mission must be made explicit, and every staff member must actively collaborate in a culture that promotes constant communication, self-analysis, and […]
In an industry as heavily regulated as healthcare, contracting takes on new importance. Here, compliance concerns mean that definitions of value must also encompass the potential regulatory penalties a health system must avoid. And within the context of compliance, process matters as much as output and has implications for everything from concerns about cybersecurity to […]
As health systems advance along the continuum toward the ultimate stage of value analysis, they have begun to develop collaborative, evidence-driven VA processes. Documentation and automation have been put in place to help guide decision-making. And although cost remains an important consideration, improvements in patient care have started to assume a role as the primary […]
At the Cost, Standardization Focus stage of a hospital’s value analysis process, technological standardization has commenced, but it is limited to a small number of similar products. With the goal of waste reduction, the process begins a gradual movement from chaos to a more transactional approach. Stakeholders from different departments begin to collaborate in decision-making, […]
The New Product Approval, Cost Focus stage of a hospital’s value analysis process is characterized by a basic standardization around commodities. Cost and volume become the primary decision-making factors. Even if a hospital at this stage has a value analysis team or professional on hand, the process will be immature, and the prime considerations will […]
Demand-Driven Focus is the first — and least mature — stage of a hospital’s value analysis process. This stage is a vestige of the days when health systems were able to determine both the technologies they used to deliver care and the prices they charged patients. Value analysis in this model is characterized by a […]
Laparoscopy, the current standard method of practice in abdominal operations, uses rigid scopes. The method is considered minimally invasive; when compared to open procedures, it results in smaller incisions, less bleeding, shorter recovery time, and less post-operative pain. Contrasted with rigid procedures, flexible endoscopy is performed via access to natural body orifices rather than incisions, […]
American hospitals and health systems must balance financial pressures, technological innovation, and the ever-changing expectations of their patients, professional staff, and regulators. Whether a hospital can adapt to these demands depends in large measure on its ability to assess value. Hospitals and even different departments within the same hospital tend to exhibit a variety of […]
According to the National Cancer Institute, in 2018 an estimated 266,000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer, and nearly 41,000 women died from the disease. Now the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed amending current mammography regulations issued under the Mammography Quality Standards Act of 1992 (MQSA). Most of today’s mammography regulations are […]
Healthcare organizations tend to classify capital equipment service contracts into different categories. Service contracts may be the responsibility of the purchased services team or of the capital procurement team, or have their own division within the Supply Chain. The most mature Supply Chain departments have their own maintenance agreement division responsible for all external service […]
