The concept of "green" practices is taking root in healthcare as hospitals and other providers look not only to preserve the environment, but save on equipment costs by recycling.
Among the companies looking to fill this expanding niche is Ascent, a Phoenix, Ariz.-based division of the Stryker Corporation and a provider of reprocessing (cleaning, testing/verifying, packaging and sterilizing) and remanufacturing (disassembling, repairing and manufacturing) services. Formed in 2005 through the merger of the Alliance Medical Corporation of Phoenix and Vanguard Medical Concepts of Lakeland, Fla., Ascent is now working with more than 1,800 hospitals and health systems in the United States.
Healthcare Finance News recently asked Lars Thording, Ascent's senior director of marketing and public affairs, to discuss the company's initiatives.
Q. How does Ascent ensure the safety of its process?
A. It's a responsible way to conduct business in today's challenging healthcare environment because it helps hospitals make the best use of scarce resources by minimizing waste and providing the best care possible. The devices remanufactured by Ascent and other third-party reprocessors comply with the FDA's 510(k) and Quality System Regulation (QSR) requirements. The Association for Professionals in Infection Control & Epidemiology (APIC) supports the FDA's requirements for reprocessing medical devices.
Q. Do healthcare providers understand the financial benefits or reprocessing?
A. Interest in and use of remanufactured devices among hospitals has grown very rapidly over the past few years due to a number of powerful trends including: the increased awareness of the safety and efficacy of reprocessing, the rigorous federal oversight of the industry and, most importantly, its ability to reduce costs to the healthcare system and mitigate the environmental impact of medical treatments without compromising the quality or efficacy of care.
Consider the fact that remanufactured medical devices are half the cost of single-use devices. Administrators understand that they're not only saving 50 percent of the purchasing cost for each device, but they're also saving money that would be spent on special handling and waste management of that device were it discarded into the waste stream without further re-use. The cost savings on each device add up quickly. Cost savings for Ascent's 1,800 hospital partners amounted to hundreds of millions of dollars in 2009. On a per-hospital basis, several saved more than $600,000 last year. Reprocessing allows hospitals to deploy more of their scarce resources to enhancing patient care through quality initiatives. In today's challenging healthcare environment, cost-savings from reprocessing can make all the difference between hiring and firing a nurse.
Q. Are providers more apt to choose reprocessed single-use devices for the economic or environmental benefits?
A. More and more hospitals are pursuing remanufacturing as an impactful savings strategy, and hospitals that are currently working with reprocessing/remanufacturing partners are increasing their commitment, dramatically. In the near future, more hospitals will incorporate reprocessing as a key initiative and derive more substantial savings from the practice. Additionally, the issue of sustainability has become more and more important in recent years. Sustainability coordinators and green teams increasingly have a say in purchasing decisions and in formulating policies for hospital employees. This more recent development has meant a surge in the call for usage of reprocessed and remanufactured products. The focus on sustainability will continue to fuel reprocessing growth.
Q. What lies in the future for Ascent?
A. Reprocessing can reduce costs to the healthcare system and minimize the environmental impact of medical treatments without compromising the quality or efficacy of care. It has always been a smart supply chain strategy, but in the current economic and political climate, those benefits are increasingly attractive. Industry analysts have projected the reprocessing industry will grow 20 percent year-over-year, over the next five years.