Supply chain management might not be the hot topic of discussion in the hospital setting, but healthcare administrators looking to cut costs in this economy would do well to look at how their supplies are procured, stored and distributed.
Broadlane, a Dallas-based cost management company for healthcare providers, emphasized that point in its appearance this week at the Healthcare Financial Management Association’s ANI: The Healthcare Conference in Seattle. Among the company’s accomplishments was the announcement Tuesday of a contract with the Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va., to manage that organization’s approximate $52 million in annual supply chain expenses.
“This is a time when cost-management is a must,” said Robin Norman, senior vice president and chief financial officer of the Virginia Hospital Center. “Supply chain is our second largest operating expense. We examined many companies looking for ways improve our supply chain and decrease operating costs. Broadlane emerged as the leader with the best solutions to meet our needs and deliver significant savings.”
Through the contract, hospital officials will have access to Broadlane’s national GPO portfolio of supplies, equipment, pharmaceuticals and purchased services, as well as Broadlane’s OnRamp client portal. Broadlane will also provide capital equipment services, clinical consulting (through The Preference Group), transaction management services, item master services, informatics and transaction automation and management through the BroadLink e-commerce exchange.
Virginia Hospital Center is a teaching hospital associated with Georgetown University’s School of Medicine, offering medical services to the metropolitan Washington D.C. area for more than 60 years.
Broadlane, which also has offices in Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, New York and Oakland, has contracts with several large healthcare providers, including CHRISTUS Health, Kaiser Permanente, Kindred Healthcare, Ascension Health and Tenet Healthcare.
In April, the company announced that Jordan Health Systems in Plymouth, Mass., recognized a 17 percent reduction in medical and surgical contract prices and a 2.5 percent reduction in pharmacy contract prices through its use of Broadlane, amounting to an anticipated $1.2 million in savings over an annual spend of $35 million in 2009.
”So many of our clients have discovered similar financial and operating improvements since becoming Broadlane clients,” said David Ricker, the company’s president and chief executive officer. “With limited operating budgets, it is imperative healthcare providers examine all alternatives to select the best partner to help deliver these financial and operating improvements.”