Hospitals Save $11 Million in Three Months of Premier's Supply Chain Breakthrough Series; Collaborative Involves Record Number of Hospitals.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Hospitals and healthcare systems participating in Premier Inc.'s Fifth Annual Supply Chain Collaborative Breakthrough Series already have achieved nearly $11 million in supply chain cost savings -- 40 percent of their combined goal -- in just the first three months of the nine-month effort. More than 60 teams representing 62 organizations are participating -- double the number in both categories from last year. The goal is to reduce supply chain costs for participating Premier members by at least $27.5 million from September 2005 to May 2006. "One of the most important things about the Breakthrough series is that it brings administrative and clinical staff together," said Breakthrough Series co-chair Seth Larson, director of Materials Management Materials management is the branch of logistics that deals with the tangible components of a supply chain. Specifically, this covers the acquisition of spare parts and replacements, quality control of purchasing and ordering such parts, and the standards involved in ordering, for Obici Health System in Suffolk, VA. "Premier is the only organization I know that does this. It's very valuable. It's a great way to approach cost savings." Lana Smith, director of Value Analysis for Adventist Healthcare, Roseville, CA, credits the Breakthrough Series for helping the 20-hospital system identify opportunities to standardize stan·dard·ize v. 1. To cause to conform to a standard. 2. To evaluate by comparing with a standard. system-wide and significantly improve processes. "Our teams have already exceeded their goals in the cath lab A catheterization laboratory or cath lab is an examination room in a hospital or clinic with diagnostic imaging equipment to support the catheterization procedure. A catheter is inserted into a large artery, and various wires and devices can be inserted through the body via and are on target to meet perioperative perioperative /peri·op·er·a·tive/ (-op´er-ah-tiv) pertaining to the period extending from the time of hospitalization for surgery to the time of discharge. per·i·op·er·a·tive adj. goals as well," Smith said, "Our contract management team has already exceeded its $250,000 goal, reporting $925,000 of implemented system-wide cost savings. They didn't realize they could make such an impact with items like wrist bands and file folders." Smith said the Adventist system has used the Breakthrough series as a stimulus stimulus /stim·u·lus/ (stim´u-lus) pl. stim´uli [L.] any agent, act, or influence which produces functional or trophic reaction in a receptor or an irritable tissue. for developing not only system-wide approaches to contract management but also ways of holding each hospital accountable for its contracts. This is the third year the system has participated and it's planning to participate next year as well. More than 200 teams have taken part in the collaborative series since 2000. The first four series captured cumulative savings of more than $100 million. Last year's teams averaged more than $800,000 in savings. "We're in our fifth year and have the most teams ever. More than three-fourths of them have participated before," said Gay Wayland, R.N., Premier vice president of Supply Chain Knowledge Transfer. "That's a solid endorsement that the Breakthrough Series offers great value to our members. With more than $100 million in documented savings, we have an enviable en·vi·a·ble adj. So desirable as to arouse envy: "the enviable English quality of being able to be mute without unrest" Henry James. track record." A strategic alliance entirely owned by more than 200 of the nation's leading hospitals and healthcare systems, Premier created the Breakthrough Series in 2000 for members interested in improving the clinical supply chain. Using the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's (IHI IHI Institute for Healthcare Improvement (Boston, MA, USA) IHI Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries (Japan, ship building, aerospace & others) IHI Institute of History IHI I'd Hit It ) model for improvement, participants commit to collaborate with peers from other healthcare organizations to accelerate supply chain improvements. This year's Breakthrough Series is addressing the perioperative supply chain, cardiac catheterization Cardiac Catheterization Definition Cardiac catheterization (also called heart catheterization) is a diagnostic procedure which does a comprehensive examination of how the heart and its blood vessels function. (including peripherals), orthopedic orthopedic /or·tho·pe·dic/ (-pe´dik) pertaining to the correction of deformities of the musculoskeletal system; pertaining to orthopedics. implants (hips, knees and spine) and contract administration, a new focus. During the nine-month program, participants commit to implementing changes that will significantly improve operations and potentially eliminate millions of dollars of unnecessary supply-related expenses. Teams meet in face-to-face learning sessions three times, reinforced by monthly reports and conference calls as well as daily communications through Premier's e-mail discussion list. About Premier, Inc. Premier, Inc., the leader in helping hospitals accelerate performance on both clinical outcomes and supply chain costs, is a healthcare alliance entirely owned by more than 200 of the nation's leading not-for-profit hospital and healthcare systems. These organizations operate or are affiliated with more than 1,400 hospitals and more than 37,000 other healthcare sites. Premier Purchasing Partners provides group purchasing totaling more than $25 billion annually in supplies and equipment, as well as supply chain and clinical performance improvement services. Premier Healthcare Informatics Same as information technology and information systems. The term is more widely used in Europe. offers performance measurement, benchmarking, and reporting products and advisory services advisory services advisory services provided to the public, in their capacity as owners and managers of animals, are an important part of veterinary science. They may be provided by government bureaux, by commercial companies who deal in pharmaceuticals or animals or animal . Premier Insurance Management Services helps hospitals manage insurance costs and improve risk management and claims capabilities. Headquartered in San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. , CA, Premier has offices in Charlotte, NC, Chicago, and Washington, DC. For more information, visit www.premierinc.com |
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