Clinical staff may be spending too much time on materials management
functions, according to recent industry data. While this trend may be a
short-term labor solution for some healthcare providers, its long-term
effects could negatively impact organizational efforts to improve cost,
quality, and outcomes measures.
A new survey published by Cardinal Health finds that hospitals report
better supply chain management not only leads to better quality of care,
but supports patient safety as well. Although a majority of respondents
rate their supply chain processes as “good,” approximately 24 percent
of hospital staff have seen or heard of expired products being used on a
patient, while 18 percent recall an instance where a patient was harmed
due to a lack of necessary supplies.
“We commissioned this survey to understand how the supply chain
impacts hospital staff across all roles – supply chain administrators,
service line leaders, physicians, and nurses,” says Scott Nelson, Senior
Vice President of Supply Chain, Cardinal Health. “We want to ensure
that supply chain is not only a key business tool, but also an essential
component in supporting patient safety and care.”
Frontline clinicians recognize the potential gains in patient
satisfaction and safety that can be realized from reallocating current
time spent on inventory management and supply chain functions. In fact,
physicians and nurses currently spend 20 percent of their average
workweek – or two hours each shift – on these tasks, which is time they
would dedicate to patient care, research and education, or new staff
training if given the opportunity.
Financial demands are the single greatest challenge facing surveyed
organizations. More than half of administrators rank cost management as
their number one factor for success. But asking clinical staff to handle
manual inventory functions instead of investing in new, automated, and
data-driven supply chain technologies is a cost-cutting measure that may
not be tolerated much longer. According to respondents, improvements
are long overdue; one-third believe their facility hasn’t introduced a
new inventory management system in six or more years, while 25 percent
don’t know if a new system has ever been implemented.
“We believe supply chain automation and analytics are the next
frontiers for improving care,” says Nelson. Suppliers like Cardinal
Health have identified radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology
as a valuable resource for helping providers automate inventory tracking
and utilization. In addition to inventory holding cost savings, the
technology has been shown to reduce labor hours spent on product
ordering, eliminate overnight shipping costs resulting from stockouts,
and automate expiration and recall alerts to support patient safety
initiatives.
Bottom-line costs almost always factor into an organization’s
decision-making process when considering new investments. Unfamiliarity
with new technologies and getting stakeholder buy-in also contribute to
hospitals’ slow adoption of supply chain process improvements. It’s
Nelson’s hope that providers use these survey results to assess how well
their inventory system supports patient care – Cardinal Health launched
a free Inventory Management IQ quiz in conjunction with its survey
release – as well as to advocate for a healthier supply chain.
“Delivering high-quality care more effectively should be a top
priority for every provider,” Nelson adds. “Everyone at the hospital
plays a role in advocating for a more efficient supply chain that allows
physicians and nurses to put their time to its best use.”
From:
http://www.jhconline.com/cqo-investment-begins-with-supply-chain.html