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analysis program to cut fat from their budget. Much of the extra expense lied
within implant purchases, and the group has undertaken aggressive vendor
price negotiations for gains in their bottom line.
"We worked with surgeons in the practice to organize a program where
before bringing anything into the practice, it's vetted by the surgeons in the
group until we have a consensus on what equipment and supplies we purchase," says Mr. Wigton. "This has allowed us to standardize our supplies
and implants, minimize our inventory and bring new technology into the
center in a responsible way."
Gaining consensus can be challenging among a large group of surgeons,
but many are cooperative because they know in the future there will be
supplies they'll want to introduce as well.
"It's a gradual process to develop a space where the surgeons feel comfortable
to discuss supply options because nobody wants to tell another surgeon what
they can and can't use," says Mr. Wigton. "However, we lay out very clearly the
cost/benefit of any item and the surgeons are very sensitive to costs. When
they sit around the room in an advisory committee meeting, they have their
business hats on and they know how to make good decisions."
47
The practice may be able to save a significant amount of money on implantables in addition to savings on the arthroscopy towers.
"The market is consolidating and these large companies can sell you the
whole package from capital equipment to implantables," says Mr. Wigton.
"They can put together some pretty creative packages if you are willing
to consolidate and contract with them. In the past we tried to beat up on
vendors for better prices and we made some progress there, but I think this
year we've found a new opportunity." n
Advertising Index
Note: Ad page number(s) given in parentheses
Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care. info@aaahc.org /
www.aaahc.org / (847) 853-6060 (p. 12)
Ambulatory Surgical Centers of America. blambert@ascoa.com /
www.ascoa.com / (866) 982-7262 (p. 7)
ASCs Inc. jonvick@ascs-inc.com / www.ascs-inc.com / (760) 751-0250 (p. 32-33)
ASD Management. rzasa@asdmanagement.com /
www.asdmanagement.com / (626) 840-4248 (p. 29)
The trick often is making sure they can put their business hats back on when
they are in the operating room when a vendor is showing them new devices.
"They have to remember they are business owners," says Mr. Wigton. "It's one
thing for them to agree to the consensus, but it's another to actually practice it."
The Bloom Organization. www.bloom llc.com / (732) 229-8400 (p. 35)
4. Develop interdepartmental pre-operative case review. In
2012, CMO implemented a program aimed at developing a 'circle of accountability' across multiple departments. Each case is reviewed by the
purchasing department and the billing department. This gives the purchasing department an opportunity to cross-check the current case against historical information, and at this time costs are studied and supplies volumes
are check. If there are considerable cost increases, the purchasing department has a conversation with the surgeon to determine if the case can be
done cost effectively without sacrificing a good outcome for the patient.
Facility Development & Management. chetrick@facdevmgt.com /
www.facdevmgt.com / (845) 770-1883 (p. 28)
The purchasing department hands the information gathered to the billing department. The surgery authorization specialist cross-checks the costs
with what insurance will cover. Generating this information prior to the
case allows the billing department to educate the patient prior to surgery.
"We don't want the patient to be surprised after the fact. We want our
patients to know what they can expect to pay out of pocket in advance of
their surgery," says Jan Fournier, Chief Financial Officer at CMO. "Educating our patients upfront, whether uninsured, underinsured or adequately
insured involves them in the process and together we have the conversation
about what makes the most sense for them and for CMO. In rare cases, that
may mean moving a case to the hospital."
Other benefits CMO has experienced include that equipment needs are
known early on in the process so the purchasing clerk can make necessary
arrangements in a timely fashion avoiding unnecessary scheduling delays.
Surgeons also become more aware of the costs associated with their equipment and implant choices leading to more informed decision making.
5. Cost compare capital purchases. Over the next year, CMO plans
to purchase new arthroscopy towers. Capital purchases add significant expense to the bottom line for surgery centers, but also present an opportunity to reduce operating expenses if the capital purchase can be used to
leverage lower pricing on implants and disposables.
"We started working with one vendor and had all the big players come to the
table," says Mr. Wigton. "This approach has significantly disrupted the market.
We have arthroscopy vendors that do not have an implantable line team up with
other vendors that do to pull together very creative proposals. This has taken on
a life of its own. We now have several initiatives to decrease our costs for the both
the capital equipment as well as disposables. What it will take from the surgeons
is a commitment to a single vendor for a substantial portion of our business."
Collect RX. info@collectrx.com / (800) 300-3046 ext. 4519 (p. 44)
EVEIA HEALTH Consulting & Management. nayak@eveia.com /
www.eveia.com / (425) 657-0494 (p. 40)
Healthcare Appraisers. info@hcfmv.com / www.healthcareappraisers.com /
(561) 330-3488 (p. 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program. info@hfap.org / www.hfap.
org / (312) 202-8258 (p. 30)
ImageFIRST Healthcare Laundry Specialists. broberts@imagefirst.com /
www.imagefirstmedical.com/ (800) 932-7472 (p. 16)
iMD. keith@imdscribe.com / www.imdscribe.com / (615) 371-0096 (p. 42)
Kaye/Bassman International Corp. gnz@kbic.com / www.kbic.com /
(972) 931-5242 (p. 14)
Interventional Management Services. sr@physiciancontrol.com /
www.physiciancontrol.com / (404) 920-4950 (p. 31)
LifeLinc Anesthesia. www.lifelinc.com / (866) 362-6963 (p. 37)
MEDIVATORS. sales@medivators.com / www.medivators.com /
(753) 553-3300 (p. 5)
Meridian Surgical Partners. bbacon@meridiansurg.com |
khancock@meridiansurg.com / www.meridiansurgicalpartners.com /
(615) 301-8142 (p. 10)
Mednet Financial. rajesh@mednetus.com / www.mednetus.com /
(866) 968-MNET (p. 17, 39)
National Medical Billing Services. info@nationalascbilling.com /
www.nationalascbilling.com / (636) 273-6711 (p. 43)
Physicians' Capital Investments. jturner@physcap.com /
www.phscap.com / (866) 936-3089 (p. 46)
Professional Data Systems. www.goprodata.com / (888) 816-3819 (p. 41)
Re-Owned.com. www.re-owned.com / (855) 736-9633 (p. 15)
Simple Admit. customerservice@simpleadmit.com / www.simpleadmit.com /
(508) 737-1575 (p. 34)
Source Medical. info@sourcemed.net / www.sourcemed.net /
(866) 675-3546 (p. 2)
Stryker Endoscopy. EndoCustomerOrders@stryker.com /
www.stryker.com/endoscopy / (408)754-2000 (Main) / (800) 624-4422
(Customer Service) (p. 23, 24, 25, 25, 27)
Surgical Notes. sales@surgicalnotes.com / www.surgicalnotes.com /
(800) 459-5616 (p. 38)
Surgery Center Network. info@surgerycenternetwork.com /
www.surgerycenternetwork.com / (877) 565-8293 (p. 4)
VMG Health. jnickerson@vmghealth.com / www.vmghealth.com /
(214) 369-4888 (p. back cover)
