February 5, 2003
“Pushing
And Pulling Your Clinicians In Every Direction, But Forward --
Won’t Give You The Savings Results Your Are Looking For”
___________________________________________
Robert T. Yokl - President -
The HCP Group, Ltd.
“All Sustainable Changes In Your Supply/Value Chain Must Be
Cultural Ones --Not A One Time Event”
A recently released study conducted by large GPO found that hospitals can
SAVE millions in supply expense by engaging their clinicians in their
cost-reduction efforts, but for the change to be SUSTAINABLE it must be a
cultural one -- NOT A ONE TIME EVENT. Most healthcare organizations
however are still
pushing
and pulling
their clinicians in every direction, but FORWARD.
How do you
explain this DICHOTOMY in healthcare today?
First of all, healthcare organizations still believe in the myth that
STANDARDIZATION is the
only road to
success
in supply/value chain management. Secondly, they believe that clinicians
won’t change their METHODS and PRACTICES, because they are
inflexible,
unyielding
and
uncompromising
on most issues related to changing of their products, services and
technologies.
Standardization: A Self-Defeating Paradigm
Instead of buying into the
conventional
wisdom
that STANDARDIZATION is the only road to success in supply/value chain
management, healthcare organizations need to focus on CUSTOMIZATION of all
of the products, services and technologies that they purchase to truly
reduce their
total cost
of acquisition to disposition.
For instance, WHY should we care (or stage battle lines with our
clinicians) if we purchase from THREE OR FOUR pacemaker companies that are
PREFERRED by your clinicians, when our real goal should be to
customize
these pacemakers to their exact customer’s
functional
requirements. By doing so, you will find that the unit cost of your
pacemakers will DROP, on average, by $1,000 to $2,000 per pacemaker. This
is because the pacemakers you are buying now, with few exceptions, aren’t
MEDICALLY INDICATED or
functionally
required
for the purpose they were intended! This is a much better strategy than
PUSHING OR PULLING your clinicians in the ever direction – but forward –
with the process of standardization.
THE MYTH: Clinicians Won’t Change Their Methods & Practices
Yes, it is true that clinicians want control over their DESTINY or FATE in
almost every situation you encounter with them and that they are
inflexible,
unyielding
and
uncompromising
on most issues related to changes that would effect their products,
services and technologies. This is because they have HIGH STANDARDS that
they won’t compromise just to SAVE a few dollars.
On the other hand from my experience, clinicians are amenable to
investigating the products, services and technologies that they are buying
to insure that they have the right FUNCTIONAL SPECIFICATIONS, so that they
can provide their patients with
cost effective
quality care.
With few exceptions, because of their HIGH STANDARDS clinicians want to be
buying cost effective products, services and technologies and eliminate
any WASTE and INEFFICIENCIES in their supply/value chain. They are also
AGREEABLE to discussing any variation or deviation from industry norms
that are identified through VALUE STUDIES, since they want to do WHAT’S
RIGHT for their
patients and
employer.
They must however be allowed to make that decision themselves from
EVIDENCED BASED facts.
No Sustainable Change Is Impossible To Make
No sustainable change is impossible to make if you apply the old axiom,
WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME”. When you can show your clinicians that, IT’S ALL
ABOUT THEM, when you are
investigating
or
proposing
alternate products, services and technologies that they are now utilizing,
you are on
the
road
to sustainable change. This is because clinicians like the CHANGE they
PARTICIPATE in, are EXPECTING, find to be NECESSARY, isn’t for CHANGE SAKE
alone and is a DECISION that they make THEMSELVES.
