SEARCH · PubMed Health
Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Hospital food group purchasing programs face problems that other kinds of group purchasing programs don't have. HARICOMP, a not-for-profit hospital shared services corporation, helped a group of Rhode Island hospitals solve some of these problems by using computers. The computers eliminate much of the time-consuming effort involved in making price comparisons, holding sales meetings, and doing paperwork.
Some hospital associations and purchasing groups are negotiating contracts with the manufacturers of basic, large volume surgical, housekeeping, and maintenance supplies which permit the associations to package the products under their own label. This apparently gains some cost advantages as well as group recognition. Dr. Decker discusses some legal concerns that should be addressed before such a program is undertaken.
The CHA-CSHP pharmaceutical group purchasing program has provided several benefits to participating hospitals and related institutions in Connecticut. The program is run by pharmacists and staffed by individuals knowledgeable in good purchasing techniques. Pharmacist compliance has been good because of maximum input into program decisions by all participating pharmacy departments. Pharmaceutical industry participation has been excellent, because each bid invitation includes information on the previous year's purchases by participating hospitals and on the committed volume for the contract period. In addition, the program is self-supporting. Thus, larger hospitals, which would often be able to obtain good pricing independently, are not obliged to support the bulk of this program, as is often the case when participating institutions pay dues based on their bed size. As a result of the pharmaceutical group purchasing plan of the Connecticut Hospital Association, hospitals have received significant benefits in cost savings and shared drug information.
Group hopes purchasing power or members will spark changes. What happens when big health care purchasers like AT&T, Boeing, Caterpillar, Delta Airlines, Eli Lilly, Ford, General Motors, and IBM get together and voice an opinion about the quality of health care? Hospitals listen. At least that's the theory behind the Leapfrog Group, an organization sponsored by the Business Roundtable and including some 70 companies that hope to improve safety in health care by alerting patients to key features of hospitals around the country.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
In this article, Henderson shares his perceptions of the group purchasing market and the issues affecting groups and their negotiations with vendors, concentrating on vendors' reactions to changing market forces. He discusses where group purchasing is today and where it is going.
The effects of implementing a closed formulary system and group purchasing in a 343-bed, private, nonprofit community hospital were evaluated by use of price and value indexes. Four therapeutic categories were analyzed: antihistamines and decongestants, antitussives, antacids, and topical corticosteroidal creams and ointments. Overall savings in the four therapeutic categories evaluated totaled $681.33. The findings indicated differences in cost may exist between formulary and nonformulary drugs, but the direction and magnitude of that difference vary with the therapeutic category. The impact of group purchasing affiliation on overall purchase cost is discussed and additional cost-control methods are presented.
The next stage of group purchasing contracts has arrived. Increasing demands of alliances and groups require a more sophisticated response from manufacturers than in the past. Innovative programs, contracts and a thorough knowledge of the group are now required to remain ahead of the competition.
There are four issues facing provincial GPO's, independent GPO's, health care organizations and vendors: co-operation; commitment; compliance; and competition. Co-operation: Hospitals have traditionally competed with each other for scarce resources and, as a result, have managed their operations in isolation. However, group purchasing provides hospitals willing to work together with an opportunity to significantly increase their purchasing power with vendors, thereby substantially reducing costs. Commitment: The success of GPO's depends on the commitment to contracts by the members. The American experience indicates that commitment of smaller, more focused organizations is easier to control and maintain. Some provincial GPO's have difficulties ensuring commitment from members; therefore, they have not achieved their full potential. Compliance: Hospital compliance with committed volumes negotiated in the corporate contract is essential to ensuring the continued strength of the group's purchasing power. GPO's require mechanisms for ensuring compliance. Smaller GPO's with a common vision and a mutual understanding of the benefits to be realized from compliance will be more successful. Competition: Independent, national GPO's, like Medbuy, may be perceived to pose a threat to provincial GPO's. However, this competition should be viewed positively because it encourages all GPO's to work harder to provide higher quality services that will ultimately benefit the hospital membership. The group purchasing concept is valuable to provide reduced costs to groups through higher volume purchases. Canadian GPO's are evolving and now offer Canadians provincial, interprovincial and independent GPO alternatives. Health care organizations must study these options and decide which alternative would be most beneficial for their particular situation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
The Buyers Health Care Action Group (BHCAG) in the Twin Cities has implemented a new purchasing initiative that offers employees a choice among care systems with nonoverlapping networks of primary care providers. These systems offer a standardized benefit package, submit annual bids, and are paid on a risk-adjusted basis. Employees are provided with information on quality and other differences among systems, and most have financial incentives to choose lower-cost systems. Generally, providers have responded favorably to direct contracting and to risk-adjusted payments but have concerns about the risk-adjustment mechanism used and, more importantly, the strength of employers' commitment to the purchasing model.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.