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O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | M A Y 2 0 1 5
5 Supply-Saving Solutions
Reducing case costs frees up funds for investing in the future.
N
ext to
staffing, sup-
ply costs are
a surgical facility's
biggest expense. Here
are 5 strategies to con-
tain your supply costs
without sacrificing
quality. You can use
what you save in supplies to help maintain your facility's profit margin
and physician-owner dividends, invest in new service lines, fund equip-
ment upgrades, and keep you and your staff nicely compensated.
Standardize as much as possible. Start by case-costing, particularly
for implant-heavy cases like hernias, cataracts, orthopedics, and
urology and gynecology (slings and bulking agents). To achieve the
biggest financial impact quickly, focus on the financials of the most
frequently performed cases. If you find, for example, that rotator cuff
repair costs vary widely between your surgeons, do a little more dig-
ging. If Dr. Ortho always converts to an open repair from an
arthroscopy, it could be saving OR time, but costing more in materi-
als. Be sure to account for those types of variances in your analysis. If
you find OR times and implant or materials costs are all over the map,
involve your surgical team to determine next steps. It may be an easy
conversation with a particular surgeon about his techniques or it may
require a physician group discussion led by your medical director.
When cost variance is not due to implant costs, try to pinpoint other
opportunities for standardization. One example is the use of proce-
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B U S I N E S S A D V I S O R
Corrie Massey, MBA
z BONUS BENJAMINS Efficient supply manage-
ment is like finding money on the (back) table.
