by
Sean Ruck, Contributing Editor | July 20, 2016
From the July 2016 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
HCB News: What are the biggest challenges facing health care resource and materials managers today?
MBL: Reacting to the speed of change has been a challenge. Many systems have moved to a horizontal service line management structure. Instead of having dedicated resources for one department or hospital, health care resources and materials managers support multiple departments and/or multiple hospitals. Supply chain is being asked to manage logistics very differently. In the past, supply chain may have delivered medications or supplies to a department, then the department resource managed the process. Now supply chain resources are embedded in the pharmacy, the OR, cath lab, ED, bioengineering, etc., to manage all aspects of materials management up to and including the review of the charge master to ensure the supply appears correctly on a patient bill.
HCB News: What are the biggest challenges facing the AHRMM today?
MBL: As with all associations, AHRMM is challenged constantly to remain relevant. To stay ahead of health care trends so that members see AHRMM as the source of innovative and practice-leading information. Three years ago, AHRMM launched the Cost, Quality and Outcome (CQO) Movement (www.ahrmm.org/CQO). With the increasing financial pressures, health systems needed to change their operations. The CQO Movement recognized that supply chain leaders practice at the intersection of cost, quality and outcomes and can support the health system initiatives strategically in savings far beyond price or logistics. The leading practices from the CQO Movement are showing that AHRMM has made a lasting impact in addressing the cost per care and patient experience to support the transition to population health management.
HCB News: Do you partner with any other organizations?
MBL: ARHMM works collaboratively with many organizations. As a personal membership group (PMG) of the American Hospital Association, AHRMM collaborates with other AHA PMGs to reach members throughout the hospital family. AHRMM has been a convener around the adoption of health care data standards, working with the FDA and standards organizations (GS1) prior to the final Unique Device Identifier ruling and throughout the adoption period. AHRMM works with many academic institutions to support practice advances, research and education of future supply chain leaders.
AHRMM also works collaboratively with other health care groups to share industry trends, thought leadership and best practices. Some of the groups include: the Association of Healthcare Value Analysis Professionals (AHVAP); the Bellwether League Inc.; Economic Cycle Research Institute; Gartner; Global Enteral Device Supplier Association (GEDSA); Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS); Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA); and Strategic Marketing Initiative (SMI).
