Hang up the telephone, throw away POs, and join buyers on-line
Hang up the telephone, throw away POs, and join buyers on-line
E-commerce offers efficiencies, financial savings, and information
You might never again have to pick up the phone or use a purchase order (PO) to order supplies and equipment. Across the country, same-day surgery managers are sitting down at their computers or, even better, getting a clerk to sit down at a computer and ordering 50% or more of their supplies and equipment through web-based medical supply companies, which is referred to as "e-commerce." The advantages are numerous, they claim.
"Surgery centers are so cost-minded because we only get a set rate for our procedures; we are forced into being cost-effective," says Erin Duffy, RN, director of the Ambulatory Surgery Center of Greater New York in Bronx. "This is just another avenue for us to save money." Duffy orders approximately 55% of her supplies and equipment through suppleye.com. (See partial list of vendors, below.)
| Sampling: Medical Supply and Equipment Web Sites | |
| www.esurg.com | Esurg is an on-line source for ordering medical, surgical, pharmaceutical, and office supplies. |
| www.medibuy.com | Medibuy offers providers a way to budget, source, and purchase medical and surgical products, commodity items, and capital equipment, as well as business and facility-related products. Medibuy is the exclusive e-commerce provider of medical supplies and equipment supported by the Premier group purchasing organization. |
| www.medicalbuyer.com | This site allows providers to place orders for medical supplies directly with distributors. |
| www.medpool.com | This site provides interactive communication and contracting tools that pool clinician preferences and purchasing power. Providers tell medpool what they want to buy, their terms, and conditions. |
| www.neoforma.com | This offers medical, pharmaceutical, and laboratory products. Affiliated with Novation group purchasing organization in the United States and Medbuy in Canada. |
| www.suppleye.com | This web site is designed specifically for eyecare surgery centers. The site honors your existing manufacturer relationships and contracts. |
Previously, ordering supplies was a major ordeal, she says. "If I had three surgeons and they used six products, I’d have to call six companies and place my orders," Duffy says. While some ordering could be handled via fax, she usually ended up calling the company to make sure it received the fax and could read it. Duffy often would have to talk to the vendor about the order, especially if the facility had a specialty order, she says.
E-commerce "saves a good hour of telephone calls for the lenses, never mind the other products," Duffy says. While e-commerce prices are competitive, the savings come primarily as a result of saving time, Duffy and others say, "and time equals money," she adds.
Other managers confirm the time savings. "In the ambulatory surgery center, our old method of purchasing might take a good 45 minutes to compile the information, either reach the rep on the telephone or make a call and wait for the rep to return your call, or if the rep came by, to take time out from your practice to give the rep all the information on what you wanted to order," says Wesley Gilliland, administrator of Fish Pond Medical Plaza, which includes Fish Pond Surgery Center, in Waco, TX.
In comparison, it takes about 10 minutes to order via the Internet, Gilliland says. He orders approximately 50% of his supplies and equipment from esurg.com. "Now, as esurg and others such as Office Depot make products available via the Internet, it’s a lot quicker and a much more efficient way to purchase your supplies," he adds.
When a same-day surgery program has an urgent need for supplies or equipment, response time is critical, Duffy points out. With e-commerce, "no one is on the phone, reading off things, and having someone say, Can you hold? Can I call you back? Customer service is busy. We’re not sure what you’re talking about,’" she says.
Billing also can be handled efficiently, Gilliland reports. "If you have a question, you can e-mail them and immediately get a response, rather than being on hold on a phone and going through number of different answering machines and a voice-activated system to get someone," he says. When you order from e-commerce companies, they typically offer a shopping cart with your frequently ordered items. "With a click of a button, you can order items and, also at that time, know if the item is back-ordered," Gilliland says.
If for some reason the item becomes back- ordered after you’ve placed your order, vendors usually will call to find out your priority level for that product, say sources interviewed by Same-Day Surgery. "If it’s high priority, they go out and find it for you," and at no extra charge, Gilliland adds.
The efficient handling of back-ordered items has been a pleasant surprise for those managers who have ventured into e-commerce. "That was my biggest concern, and it ended up not being a concern," says Rose Eickelberger, RN, BSN, director of nursing at the Cincinnati Eye Institute. Eickelberger orders approximately 15% of her facility’s supplies and equipment from suppleye.com. Shipping options range from overnight delivery to standard ground delivery. Facilities that order in large enough volumes sometimes can avoid any shipping charges, even with overnight delivery, sources report.
Managers at smaller facilities, who often feel as if they’re on the bottom of the purchasing totem pole when competing with large hospital systems, have found some e-commerce companies are geared toward meeting their particular supply and equipment needs. Purchasing on-line usually involves no fees or contracts. (See "Internet sites track purchasing," in this issue.)
To begin on-line ordering, start with your current vendors, Duffy suggests. Ask them whether they deal with an on-line company, she says. "I don’t want to go on-line to six different companies," Duffy says. "I can’t spend all of my time on the computer."
Consider these additional suggestions:
• Ask what the company can do for you. Remember that the e-commerce company is a service for you, Duffy points out. Write down the problems you’re currently experiencing with purchasing, but don’t give the vendors your list. "Not to put them on the defensive, but ask, What can you do for me?’" she suggests. See if the vendors addresses your problem areas as you converse, she suggests. "Go company by company," she advises. "See if they can help you."
• Tell your e-commerce company what supplies and equipment you need that it doesn’t have available on-line. Most of the sources interviewed by SDS select one Internet site to order from. It’s most convenient when you can do one-site shopping, they report. Call or e-mail the customer service department at your e-commerce company when you’re unable to purchase certain items from the web site, Gilliland suggests. "[It will] put it on the priority list to try to get it in the future," he says.
• Keep communicating face-to-face with your vendors. Keeping in direct touch with your vendors is important for several reasons, sources report. When using some web sites, you still negotiate the price face-to-face with your vendor rep. The e-commerce site receives your negotiated price from the vendor. You should double-check to ensure your negotiated price is listed on the order and the bill, Duffy suggests. And price isn’t the only reason for keeping in touch with your vendor reps. You need to keep abreast of technology changes, particularly in fields such as ophthalmology where there has been a rapid introduction of new lenses and other technology, Duffy says.
• Pick the right employees to handle on-line ordering, and train them. Your staff have always picked up the phone to make orders, Gilliland points out. Train them about the advantages of ordering on-line; they can click and be done, he says. "You can print a sheet of what you just ordered and have confirmation in a file," he points out. "You can check it off when it arrives." Be sure to pick employees who are comfortable working on the Internet, Gilliland suggests. Some e-commerce companies will provide Internet training for your staff, he says. The training from esurg covered not only how to order from that site, but how the Internet works, Gilliland says. There was no charge for the training, he adds.
Some employees may balk and say that you’re just adding another person to the ordering process, Gilliland warns. "But in reality, you’re taking a step toward getting a single vendor to order supplies from," he says. "If they will transition into something new like this, even if initially they only have 50% of their orders on a web site, you will save time and energy on that 50%."
Sources
For more information on using the Internet to order equipment and supplies, contact:
• Erin Duffy, RN, Director, Ambulatory Surgery Center of Greater New York, 1101 Pelham Parkway, Bronx, NY 10469. Telephone: (718) 515-3500. Fax: (718) 519-8295. E-mail: [email protected].
• Rose Eickelberger, RN, BSN, Director of Nursing, Cincinnati Eye Institute, 10494 Montgomery Road, Cincinnati, OH 45242. Telephone: (513) 984-5133. Fax: (513) 984-4494. E-mail: [email protected].
• Wesley Gilliland, Administrator, Fish Pond Medical Plaza, 6600 Fish Pond Road, Waco, TX 76710. Telephone: (254) 741-6113. Fax: (254) 741-6629. E-mail: [email protected].
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