Physicians Practice - January 2008 - (Page 66)

CME MANAGEMENT CONTROLLING YOUR INVENTORY B Y PA M E L A L . M O O R E , P h D HOW TO GET EVERYTHING IN ITS PLACE, FOR LESS In corporate America, supply chains are lean and mean. Wal-Mart, for example, is famous for its ability to order just enough of what customers need — not too much — at just the right time, and at the lowest imaginable prices. Compare that to a typical medical practice with an overﬂowing, messy supply closet, ﬁlled with too many syringes and too few bandages, all purchased and stocked haphazardly. Improving a clinic’s supply chain can improve efﬁciency, since everything is on hand where it is supposed to be and restocking is easier. It can also improve cash ﬂow, since items are ordered on an as-needed basis, and the costs are spread out instead of bunched up. Getting those advantages can be as easy as setting a few new rules or as complex as developing direct relationships with suppliers, depending on your specialty and group size. GET ORGANIZED Most groups will beneﬁt simply from getting better organized. Start by putting a single person, the right person, in charge of supplies. “You have to ﬁnd a person who loves a bargain, and they have to be able to ﬁnd the best price… You need LEARNING OBJECTIVES After completing this article, readers will be able to: • Identify simple solutions to make supply chain management more efﬁcient. in relation to overhead costs. improve the supply chain. • Analyze costs and beneﬁts of supplies • Develop strategic partnerships to 66 | PHYSICIANS PRACTICE | JANUARY 2008 someone who will come into a meeting excited because they saved $3,” says Donna Weinstock, a consultant with Ofﬁce Management Solutions in Northbrook, Ill. It is possible to get good deals, but someone has to look for them. “Obviously, the ﬁrst step in controlling costs is to always check the pricing. A lot of people don’t do that. They just order. Just do a comparison of vendors, both local vendors and Internet-based purchasing,” advises Reed Tinsley, an accountant and healthcare consultant in Houston. Try getting on promotional e-mail lists from major suppliers, Weinstock suggests. “If you are on everyone’s list, you’ll start to see that tongue depressors are on sale with Vendor A so you can order there instead of placing your usual order with Vendor B.” Also, make an annual project of reviewing your regular shopping list. Are there items you can do without? Is there anything that’s been sitting in your supply closet, unused, for at least a year? Get rid of that stuff: Try to get the vendor to give you a refund for any unopened boxes. If the vendor refuses or insists on a restocking fee, consider that an opening to negotiate. It might change its tune, says Jeffrey Denning of Practice Performance Group, if it understands that your continued business could be at stake. Meanwhile, of course, remove those items from your supply list. Can you replace an expensive item with something cheaper without hurting productivity or quality? “Sit down in a staff meeting and say, ‘OK, let’s talk about the products WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM http://WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Physicians Practice - January 2008

Physicians Practice - January 2008 Contents The Bigger Picture: Fixing Medicaid Letters Physicians Practice Pearls: You Can Teach an Old Dog New Tricks Noteworthy Cover Story: Fee Schedule Survey: 2007 Results Adding Ancillaries: Bucking the Practice Ask the Experts Idealab: 'How I Got Over My EMR Excuses' Technology: Don't Be Denied The Tech Doctor: Blessing or Curse? The Administrator's Desk: Learning From the Best Coding Career: To Partner, or Not? Management: Controlling Your Inventory Human Resources: How to Fire an Enployee Finance: Beyond Reimbursment - How to Fix Your Mix Classifieds Advertiser Index

Physicians Practice - January 2008

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