With seven ORs and two procedure rooms, the volume at the Ambulatory Surgery Center of Spartanburg (S.C.) exceeds 10,000 cases a year, making it one of the highest-volume ASCs in the state. Administrator Mike Pankey, RN, explains how a high-volume ASC can leverage its volume to lower costs and improve operations.
1. Go outside of the GPO. Because the ASC has a volume on par with a large hospital, "we have the negotiating power of a regional center," Mr. Pankey says. That means the ASC can push prices even lower than its GPO for high-cost items that are worth the time to negotiate in-house. An ASC with smaller volume would likely not receive this level of discount.
2. Line up surgeons behind one product. The negotiating clout of a large ASC can be amplified all the more if all surgeons are lined up to buy one product. "You can get some very lucrative discounts," Mr. Pankey. To get physicians on board, he invites all of them out to dinner. "I place the products side by side for them to choose," he says. For implants, company representatives might be invited in.
Having peer-to-peer discussions leading to a verbal agreement on one product can also work well. "When you have a discussion and make a verbal agreement with peers, it's a bit harder to back out," he says.
3. Package special deals with vendors. A high-volume ASC can also negotiate special deals to lower costs, such as bundling products. Under this arrangement, the ASC could lease an arthroscopy tower at little or no upfront charge in return for committing to buying the company's shaver blade or high energy wand for a period of time. In each purchase of a disposable, the ASC pays the company an extra fee toward the cost of the tower. To save more money, the ASC could them negotiate a lower unit cost of the disposable, so that the new total price with the fee included is equal to the previous price.
4. Assign extra nurses at peak times. With very high volumes, the odds increase of slowdowns in patient flow and other issues that require extra clinical staff. "At peak times, we make one or two extra nurses available in case there is a problem," Mr. Pankey says. The ASC can bring in per-diems or reassign charge nurses who have been cross-trained in several functions.
5. Shift staff from morning to evening. The advantage of having a large staff is being able to fine-tune work schedules. For example, the ASC can shift staff as the bulk of patients move from the pre-op area in the morning to post-op area in the afternoon. That means there will be more staff in pre-op in the morning, and then many of them will move to post-op in the afternoon.
Learn more about the Ambulatory Surgery Center of Spartanburg.
Read more ideas for improvement:
- Case Study: 6 Successful Ways Washington State ASC Increased Profits
- 5 Things Large ASCs Can Do to Stay Profitable
- 5 Essential Steps to Turning Around a Struggling ASC