Scopes are one of the highest expenses for GI/endoscopy-driven ambulatory surgery centers. Maintaining the cost of such expensive pieces of equipment is important to the overall and long-term financial health of ASCs. Felix Mariani, administrator of Allegheny Regional Endoscopy Center, discusses five strategies for reducing the costs of scopes.
1. Take time to research pricing. Mr. Mariani said Allegheny Regional spent more than a year researching scope prices from three major scope manufacturers. Taking time to effectively and thoroughly research pricing on scopes helped the endoscopy center determine which scopes featured the highest quality as well as the most attractive price points.
"We spent well over a year researching various factors, such as which scope is best suited for our physicians, which scope is the most cost-effective, which one is the easiest to use and offers the highest quality of images and so on," he says. "In addition, throughout this process we had monthly meetings involving all of the physicians and myself. These meetings allowed physicians the critical input into the selection process."
2. Tackle maintenance fees of scopes. In addition to taking a more strategic approach to cost-containment of scope acquisitions, ASCs will also want to control costs related to maintenance of scopes. This will require some research and possibly some negotiating with the vendor to see what additional maintenance or repair costs can be reduced.
"We have a scope maintenance agreement in which we were able to capture a lower repair cost for our scopes," Mr. Mariani says. "We have a good working relationship with the maintenance company."
3. Train staff on proper use of scopes. Scopes, just like any other piece of equipment, could potentially require more maintenance if not used or maintained properly. Mr. Mariani says his vendor regularly conducts in-services for staff members on how to properly handle and clean scopes.
"Our staff is extremely well-trained on how to clean and handle scopes. We place strong emphasis on retraining and maintaining competency," he says. "The better our scopes are handled, the better we are able to maintain lower costs related to our scopes."
Staff members also take advantage of the additional benefit of the in-services provided by vendors. "A part of our vendor's in-services also includes information on proper coiling and sink sizes to prevent needless scope damage," Mr. Mariani says.
4. Regularly log and monitor repairs for scopes. Allegheny Regional regularly logs which scopes are sent out for repair, the reason for the repair and what maintenance was required. This allows the endoscopy center to accurately monitor and track which scopes may continuously need to be sent out for repairs.
"We have a responsibility to maintain accountability with those who repair our scopes," Mr. Mariani says. "So if one of our scopes is in need of constant repair, perhaps the repair facility is doing a substandard job. We are in constant dialogue with the scope maintenance company so that there is mutual accountability."
5. Annually review your scope selection. Since the market for scopes is rapidly advancing and expanding, ASCs would benefit tremendously from regularly revisiting their stock of scopes. Scope technology has accelerated to the point of high-definition image capturing, high-definition big-screen TVs and the ability to manipulate image lighting and quality. Given this dynamic time in the scope market, Mr. Mariani suggests ASCs take the opportunity to periodically look at other scope models.
"Even though our endoscopy center went through a year-long process of selecting the scope we utilize currently, interestingly enough we are going to review and demo other scopes this first quarter of 2011," he says. "We want to see what new equipment is available in the market to determine if we need to stay with our current manufacturer or switch to another one."
Learn more about Allegheny Regional Endoscopy Center.
1. Take time to research pricing. Mr. Mariani said Allegheny Regional spent more than a year researching scope prices from three major scope manufacturers. Taking time to effectively and thoroughly research pricing on scopes helped the endoscopy center determine which scopes featured the highest quality as well as the most attractive price points.
"We spent well over a year researching various factors, such as which scope is best suited for our physicians, which scope is the most cost-effective, which one is the easiest to use and offers the highest quality of images and so on," he says. "In addition, throughout this process we had monthly meetings involving all of the physicians and myself. These meetings allowed physicians the critical input into the selection process."
2. Tackle maintenance fees of scopes. In addition to taking a more strategic approach to cost-containment of scope acquisitions, ASCs will also want to control costs related to maintenance of scopes. This will require some research and possibly some negotiating with the vendor to see what additional maintenance or repair costs can be reduced.
"We have a scope maintenance agreement in which we were able to capture a lower repair cost for our scopes," Mr. Mariani says. "We have a good working relationship with the maintenance company."
3. Train staff on proper use of scopes. Scopes, just like any other piece of equipment, could potentially require more maintenance if not used or maintained properly. Mr. Mariani says his vendor regularly conducts in-services for staff members on how to properly handle and clean scopes.
"Our staff is extremely well-trained on how to clean and handle scopes. We place strong emphasis on retraining and maintaining competency," he says. "The better our scopes are handled, the better we are able to maintain lower costs related to our scopes."
Staff members also take advantage of the additional benefit of the in-services provided by vendors. "A part of our vendor's in-services also includes information on proper coiling and sink sizes to prevent needless scope damage," Mr. Mariani says.
4. Regularly log and monitor repairs for scopes. Allegheny Regional regularly logs which scopes are sent out for repair, the reason for the repair and what maintenance was required. This allows the endoscopy center to accurately monitor and track which scopes may continuously need to be sent out for repairs.
"We have a responsibility to maintain accountability with those who repair our scopes," Mr. Mariani says. "So if one of our scopes is in need of constant repair, perhaps the repair facility is doing a substandard job. We are in constant dialogue with the scope maintenance company so that there is mutual accountability."
5. Annually review your scope selection. Since the market for scopes is rapidly advancing and expanding, ASCs would benefit tremendously from regularly revisiting their stock of scopes. Scope technology has accelerated to the point of high-definition image capturing, high-definition big-screen TVs and the ability to manipulate image lighting and quality. Given this dynamic time in the scope market, Mr. Mariani suggests ASCs take the opportunity to periodically look at other scope models.
"Even though our endoscopy center went through a year-long process of selecting the scope we utilize currently, interestingly enough we are going to review and demo other scopes this first quarter of 2011," he says. "We want to see what new equipment is available in the market to determine if we need to stay with our current manufacturer or switch to another one."
Learn more about Allegheny Regional Endoscopy Center.