In the national argument regarding how to make the US healthcare more effective, one cogent sector seemingly in need of reformation is overlooked - healthcare supplies and materials. Whether the items are dental implants, pacemakers, braces or costly drugs and medications, healthcare institutions and medical facilities have long bought whatever medical practitioners and doctors desired with little or no discussion whatsoever among the two parties involved regarding the expenses.
Researchers and experts are all going at it to try and unravel the hampered supply relationships that significantly contribute to the skyrocketing digits in the cost of healthcare supplies, burdening medical facilities and tediously formulating efforts of broadening coverage among the uninsured or under-insured.
Supplies play a crucial function and have become a growing component of healthcare budgets. Stated by statistical reports from the Association for Healthcare Resource and Materials Management, the cost of supplies have jumped almost 40% between years 2003 to 2005 and now symbolizes as much as 31% of the healthcare industry's expenditures based on individual cases. This alarming rate has brought about the emanation of different solutions and options for cost effective budgeting in the healthcare division, one of which is healthcare supply chain management.
Healthcare supply chain management is the new focus for cost reduction. It pertains to the collaboration of enterprises and developments involved in generating and rendering a product or service. The process has been extensively utilized in other markets for decades. A lot of enterprises, mainly retailers and suppliers, have attributed their growth and success to effective practice and implementation of supply chain management.
However, supply chain management in the industry of healthcare seems as if it has hit a plateau. This may be partially attributed by the fact that the market of healthcare negotiates with completed products and services, according to various experts. As compared with automotive suppliers, which can be asked for a particular design or style of a specific part or component intended for a vehicle, medical organizations and facilities typically have to take what suppliers have currently stored in their inventories.
The global recession, which has struck different markets and industries including healthcare, has brought about the creation of both obstacles and opportunities for those supervising healthcare supply chains. With tight budgets, medical facilities are required to closely observe where savings can be generated. In most cases, these organizations have found financial solace with supply chains and demand has been ever increasing.