Value analysis focuses on the importance of making informed decisions that drive positive patient outcomes and strong financial stewardship in healthcare organizations.
During a recent roundtable with value analysis advocates from Health First and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, we discussed hot topics such as educating teams on the importance of value analysis and leading with influence to building strong teams and improving supplier partnerships.
Going the distance with a strong value analysis team
We can’t overlook the teamwork required and the challenges that such a highly cross-functional team typically faces when they are constantly juggling complex work and navigating diverse stakeholder priorities.
As Cassie Vargas, System Director of Clinical Strategic Sourcing at Health First, shared, “Value analysis is uniquely positioned in that we meet with leaders from the C-Suite down to your clinical frontline staff, and you must have a team you can trust to have those high-level conversations, as well as the emotional intelligence to have physician conversations. I will always say, if you want to go fast, you go by yourself. If you want to go far, you go with a team.”
To ‘go the distance’ using a team approach, consider taking the following steps:
- Connect with department heads to determine who they want to be involved to increase executive support.
- Engage and coach a team of expert partners: have clear roles for product reviews, including finance, reimbursement, quality responsibilities, etc. to alleviate burden from the value analysis team.
- Introduce flexible meeting structures: in addition to regular meetings for core procedural areas, consider introducing ad hoc teams for specific initiatives that can be stood up or stood down for a set time on a project basis to alleviate meeting fatigue.
Evangelizing value analysis with the patient at the center
During the roundtable, we asked if attendees felt value analysis is viewed as a strategic partner at their organization. 48% said yes, leadership views and engages them as a strategic partner; 30% said in theory but not in practice; while 21% said no. When I think about extending influence and our seat at the table, education is critical, and one of the most difficult aspects is making the information we’re communicating to stakeholders meaningful to them. Different hospital stakeholders may have different priorities, so we must continue to find ways to speak their language while always keeping patients at the center.
“I spend a lot of time going out to different meetings in my organization,” Cassie shared. “I call it evangelizing, and it’s really just to share, ‘hey, I’m a representative in supply chain and am here to be your clinical bridge’. And here’s some education about what a GPO is, why contracts are usually structured in a three-year term, etc. I think that goes a long way into building confidence.”
Gloria Graham, Manager of Clinical Value Analysis at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, emphasized how one crucial component to getting stakeholders engaged and aligned is educating the ‘why’ behind the process and how it benefits not only the organization at large, but their specific area, staff, and patients. Customizing your message to the impact is crucial, and for clinicians, this frequently comes down to patient safety and outcomes.
Cassie echoed, “There’s always a patient at the end of everything we do. When we’re sitting further back from the bedside, sometimes it’s a little bit easy to forget, but I always like to think of there being a chair there that represents the patient, so we think about their voice when we approach decisions. When you’re looking at how you’re soliciting clinical feedback, keep safety as your true north.”
Value Analysis Week Roundtable
Hear from value analysis experts at HealthFirst and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital about strategies for building partnerships, improving communication, and leveraging technology to drive better outcomes.
Establishing strong, transparent vendor partnerships
Protecting patient safety and the financial condition of an organization ultimately requires strong vendor partnerships. “I think vendors now more than ever are really looked at as strategic partners. We are not looking for transactional relationships, but a partnership that we can establish long-term,” stated Cassie.
For Cincinnati Children’s, establishing a true partnership has been fundamental to their delivery of care, particularly following COVID years where suppliers now offer fewer options in pediatric sizes. As Gloria explained, “it is so important to have that established relationship with your suppliers as much as possible ahead of time before it’s five o’clock on a Friday afternoon and you’re learning that something isn’t available.”
To improve vendor relationships, these experts recommend the following tips:
- Have a firm but fair approach where expectations are clearly communicated and policies are enforced.
- Conduct quarterly business reviews with vendors to review the supplier relationship holistically to inform better discussions with services line, physicians, and finance leaders. Address:
- What products are coming down the pipeline
- Which physicians are interested
- Product malfunctions and recalls
- Backorder and fill rate
- Vendor behavior and support
- Engage the vendor early in the product review process with a value analysis workflow solution
Both Cincinnati Children’s and Health First have evolved their process to include the suppliers early in the value analysis process to strengthen their partnership and compliance, a decision that differs from historical industry practices. “We are putting our emphasis on our suppliers being our partner upfront,” Gloria explained. “The supplier is in the best position at that initial point to provide all product information. This better positions the value analysis teams to process, review, and make an informed decision.”
Cassie echoed, “I’m a big believer in keeping the front doors open in terms of new product submission. Keeping your arms around new products coming into the hospital is such a challenge. And my thought is, if you do not open the front doors to allowing new product requests to come in, guess what, they’re going to get snuck in through the back window.”
The path forward
In terms of structuring a value analysis program, don’t be afraid to think outside the box. The best program for value analysis is the one that works. As former AHVAP President, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the value analysis professionals for their commitment to collaborative, evidence-based decision-making. As strategic partners in the healthcare ecosystem, value analysis teams continue to evolve to address complex challenges while remaining focused on impacting patient care.
