The process of globalization has changed how both suppliers and vendors imagine successful manufacturing and business management in general. Nowadays, the existence and rapid expansion of the free market implies high competitiveness among business units in order to obtain the most cost-efficient and quality-assuring workers in the segment (Azadeh et al., 2017). However, one of the most challenging markets in terms of vendor management is the healthcare segment, where the competitiveness levels are high due to the limited number of possible contractors. Hence, it is of crucial importance to define the fundamental expectations from the vendors in order to establish a successful management model in the future.
To begin with, it is important to outline some of the major tools that create a beneficial healthcare facility in the context of the modern market. The first tool is the implementation of the electronic health record (EHR), which serves as an instrument for the collection of information related to the health of the population and separate individuals. In such a way, an electronically-stored database is a tool that helps share crucial information within healthcare facilities and suppliers.
In order to implement the system in the setting, a certain EHR software should be installed within a unit. Hence, it is mandatory for the facility to outline the major needs of the vendor to comply with a requirement list. The requirement list is later used to form both the request for information (RFI) and request for proposals (RFP) that are sent to some of the potential vendors so they could form their proposals and enter the competition for the contract submission. Another important tool for the healthcare establishment is the computerized physician order entry (CPOE) instrument that is used for the practitioners to enter the data on patient treatment plans and instructions in the electronic database. The database itself includes a variety of benefits, such as:
- Reducing the time of distributing and completing the medical orders, as the information on a certain care plan is communicated through the common database available for the laboratory and pharmacy employees;
- Securing patient safety, as the information is submitted by various healthcare units that have access to the plan, reducing the possibility of power abuse.
The tool, however, also requires a high-quality software installation within the facility in order to guarantee the best experience for both medical staff and patients.
The right vendor choice is, in fact, one of the most significant indicators of employee and patient satisfaction in the services provided. Researchers claim that there is a crucial connection between hospital performance and the vendor chosen for the implementation of the aforementioned tools (Holmgren et al., 2018). The performance of the hospitals that were using the most reliable EHR vendors like Epic was higher by almost 15% average. Thus, when identifying the needs for a potential vendor, it is important to take into account the average revenue from some of the most credible companies to ensure the setting’s increased performance in the long run. Moreover, the proper needs identification is required for the potential vendors to create a proper business plan for further negotiation (Milani, 2019). Hence, bearing in mind the aforementioned aspects, it is now possible to outline the major needs in terms of vendor selection:
- The potential vendor is to secure the proper performance outcome for the setting in terms of the software implementation. Whether it is EHR or CPOE, the tools are to be compatible with the medical facilities networks to secure the communication flow. Otherwise, the major aims of the tool implementation would be pointless, and the contract will be terminated.
- The potential vendor is to take into account the software’s compatibility with the existing computer facilities in the setting. The computers in the facility are relatively outdated, and there is no guarantee of financial aid to improve the situation in the near future. Hence, it is of crucial importance for the tool to be able to function in certain versions of the computer software. Moreover, the instrument should allow the updates to be compatible with this version without a mandatory equipment change.
- The potential vendor is to take into account the aspects of the system accessibility for the medical staff. The employee variety within the unit implies the necessity to be comprehensible for the medical representatives without being forced to acquire advanced computer skills. Besides being accessible to the target software users, the education, or the basic training on how to use the system should be introduced by the vendor to establish efficient cooperation in terms of the contract agreement.
Hence, the notion of electronic software in the context of the healthcare system has now become extremely relevant. In order to secure proper collaboration with the technological tools within a healthcare setting, it is important to outline the proper needs and expectations from a potential contractor. In the context of the following vendor management process, some of the major needs from the EHR and CPOE providers included the accessibility of the tool, securing the hospital performance increase in the process, and compatibility with the existing equipment in the facility.
References
Azadeh, A., Rahimi, Y., Zarrin, M., Ghaderi, A., & Shabanpour, N. (2017). A decision-making methodology for vendor selection problem with uncertain inputs. Transportation Letters, 9(3), 123-140.
Holmgren, A. J., Adler-Milstein, J., & McCullough, J. (2018). Are all certified EHRs created equal? Assessing the relationship between EHR vendor and hospital meaningful use performance. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 25(6), 654-660.
Milani, F. (2019). Business analysis plan and monitoring. In Digital Business Analysis (pp. 111-125). Springer, Cham.