May 2016

The month of April officially marked a new era of cross-sharing knowledge and information between members from academic medical centers, large IDNs and community hospitals. Vizient Connections Summit was held April 13-15 and was the first national event for legacy VHA, University HealthSystem Consortium and Novation companies

After years of development, the ABSORB Vascular Bioresorbable Scaffold finally had its day before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Circulatory System Devices Panel on March 15. The news didn’t disappoint.

In December I blogged about the long, slow journey biosimilars are taking toward mainstream market adoption in our country. I am excited to now be able to blog about another important step forward!

Patient medications are one of the few common threads that cross the health care continuum. As a result, health system pharmacy leaders have increasing strategic responsibility and accountability for clinical and financial outcomes.

Having been involved in supplier diversity in health care for nearly 10 years, I am used to helping others overcome the hurdles within our industry. I was talking recently with a colleague who transitioned to a supplier diversity role in health care after a successful career in a similar capacity at a consumer products company.

Each day, in hospitals across the country, supply chain professionals log into analytics tools to benchmark prices on hundreds of medical supplies and pharmacy items. With a few keystrokes they can understand how competitive their prices