Effective Asset Management for Quality Improvement

Challenge

Best-in-class clinical engineering programs enlist pertinent and vetted technology to manage, monitor and track ultrasound assets across the entire system 24/7/365.

Solution

Evidence strongly suggests effective asset management is about more than knowing where the equipment is; it’s about ensuring your equipment is in the right place, at the right time and in the right condition to meet the needs of your patients and caregivers. And, it can move a hospital forward – or backwards – when it comes to quality, safety and efficiency. Healthcare organizations like Piedmont have turned to PartsSource for help on implementing a tech-enabled in-house ultrasound program and gained intense cost savings, decreased downtime, and detailed cloud-based records.

“PartsSource’s Ultrasound Program partnership has made us more efficient. We have eliminated the need to call multiple suppliers or repair organizations, which takes away a lot of headaches.”

Steve Kelley Diagnostic Imaging Repair
Piedmont Healthcare

Technology can allow a clinical engineering team to take control of planning, purchasing, implementing, servicing, repairing, and end-of-life management.

The department knows what to bring in-house, what to fix, when to fix it and when to replace equipment without relying on external service providers, which can drive up costs and increase downtime. Staff is trained on how to prevent fraud, user error, damage, and abuse through proper equipment use.

Investment in capital equipment is a decision not taken lightly by healthcare organizations as they continue to search for ways to positively impact quality, patient care and their bottom line. Ultrasound represents a significant portion of imaging capital assets (25 – 35%). Because of their growing popularity, ultrasounds are often considered a target for an in-house service strategy due to high-costs associated with original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and third-party service contracts.

Fraud due to stolen equipment is also affecting a hospital’s bottom line – a multimillion-dollar problem for US hospitals annually. Ultrasound equipment is small and portable, heightening the risk of loss due to fraud. Stolen ultrasound equipment creates significant financial damages for hospital imaging departments. The hospital must divert scarce resources to replace the stolen equipment, and the level of care a patient receives is threatened; the next patient who arrives may not have immediate access to the necessary equipment. The key to success is improving the technology of their clinical engineering operations.

Piedmont began by looking for ways to mitigate unnecessary costs early in the transition. With the help of PartsSource, this process began with an analysis of current and potential total cost of ownership; included a detailed view of cost per system under OEM and ISO vs. an in-house managed services program. Piedmont also completed an on-site inventory and baseline assessment of makes, models, probes, locations, warranty/ contract status and expiration dates. Together, PartsSource and Piedmont determined the correct mix of in- house and external support staff.

Since the implementation of the PartsSource program, Piedmont has experienced intense cost savings, decreased downtime, and detailed cloud-based records.