Collaborative Equipment Service Model Increases Uptime, Quality, Efficiency & Savings for Summa Health

Challenge

Like many health systems, Summa Health relied on a traditional equipment service model to meet their radiology equipment and servicing needs, which had been satisfactory in the past. But as increasing overall margin pressure became the norm for hospitals, Summa Health realized that their existing approach needed to evolve to optimize uptime for their critical imaging equipment, which was not only vital for patient care, but was also a major revenue stream for hospitals. In addition, the new parts and
servicing model had to utilize premium quality parts – while still being cost-effective – to ensure the high levels of efficiency required at the health system. The key to achieving these goals was a new model that embraced enhanced collaboration and communication with Summa Health’s OEMs and partners.

“By partnering with PartsSource, we can ensure that our imaging equipment is always available to meet patient needs,
without breaking the hospital’s bank.”

Ken Mylar System Director, Healthcare Technology Management

Solution

Summa was evaluating the opportunity to bring CT scanner service in-house. Upon examining its past imaging equipment service history, Summa Health considered whether in-depth training of its service engineers would allow them to successfully take on the additional work. After much deliberation, they decided to move forward with their in-house team. Unfortunately, within 10 days, they lost a tube. When they searched for a replacement tube, the quoted price was $230,000. Driven by the long-term objectives to empower their service engineers to resolve equipment issues in-house through increased knowledge, Summa Health realized that they needed to take a new path.

Ken Mylar, System Director, Healthcare Technology Management “We knew that there had to be a better way–and that’s when we called PartsSource,” said Ken Mylar, System Director, Healthcare Technology Management at Summa Health. His team needed a model that was built upon collaboration and communication with trusted partners so that, together, they could work toward an efficient solution that ensured delivery of high-quality equipment and services at reasonable prices. Fortunately, just one month prior, Summa Health had become a PartsSource Pro client and had begun using PartsSource as their single source supplier of biomedical parts, services, and depot repairs. “We sent PartsSource a list of our most commonly used parts and started using them immediately,” said Mylar. “They were always on time with no quality issues or returns, greatly improving our overall efficiencies. Also, their pricing averages 75 percent less than our previous pricing,resulting in significant savings.” In terms of collaborative service, PartsSource impressed Summa Health with their extensive network that enables them to quickly send a specialized, local service engineer onsite who would then share detailed explanations with the in-house team to deepen their expertise and confidence. The team was also enthused when one of PartsSource’s over 1000 technical service network specialists came onsite for the first round of PMs and invited the in-house technicians to work with them on each model.

One example of PartsSource’s commitment to rapid communication and service occurred when Summa Health experienced an SRU/heat exchange failure. Upon notification, PartsSource deployed a service technician that same day from its network, and multiple PartsSource staff followed up to ensure that the issue was promptly resolved. After hours, PartsSource arranged for a courier to deliver a key part for an early morning delivery with a technician returning back onsite at 6 a.m. to repair the system and return it to service.

Another illustration of exemplary service took place on a Sunday morning when the Summa Health team discovered an image detector issue. The replacement part could have cost $350,000. Under their new model, the team used PartsSource and within an hour, a detector from a vetted vendor, with a proven history of premium quality products, was driven to Summa Health for the grand total of $9,500. Additionally, a technician from the pre-qualified PartsSource service network swiftly arrived onsite to assist the Summa Health technician with installation and calibrations. This immediate return of the system to service achieved the advanced efficiencies required by the health system for exceptional patient care.

Summa Health’s yearly savings have been nothing less than amazing. The parts usage through PartsSource (not including the hard-won lesson of the tube failure) produced a savings of greater than $800,000. Moreover, the total service and support for the CT scanners with PartsSource was almost $1 million less than it would have cost using the health system’s traditional service model. “We chose PartsSource as our partner because we have a lot of trust in their quality control team,” stated Mylar. “They understand that we need service technicians that are specialized and know the world that we’re living in.” Concluded Mylar, “PartsSource is always ready to jump in and help. They’ve become an extended part of our team, enabling us to deliver enhanced efficiencies and equipment uptime to support first-rate care delivery to our patients.”

“We realized that there had to be a better way – and that’s when we called PartsSource.”

Ken Mylar System Director, Healthcare Technology Management