A fresh perspective could be just what the doctor ordered.
Melissa Szabo, Strategy Director for aptitude, spends most of her day supporting healthcare providers in their mission to create strategic supply chain partnerships and clinical alignment. Anyone who’s been in this industry knows – that’s no easy task. In her role at aptitude, Szabo gains unique insight into the challenges and obstacles that providers face and her heart is in helping them out.
“Regardless of the size of the organization I’m working with, one constant challenge I have observed is the sheer volume of work that is required to maintain both cost effective and quality supplies. When providers look at their contract plan for the year, they could have anywhere from 40 to 100 initiatives. No matter how big your team is, that’s a heavy load,” said Szabo.
A wealth of knowledge
Over the past four years with team aptitude, Szabo has worked with organizations of all sizes – from stand-alone hospitals to large IDNs – and helps them to alleviate some of the pressure. This is accomplished not just through access to the aptitude platform, but by delivering market insight and facilitating the alignment of both internal and external stakeholders to create a shared vision.
“When onboarding new providers, the information that generates the most excitement is when I tell them about the experience and commitment of the aptitude team,” Szabo continued.
Once users understand that they aren’t going to start from scratch, abandon their existing processes, or learn a brand-new system on their own, they begin to see how aptitude delivers value.
“I am an additional resource to help them achieve their goals and strive to be a powerful asset to their organization.”
Integration is integral to success
Whether it’s creating a RFP, reviewing a bid, or a full evaluation of the contracting process, the aptitude team works side by side with providers to offer assistance, insight, and keep projects on target.
“Providers are commenting on how happy they are that we integrate into their process. The experts at aptitude work with the value analysis team, the supply chain professionals, the clinical stakeholders, and the supplier –to get everyone on the same page. By working collaboratively to create a seamless experience, we all play a role in optimizing performance. I start by gaining exposure to how they currently do business. What works for them, and what challenges they are having. Then we can customize our process to meet their needs.”
A different point of view
One recent provider, when explaining their existing process, realized they didn’t have a fully documented and consistent approach. Szabo was able to apply best practices from other organizations she supports combined with what was currently working for the provider to create a new process with them that leveraged the best of existing and new tactics.
“We have the benefit of working with a diverse group of organizations and have insight into what has been successful for others. This fresh perspective when applied with intentions to complement existing processes is often precisely what our customers need to achieve their goals.”
Aligning stakeholders
Particularly in the physician preference world, you need integration between supply chain and clinical stakeholders. Sometimes when you bring in a neutral advisor, like one of our subject matter experts, it opens up a new channel to share information with clinical stakeholders.
With up-to-date market experience, plus a clinical background themselves, the aptitude team can become a facilitator and catalyst for communication. Having been through this process with multiple providers and suppliers, we have unique insight into the challenges that each side faces and have seen proven tactics that lead to strategic partnerships.
“One of the most successful things we can do for a provider is to align everyone at the table – starting with internal teams and then taking that shared vision out to market. Everyone benefits when the supply chain, value analysis, and clinical teams are in sync prior to advancing an initiative. Helping to facilitate that is one of the key differentiators we deliver to our customers.”
“There’s a fairly common misconception that we are just a tool or a platform, but we are so much more. We are committed to sharing information, working together, and helping customers achieve their goals. I understand how many hats these teams are required to wear and how hard they work – I just want to be a helpful resource, to ease their load, and to make them happy.”