Navigating the journey

Ed Hardin helps guide students and young professionals through their potential careers

Everyone wants to play the hero. But every hero needs a guide to navigate the journey.

That’s precisely the role that Ed Hardin, vice president, supply chain, Froedtert Health, has set out to play for many students and young professionals.

For almost 30 years, Hardin has gravitated toward involvement in the lives of young people, whether it be professionally, through education, or community service. “A lot of it stemmed from the fact that quite a few people during my career early on before I turned 30 were really strong mentors. Most of those guys are retired today, but they really left an impression upon me. They reinforced the importance of actively taking people under your wing and helping them along.”

Pay it forward About 10 years ago, when Hardin began his membership and involvement in AHRMM, he also began to do speaking engagements related to his profession. Over time, as he started to do more of those, he said he got more comfortable. Then about seven years ago, Hardin began formally as an educator, and has taught in a college university setting ever since. He was a guest lecturer for a time, then became an adjunct where he taught full courses. “I’ve enjoyed that work,” he said.

Hardin said he realized pretty quickly that mentoring and coaching could serve others, as well as himself, by just simply learning from young people. “I also realized that it actually became a great source

of talent development,” he said. “In my shop, we have probably half of my personnel are under 35.”

Hardin said educating has provided a great opportunity to bring people into healthcare from different focus areas. Many of them, either IT, finance, or supply chain for general industry, get interested in healthcare as a result of the courses. Hardin said he’s hired seven or eight former students in roles where he’s worked. “I have a pretty good affinity for young people, enjoy working with them, and enjoy bringing on talent. My getting involved and practicing this has made it easier over time to get better at it. It's been rewarding, fun, and energizing – and all because I've been intentional and tenacious about it, and I’ve really seen a lot of good outcomes.” believe that resonates with young people. They have a different mindset around innovation, and a different mindset around collaboration and working together.”

Hardin said those under 35 years of age value purpose in their work lives and getting along well with others. “They want to work for organizations with a soul,” he said. “They want to talk about what we can do as a supply chain to not just move product but to do good in this world.”

One of his students has gone on to become a manager for sourcing. Most of them have been entry level roles, but very good, stable roles. Hardin said many young professionals are coming to realize that healthcare is a stable industry with typically not a lot of layoffs like other segments of the economy. A handful of students he would eventually help get hired

Hardin said bringing young professionals into healthcare positions benefits the individuals and the organizations willing to invest in them. Supply chain teams could benefit from hiring young professionals who perhaps don’t have experience in healthcare but have other skillsets.

Topics that resonate Hardin said he has gravitated toward teaching and lecturing on three topics in a general setting – innovation, collaboration and values. “I’ve been very drawn to innovation and unique solutions, as well as collaboration, not just with kind of collaboration within my organization, but also with vendors and other hospital organizations doing things together,” he said. “I in healthcare started in another industry before coming back to Hardin. “They got their degree and within a year had reached out and said, ‘You know what, this isn't working for me. And I think I'd like to come to work in healthcare.’”

Hardin was expected to teach at Marquette University this spring, but he has taken a break. In November 2019 he was diagnosed with stage four cancer, so he continues to receive treatment. “I’ve still got a long journey ahead of me, but the chemo, and the good Lord are doing their thing, and I’m doing pretty well. I’m still able to work. It gives me purpose, and something else to think about. So it’s been a real blessing.”

The value for supply chain Hardin said bringing young professionals into healthcare positions benefits the individuals and the organizations willing to invest in them. Supply chain teams could benefit from hiring young professionals who perhaps don’t have experience in healthcare but have other skillsets. By and large, supply chain in particular has been plagued by some very “provincial” thinking over the years, he said. “We tend to promote people who have been in positions for long time, who may have only had a healthcare background, and may have only worked in that organization,” he said. “I think diversity is super important. I'm not saying that I'd want to hire everyone from the outside. That's not it at all. But I think the mix of different skillsets, and experiences, as well as youth, is really good for an organization.”

Hardin said the three departments that he’s managed since he got back into the provider world benefited from transitioning from being very provincial and traditional to recognizing that there’s value in people who may have worked in other industries, and certainly people who are young, and very eager, and capable of working hard. There’s strength in that.

Mentorship The education doesn’t stop at the end of a course. Hardin said he has traditionally

taken on one to two mentees at any given time where he’s worked. Upon joining an organization as the new leader and periodically in his communications with staff, he offers to be a mentor. “Not surprisingly, few take me up on this offer, but that’s perfectly fine,” he said.

It can be hard work. Hardin meets once a month with his mentees. They do all the heavy lifting in terms of finding time on Hardin’s calendar. At the end of each one-hour session, Hardin provides them a bit of homework. A few months into the relationship, Hardin and his mentee mutually agree on a book to jointly read and discuss together. “During our sessions we discuss everything under the sun; much of it professional, but also personal.”

The split between those that work in Hardin’s shop and those in other departments that he mentors is about 50-50, he said. “With those that work within my shop, I get involved to a reasonable degree in identifying and supporting where I believe they can best advance in our organization.”

A boost to collaboration When young professionals are brought on board, Hardin said organizations will see improvements in collaboration. “By my very nature, I try to play nice in the sandbox, but younger people, I think, are better at it. They see the value in being able to do that. I think they’re less competitive in an unhealthy sense. It’s not that they’re uncompetitive, but they frown upon some of the unhealthy aspects of competition.”

Hardin said he is probably known in the industry for advocating collaboration among stakeholders. He credits that to

his work with young people. “A lot of that has been formulated, and developed as a result of just working with young people, and watching them work, and realizing that some of the paradigms that I might have carried going into this industry I put aside, and realized I can probably accomplish a lot more by intentionally, actively playing nicer in the sandbox, and inviting people into that sandbox, so to speak. And I've learned a lot of that just simply from working with young people. I think they’re very, very good at that.”

About Froedtert Health

The Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin regional health network is a partnership between Froedtert Health and the Medical College of Wisconsin. Its health network includes five hospitals, more than 1,700 physicians and nearly 40 health centers and clinics. The health system operates eastern Wisconsin’s only academic medical center and adult Level I Trauma Center at Froedtert Hospital, Milwaukee. It is an internationally recognized training and research center engaged in thousands of clinical trials and studies.

Specialty pharmaceuticals for non-acute – building a better model

Specialty pharmaceuticals are expensive, require special handling and are growing in usage. What is the best way to manage these drugs?

Specialty drugs are more in demand now than ever. Want proof? While watch

ing your favorite TV show this week, count the number of times you hear, “Ask your doctor if BLANK is right for you” during a commercial break. These medications, sometimes called specialty pharmaceuticals, are being used to treat conditions like Crohn’s disease, non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, leukemia, multiple sclerosis, and infections resulting from anticancer drug treatments, as well as more common conditions, including high cholesterol and hepatitis C. These specialized medications, which were once only given by specialists, are now being administered in physician offices and are being requested by patients.

But achieving better patient outcomes rests on something far more straightforward than molecular research – supply chain management. Often administered by injection or infusion, specialty pharmaceuticals can be very expensive. And they’re highly regulated. Many specialty pharmaceuticals require climate-controlled storage and special handling. For these reasons and more, specialty pharmaceuticals represent one more opportunity for supply chain professionals to use their expertise in managing high-dollar, temperature sensitive products while controlling costs.

Specialty pharmaceuticals can cause supply chain challenges “Specialized care – including the administration of specialty pharmaceuticals – is rapidly moving out of the hospital and into non-acute settings,” says Ann Gapper, senior director, Rx category management at McKesson. “Patients prefer the convenience of outpatient settings, and payers like the lower costs incurred there.”

However, getting specialty drugs to nonacute locations, such as physicians’ offices, isn’t easy. It can cause your supply chain and pharmacy leaders a lot of headaches.

Traditionally, health systems have either worked with numerous manufacturers or a specialty distributor to source their drugs. But managing orders from multiple suppliers takes time and manpower, says Patrick Baranek, senior manager, pharmaceuticals at McKesson. “Supply chain may be servicing a network of 100-, 200- or even 500-physician offices. Individual orders are placed either over the phone to a variety of manufacturers or by logging onto separate websites.”

Specialty pharmaceuticals present unique distribution challenges too, adds Jon Pildis, vice president, materials management at McKesson. “You’re moving vials that are worth hundreds, and in some cases, tens of thousands of dollars. That high value means that you have to be very careful with your processes.”

Specialty pharmaceuticals also need to be in a temperature-controlled

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environment to meet regulatory requirements, whether it’s refrigeration or frozen storage, he adds. Specialty drugs can be very challenging to correctly manage.

Simplify your pharmaceutical supply chain To meet the growing demand for specialty pharmaceuticals in the outpatient setting, supply chain and pharmacy leaders should consider simplifying their procurement processes by ordering these drugs through one supply chain expert. From a logistics perspective, using a distributor that handles specialty pharmaceuticals and traditional pharmaceutical offerings and med/surg supplies and equipment can pay off and lead to better supply chain performance for its procurement team.

“When expanding your clinical offerings to providing specialty drugs at your non-acute sites, you should consider how you will handle these drugs,” says Pildis. “By supplying specialty pharmaceuticals directly to alternate site locations, you will be sparing the health system’s supply chain team from receiving, storing and physically moving them. What’s more, receiving specialty pharmaceuticals on a just-in-time basis helps clinics minimize on-hand inventory too. This reduces the financial burden on the non-acute staff.”

McKesson offers supply chain managers the ability to order specialty pharmaceuticals via electronic data interchange (EDI) or use punch out, says Baranek. Supply chain managers will have a seamless connection and 24/7 access to their data with a business analytics tool. By accessing their non-acute data, supply chain managers understand where their spend is going, and see opportunities for

Quick quiz: What’s a biosimilar?

As supply chain finds itself increasingly involved in specialty pharmaceuticals, you’ll start hearing a lot about “biosimilars.” What are they?

While they are not the same as generic equivalents, biosimilars are highly similar to – and have no clinically meaningful differences from – existing, FDAapproved reference biologics. They are a rapidly growing treatment option for physicians treating advanced diseases, with more than 20 unique biosimilars expected to enter the U.S. healthcare market over the next decade.

Clinicians are finding that biosimilars: ʯ Expand treatment options for complex diseases. ʯ Offer substantial cost-savings on expensive therapies. ʯ Are FDA-approved, safe and effective treatments. ʯ Come with support from FDA and other leading medical advisory organizations.

standardization and formulary management. “That helps alleviate headaches,” he says.

“If you think about a health system that has already set up an account with a distributor like McKesson, specialty drugs are one more product that can be added to their orders, shipments and invoices,” says Gapper. “They can order directly from us and receive the product next-day with high service levels. Plus, they can take advantage of all the technology already in place with us.”

As a corporation, McKesson is one of the largest pharmaceutical distributors in the United States. “We work with most manufacturers to expand access to these life-saving drugs that treat a variety of chronic conditions,” says Pildis. “We leverage our non-acute

‘You’re moving specialty pharmaceutical vials that are worth hundreds, and in some cases, tens of thousands of dollars. That high value means that you have to be very careful with the way you manage your pharmaceutical supply chain.’

distribution experience. We take these specialized, high-value drugs, and run them through our logistics network, and get product to customers in an efficient way.”

Supply chain leaders are being asked to tackle many challenges facing healthcare – managing specialty pharmaceuticals shouldn’t be one of those. Look for a solution that provides access to a broad product portfolio, an operational model that provides confidence that the quality and regulatory requirements are being met, and the simplicity of integration with existing processes. Same products, better model!

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