Value Analysis Recall Advisor

The final, but no less important, component of the policy should address employee training on both the policy and the process. This should include the new employee training, periodic refresher training of current employees or those identified during the auditing process, as well as additional training for those directly involved in the recall management process.

With this comprehensive blueprint for the recall management process, the program is now ready to be implemented on the strong foundation of leadership, organizational culture, and structure already discussed. In the next installment, we will review tools that are available to help during the implementation phase and keep things running smoothly as you continue to build out the program.

Tracey Chadwell

Tracey Chadwell has 30 years of clinical and supply chain experience driving clinical and operational performance improvement, demonstrating significant returns on investment through clinical utilization management of resources and operational cost savings. Her experience covers aspects of supply chain including data analytics, operational efficiencies, internal and external customer relations, GPOs and contracting, and consulting in these areas. Her experience in value analysis includes leading a program, developing or refining existing programs, and implementing millions of dollars in savings through various healthcare organizations. This included operational and clinical process improvement programs which contributed to cost savings in both labor and nonlabor expenses.

This year, Tracey started her own consulting enterprise, TACH Consulting. Prior to joining that, she worked as a senior director of the clinical advisory specialists for Intalere, serving as an SME and trusted advisor to their members, as well as providing consulting services in supply chain and value analysis. In addition to her 10 plus years as a bedside nurse and manager, she has also worked as a consultant for value analysis and service-line analytics for two large GPOs.

Tracey has also been active with state healthcare organizations in all classes of trade, providing educational presentations and advisory services. She has appeared on several podcasts, such as Power Supply and The ASC Podcast as well as several industry blogs. She is a member of the Association for Healthcare Resource and Materials Management (AHRMM) and the Association of Value Analysis Professionals (AHVAP).

How an Accurate Item Master Ensures Revenue Integrity and Prevents Provider Burnout

Arnold Chazal, CEO, and Lana Makhanik, COO, VUEMED

There are numerous challenges facing U.S. hospitals and health systems today that are now widely acknowledged and discussed, such as the high cost of care, healthcare access inequities, persistent supply chain problems, staff burnout, provider shortages, and poor financial margins, to name just a few.

The Role of the Item Master

Hospitals are constantly looking for ways to achieve revenue integrity. One way to achieve this is as fundamental as managing an accurate item master and ensuring the alignment of item master data across all hospital systems. The item master is a key set of data that feeds into many core functions that are critical to a multitude of hospital operations and supply chain processes, such as the procurement and management of critical supplies and implants.

An accurate item master, and synchronization with clinical and financial systems, is essential for ensuring accurate charge capture and billing, for reducing supply expenses through a “just enough” lean inventory, for improving the accuracy of point-of-care documentation, and for guaranteeing the availability of products needed for every procedure.

Furthermore, to ensure complete revenue integrity, particularly in the supplies and implants intensive procedural areas, several things must be in place, such as the ability for clinicians to