2. Operations Management
3. read the article below and the video that accompanies this...

# Question: read the article below and the video that accompanies this...

###### Question details

So in 2003, Arnold Palmer Hospital, together with seven other partner hospitals in central Florida, formed its own much smaller, but still powerful (with $200 million in annual purchases) Healthcare Purchasing Alliance (HPA) corporation. The new alliance saved the HPA members$7 million in its first year with two main changes. First, it was structured and staffed to ensure that the bulk of the savings associated with its contracting efforts went to its eight members. Second, it struck even better deals with vendors by guaranteeing a committed volume and signing not 1-year deals but 3- to 5-year contracts. “Even with a new internal cost of $400,000 to run HPA, the savings and ability to contract for what our member hospitals really want makes the deal a winner,” says George DeLong, head of HPA. Effective supply chain management in manufacturing often focuses on development of new product innovations and efficiency through buyer–vendor collaboration. However, the approach in a service industry has a slightly different emphasis. At Arnold Palmer Hospital, supply chain opportunities often manifest them- selves through the Medical Economic Outcomes Committee. This committee (and its subcommittees) consists of users (including the medical and nursing staff) who evaluate purchase options with a goal of better medicine while achieving economic targets. For instance, the heart pacemaker negotiation by the cardiology sub- committee allowed for the standardization to two manufacturers, with annual savings of$2 million for just this one product.