Q A Value Analysis in the Pandemic Rear View
Mirror : Looking Forward with IP & C and Risk Mitigation in Mind
Barbara
healthcare value analysis
Barbara Strain
Sue Miller
Value analysis is collaborating with the VP and interpretating the different ways that individual ’ s contribution to achieving the overall enterprise goals for improving quality and attaining overall value .”
Strain , MA , CVAHP , founding member and strategic board liaison of the Association of Healthcare Value Analysis Professionals ( AHVAP ) caught up with Sue Miller , RN , MN , CMRP , CVAHP , to discuss lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic with a slant toward infection prevention and control ( IP & C ). Miller is past president of AHVAP , as well as senior director of enterprise value analysis for Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health .
Barbara Strain ( BS ): As we look back on the past two years , what role did IP & C play in decision-making ?
Sue Miller ( SG ): IP & C has been an integral part of Jefferson ’ s value analysis ( VA ) program since our enterprise-wide VA committees were implemented in 2018 . Prior to 2020 , an infection preventionist was assigned to each of our value analysis subcommittees to provide input to the value analysis committee decision-making and to enhance communication both at a local practice level and with other infection preventionists across the enterprise . To a general extent this is how IP & C primarily interacts with value analysis on an initiative-by-initiative basis where it seems practical ( e . g ., PPE apparel , masks , disinfectants , and medical products such as Foley catheters and central lines ).
The experience of 2020-21 put value analysis , supply chain and IP & C in the spotlight . In certain key categories , time was not spent qualifying a variety of exam gloves , for example but what were the handful of key characteristics or specifications required for safety versus our ability to actually purchase and receive the goods . Roles shifted to vetting products and navigating feedback from known and unknown manufacturers , distributors , and brokers in real time while the crises unfolded all around them . IP & C assisted in monitoring the FDA Emergency Use Authorizations for products , antigen and antibody testing as well as CDC guidelines on isolation , quarantine , patient-care practice , and Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) disinfectant approvals and advising real-time consultation to ensure staff and patient safety .
BS : How has IP & C transitioned at the executive level at Jefferson Health in 2021 ?
SM : Value analysis at Jefferson Health operates as an Enterprise System Executive Steering Committee
Additionally , it has been imperative for us to develop a consistent supply interruption management process engaging strategic sourcing , value analysis , procurement and supply chain operations .”
process and structure , with four enterprise-wide value analysis subcommittees addressing specific clinical areas , such as perioperative services , med-surg commodities and devices , etc . Early in 2021 the organization created the role of enterprise vice president of infection prevention . One of the divisional IPs had be acting in an enterprise advisement role during the pandemic and stepped into the newly created VP role . Value analysis is collaborating with the VP and interpretating the different ways that individual ’ s contribution to achieving the overall enterprise goals for improving quality and attaining overall value . IP & C thought processes can be anticipated to assist in influencing categories at an enterprise level – home health , telehealth , capital acquisitions , construction planning and materials selection , M & A initiatives , as well as standardization , and utilization . This high-level decision-making will enhance line of site divisional decision-making .
BS : What is the one key critical skill that made the biggest difference during the pandemic and how will it live on post-2021 ?
SM : Effective communication at the highest level cannot be overrated . A simple example is how to message that there is an opportunity to review a category of product . Like most value analysis professionals , we have had to look for temporary product substitutes due to supply chain disruptions and at times there is a long lead time to getting back to where we need to be with our primary supplier . As an example , in one category , we introduced the concept of what would it look like if we approached this situation as an opportunity to change products to an alternate supplier . This notion made it through the divisions