Across the Board

Edition: May 2007 - Vol 15 Number 05
Article#: 2667
Author: M. Sandler

You may be hearing a lot these days about the ways electronic medical records (EMR) will affect clinicians and, in turn, distributor sales reps. After all, spending on EMR and its related systems and support is projected to top $1.7 billion by 2008, according to a report by the Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA).

But the doctor’s office isn’t the only place information technology is transforming the distribution industry.

Distributors are applying information technology to save on rising fuel costs by identifying the most efficient routes to deliver products. Warehouse managers are using barcode technology to simplify distribution center operations. The results translate into reduced costs and greater efficiency for the company, a competitive edge for sales reps, and enhanced service for customers.

However, with technology — and the way it is applied — changing so rapidly, distributors must actively stay abreast of how it can further increase the value of distribution in every area.

“You don’t know what you don’t know,” said Kevin Neuman, chief operating officer with distributor Bio-State Medical Technologies in Kansas and a leader with the Distribution Services Alliance.

For Neuman, sales and operations are equally important to any business, no matter what its size, and health information technology can improve both areas.

Indeed, “issues like pedigree compliance, supply chain best practices, and emergency preparedness are forcing distributors to examine their processes and systems,” says Elizabeth Hilla, executive director of the HIDA Educational Foundation. “The incentives to invest in technology and logistics are greater than ever.”

“These are issues that we’ll be addressing at the HIDA Operations Conference in June,” Hilla says. The event, which is being held in Boston in partnership with the Health Distribution Management Association, runs from June 10-13.

The program includes a discussion of healthcare industry trends and research, IT-enhanced business improvements, and a look at the legislative landscape for distributors and manufacturers.

Using health IT to build a better supply chain

No matter what your role in the medical products world, information technology will impact the way you work.

From operations managers, finance staff, and drivers to contract administrators and sales reps, the medical-products industry must realize the significance of the health IT revolution, say experts.

“The implications are enormous, good and bad,” says Jonathan Bush, CEO of Athena Health, a Watertown, Md.-based medical billing, practice management and EMR service provider.

Distributors and manufacturers “need to come away with (the concept of) selling results,” says Bush, who will be speaking on technology trends and implications at the Operations Conference.

“Just the way physicians are becoming increasingly profiled and paid on performance … you’re going to find that everyone they buy from is going to be more at risk that way.”

It could be that distributors touch health IT via the electronic health record (EHR) or EMR systems they advise customers about. Or operationally, a company’s bottom line could be bolstered by electronic data interchange (EDI) advances that minimize the potential for contracting mis-synchronization. A business might be impacted by the push for radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that are being introduced to track inventory through the supply chain and to aid in electronic pedigree efforts.

“There isn’t one topic on the (Operations Conference) agenda that should not be attended by everyone,” says Neuman, adding “don’t think of this as a ‘big’ distributor or ‘big’ manufacturer meeting.” Sometimes smaller companies can more deftly differentiate themselves and care for customers. Health IT can further help with that, he says.

The idea, says Neuman, is to attend, learn and customize knowledge from the conference as a tool “to drive your company forward.”



To register for the June 10-13 HIDA Operations Conference at the Boston Marriott Copley Place, call (703) 549-4432 or visit www.HIDA.org. For more information on supply chain best practices or health IT, visit www.HIDA.org.