by
Christina Hwang, Contributing Reporter | May 18, 2016
From the May 2016 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
Raju Bharaj: Since HTMs are on-site, the response time is much less. An HTM provides accurate reporting of relevant technical information in first look, compared to third parties or OEMs. And the first look helps in diagnosing problems and drastically cutting down the time spent by these vendors. It also reduces overall costs by cutting OEM time. An OEM/ISO can be placed in a hospital environment, but they are limited to the products they handle. We have more insight in the day-to-day, and participate and negotiate in capital and service of all equipment. We have more visibility and we handle multiple product lines.
Patrick Harning:Since we are CHI employees, we are invested in the organization and its success, and not in the market to make a profit. When we analyze the situation and present a solution, we are not looking to make a buck. We are looking to save the organization as much time and money as possible and make the right decision for the patients we serve. Third parties and OEMs are looking to make a profit. I can give an honest and straight answer and still sleep well at night.
Rob Maliff: An in-house HTM knows a lot more about the culture of the hospital and practices how to find the right person to get things done. They are also on site, so their immediacy for response is much better. Not to say that ISOs don’t bring value to a hospital, but an in-house HTM is oftentimes seen as employees and partners. But sometimes contractors can be seen as part of the problem. They’re blamed for being unable to fix a device if they cannot fix it within two hours. Another contributing factor is the capital planning process, since it can be a contributing factor to having an aged inventory, which is costly and difficult to service.
Curt Rodriguez:We get training directly from manufacturers for our medical device technology, and then provide those services to our customers. By doing so, we get a much faster response time, accurate documentation and gain expertise. Where an OEM might take several hours, or even days, to respond, we have trained staff that can respond within minutes.
Also, as we become more and more familiar with the technology that we are managing, it makes more sense to have an in-house organization, so that we are self-reliant upon our own resources and staff, that we are the experts and resources for information. We are always looking at ways to reduce outsourced spending and reliance on service agreements. By incorporating a highly trained in-house clinical engineering program, we can either reduce a contract to a lower level of service or parts only, or choose to not carry a contract at all.
As an HTM, I am driven and impassioned to find ways to improve upon our program, how to add value and efficiencies to our service models and, of course, building the relationships within my facility, which does not carry any agenda other than the same mission we all have, improved patient experience.
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