The Association for Healthcare Resource & Materials Management (AHRMM) has launched a new micro Web site for healthcare providers, www.standards.ahrmm.org, focused on supply chain data standards. The Web site features GS1 standards – GLN, GTIN, and GDSN – that are used by 90 percent of the companies and organizations around the world, information on the United Nations Standard Products and Services Code (UNSPSC) and the Unique Device Identifier (UDI) program. It is a starting point for healthcare supply chain professionals to find basic information on data standards, answers to frequently asked questions, useful links, pilot reports and case studies and data exchange.

"Using GS1 standards will help support industry-wide adoption of data standards in the healthcare supply chain and AHRMM is pleased to support this effort," said AHRMM Executive Director Deborah Sprindzunas. "The first step is for supply chain professionals to become educated about what the data standards are and how they will benefit you, your hospital, and contribute to patient safety and quality."

GS1 is a non-profit organization that owns the data standards and promotes efficient data exchange for trading partners. GS1 is the parent company of GS1 Healthcare US. Healthcare providers may join GS1 Healthcare US online through AHRMM’s new standards Web site.

MedAssets has launched a vendor management program designed to help hospitals fully develop and implement vendor policies. This turn-key vendor management program, developed and launched by MedAssets’ Spend Management segment, will also help address regulatory demands by providing vendor credentialing services offered by REPtrax, the emerging national standard in vendor credentialing.

Maureen Gender, president of the spend management segment, MedAssets Inc. said, "With the aid of over sixty healthcare systems from MedAssets Supply Chain Systems’ advisory committees, our team spent the last year developing a vendor management program. Vendor credentialing was included in the program because having an established standard was identified as providing very high value for both healthcare providers and suppliers. Providers gain one point of management for all vendor credentials for regulatory demands. Vendors through one point of management gain a single passport that is acceptable by a large and growing group of hospitals, rather than having to be credentialed by multiple programs. Key factors in selecting REPtrax included value proposition to hospitals, ability to address regulatory demands, low cost for vendors as well as fairness to the entire vendor population."

The program will be managed by the Aspen Healthcare Metrics business unit. It will provide a suite of services including the creation and deployment of vendor credentials, focusing beyond just the actual documents, but into the hospital wide adoption and enforcement of these policies so that it becomes an integral part of the hospital’s culture. This consistent best practice approach will not only drive value to the hospital but to the vendor community as well.

"The REPtrax platform is of no charge to the hospital, and vendors that join the REPtrax community can have the confidence that their universal membership will be valid for all REPtrax hospitals, very much like an electronic passport," said Peter Sheehan, Business Development for the REPtrax platform. www.medassets.com/EnterpriseSolutions/home.aspx.

Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASCs) appear to face challenges, but see promise in the adoption of electronic documentation. According to an independent national survey of ASC administrators, 82 percent of ASCs do not use an Electronic Health Record (EHR), 85 percent use paper perioperative notes, and 74 percent use dictation and transcription for the generation of physician procedure notes.

The study was commissioned by Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students. Wolters Kluwer Health provides electronic procedure documentation and patient charting solutions for hospitals and ASCs through its ProVation Medical brand.

Forty-three percent of the administrators cite the following obstacles to electronically streamlining documentation:

• Lack of interface with scheduling soft- ware and other existing systems

• Lack of capital investment

• Lack of software that will capture their patient mix

• Lack of personnel to implement a new system.

In addition, 49 percent have concerns revenue may be lost in the implementation process.

Nearly one-fourth of the ASC administrators do not know their current per chart document management costs. Among those who are aware, 69 percent place this cost between $3.00 and $8.99.

In the survey, 175 administrators considered these combined changes and estimated future revenue at their ASCs, making predictions based on full phase-in of the new reimbursement schedule. Forty-two percent of ASC administrators expect decreased revenue at their sites; of these administrators, 50 percent believe gastroenterology services will negatively impact revenue. Of those who anticipate increased revenue at their sites, 36 percent believe orthopedic services will have a positive effect on revenue.

With increases in the range of infectious diseases and regulations put into effect in healthcare and hospital facilities, nonwovens has emerged as a goldmine for roll manufacturers fuelled by consumer demand. Nonwoven disposables are rapidly making inroads into the medical sector, principally driven by growing consumer awareness against spread of infectious diseases such as AIDS and Hepatitis. The stringent standards being imposed by various regulatory agencies globally are also impacting the use of nonwovens positively. Though the medical market is increasingly moving towards non-invasive surgeries, overall impact on the nonwoven disposables market remains miniscule.

The United States is the largest medical nonwovens market in the world and is projected to exceed $3.4 billion by the year 2010, as stated by Global Industry Analysts, Inc. With the volume of sophisticated hi-tech surgical intervention growing rapidly, Europe is projected to experience high growth in medical nonwovens sector in the coming years. Alternatively, Asia-Pacific offers massive potential in the long run largely driven by some of the fastest growing global economies, including China and India. Nonwoven disposables forms a part of a variety of medical applications, including the manufacture of surgical packs, sterilization packaging, protective footwear, facial masks, hospital beddings, linens, towels, drapes, gowns, and gloves among others. About 3.3 billion square yards of nonwoven material is used in medical and surgical applications in North America alone. This indicates the potential of the market lying ahead and opens up newer avenues for the producers. Among product segments, surgical nonwoven products market is the largest and the fastest growing segment and is projected to cross $5.0 billion by the year 2010.

The report titled "Medical Nonwoven Disposables: A Global Strategic Business Report" published by Global Industry Analysts, Inc., provides a comprehensive review of market trends and issues, growth drivers, demographic trends, product overview, product introductions/innovations, and recent industry activity. Key players dominating the global medical nonwoven disposables market include Ahlstrom Corporation, Asahi Kasei Corporation, Attends Healthcare Products, Buckeye Technologies, Covidien, DUPONT, Fiberweb Plc, Freudenberg Nonwovens, Hogy Medical, Kao Corporation, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Medline Industries, Mölnlycke Health Care, Nissan Medical Industries, Polymer Group, Precision Fabrics Group, SCA
Hygiene Products, THE HARTMANN GROUP, and UniCharm Corp. www.strategyr.com/Medical_Nonwoven_Disposables_Market_Report.asp

Novation, the health care contracting services company of VHA Inc., University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC) and Provista, LLC, announced that it has launched an awareness program to fight methicillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus (MRSA). Novation’s MRSA Solutions Set is a comprehensive online resource program that provides health care workers with solutions through Novation’s extensive portfolio to prevent, detect and treat the infection. The program is designed to be a one-stop, all-inclusive repository of Novation contracts, supplier resources, and clinical guidelines. The resource is part of a larger Infection Control portfolio which provides support for members in their fight against all hospital-acquired infections (HAI’s).

The MRSA Web portal provides health care personnel: "MRSA Clinical Encounter" – a virtual tour of six different hospital rooms that indicates where transmission of MRSA most often occurs; Links to contracted products that offer assistance with preventing, detecting or treating MRSA; Links to supplier educational programs that assist members in understanding more about MRSA and hospital-acquired infections; Access to accepted procedures or guidelines.

Most of the products in the infection control portfolio are available through standardization programs or as NOVAPLUS branded products, which ensures members can accommodate their infection control needs while achieving cost savings.

For more information visit: www.novationco.com.

McKesson Corporation announced it has acquired Rosebud Solutions, LLC, a provider of software solutions to track and manage instruments, endoscopes and tissue implants for surgical services, as well as medical crash carts and mobile equipment. The Rosebud Solutions portfolio is designed to create efficient and responsible workflow processes in the surgical, central services and sterile processing departments to help hospitals improve patient care, reduce surgical delays and costs and save staff time.

The Rosebud Solutions software set helps central services/sterile processing departments and surgical services electronically manage, track and reduce costly waste for thousands of expensive surgical trays and instruments that are used in several locations throughout the hospital. The solutions also help hospitals manage regulatory requirements for safe tissue and implant management. For instance, surgical managers can determine the tissue implant inventory on-hand and expirations and in turn, they can record proper storage and reconstitution of these implants required by the Joint Commission.