Publications | FAQs | HIGPA Code of Conduct Principles

	Receive our bi-monthly Chairman’s Report to stay up-to-date with industry news, trends and advances.
	Receive our daily eNews which provides our members with tools that assist them in responding to challenges and opportunities within our industry.
	And more ...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: David McDonough
Phone: 703-243-9262

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 15, 2002) - Hospitals and health care group purchasing organizations (GPOs) across the country pool the collective knowledge of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other clinical experts when evaluating medical products and supplies, according to a newly released study by The Lewin Group.

For the first time ever, a study examined the benefits GPOs offer hospitals from a clinical perspective. The Lewin Group study found that GPOs play a critical role in drawing upon and consolidating the clinical expertise of hospitals across the country. In working with GPOs, hospitals seek to make clinically informed, evidence-based decisions about which medical products will offer the highest quality of care to patients, according to the report, entitled "The Clinical Review Process Conducted by Group Purchasing Organizations and Health Systems."

"The cost reduction value of GPOs is well known and documented. This study illustrates the value GPOs provide hospitals beyond volume discounts. The ability of GPOs to work with their provider-members to institute a reasoned and comprehensive approach to product review is of critical importance," said Robert Betz, Ph.D., President & CEO of the Health Industry Group Purchasing Association (HIGPA), which commissioned the study. "Because of their broad-based memberships, GPOs gain the ability to bring the brightest medical minds in the country together before purchasing decisions are made."

The Lewin Group study reviewed the processes that GPOs and their participating hospitals use to evaluate both existing and new technologies, including breakthrough products. A notable finding was that "GPOs and health systems conduct extensive and rigorous clinical reviews when deciding which health care technologies will be listed in purchasing contracts and made available for use.

"The exact locus of the clinical review process can vary - sometimes more is done at the GPO level, and sometimes more is done at the health system level - but in any event these processes employ widely accepted methods for assessing the clinical value of health care technologies."

Additionally, "most health systems and GPOs have dedicated functions or other provisions for incorporating new and unique technologies into their purchasing contracts," the team of researchers from The Lewin Group said in their report.

The Lewin Group found that the survey respondents "have established comprehensive committee structures and related processes to review new products. Committee members are generally drawn from the clinical, pharmacy and technical staff of GPO member institutions, supplemented by GPO staff and other outside experts…[C]ommittees are charged to evaluate clinical and related technical properties first. If these elements are consistent with expectations for quality, then the committees consider relevant economic and other impacts of a product."

The study said that several elements of clinical review processes were prevalent among responding GPOs and health systems, including:

• Clinical review processes of health systems and GPOs rely upon comprehensive systems of expert committees;
• GPOs and hospitals are using recognized independent technology assessment resources;
• Health systems and GPOs have functions for monitoring and incorporating 'breakthrough' and other novel technologies;
• There are mechanisms for ongoing review in place;
• Information is shared among clinical review functions; and,
• GPOs can facilitate clinical trials.

The Lewin Group interviewed five health systems and six major GPOs during February and March 2002. Health system interviewees were purchasing managers, administrative officers, and medical officers. GPO representatives interviewed were clinical operations directors, chief executives, or other senior company executives. The study analyzed the different manners for clinical review for three separate product categories: medical-surgical devices, pharmaceuticals, and capital equipment. Health systems and GPOs identified the following comprehensive list of attributes and impacts of technologies that generally are incorporated into the clinical review process:?

• Technical properties and performance;
• Safety and risk to patients and health care workers;
• Efficacy and effectiveness;
• Economic attributes;
• Acceptability to patients and clinicians (comfort, ease of use, utility);
• Risk of liability;
• Potential for standardization;
• Impact on market share/competitiveness;
• Requirements for facility modification/work flow;
• Manufacturer reputation and support; and,
• Capacity of vendor to provide sufficient and reliable supply.

To obtain copies of the study, contact HIGPA's Director of Communications, David McDonough, at 703-243-9262 or visit www.higpa.org.

HIGPA is a chartered trade association of approximately 170 health care purchasing and supply chain organizations that serve approximately three out of every four U.S. acute care hospitals, as well as most of the long term care, home care and medical group practice markets. HIGPA's Industry Members include purchasing groups, associations, multi-hospital systems, and health care provider alliances. HIGPA's Trading Partner members include many of the world's leading health care product manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and related suppliers. According to a recent study conducted by a former principal analyst at the Congressional Budget Office, hospitals save patients approximately $20 billion each year by purchasing products through group contracts.

To learn more about HIGPA or the group purchasing industry, visit www.higpa.org or call 703-243-9262.

Return to Press Room