Coding of contract status aids in cost control.
Repeat purchases of stocked and nonstocked items account form the largest expenditures in any given hospital. The purchase orders for these items are often rushed through the system, for they are both repetitive and routine. Little consideration is given to whether the items are under a purchasing contract or that the vendor abides by the contracted price. In this article, the author describes a coding system that indicates both usage volumes and contract status. This system can be readily implemented and used to flag high usage items for contracting as well as ensure that the hospital enjoys maximum benefit from existing contracts. This same easy-to-interpret system can be utilized by all hospital users to assist in alternative product selection for cost control.
D003284:Contract Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003363:Cost Control; D004865:Equipment and Supplies, Hospital / Q000145:classification*; D005376:Financial Management / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006744:Hospital Bed Capacity, 100 to 299; D008331:Management Information Systems; D011682:Purchasing, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014589:Utah