CHARGING MEDICAL SUPPLIES: THE BEST PRACTICE AN IMPLICATION FOR NURSE ADMINISTRATORS TO IMPROVE QUALITY CARE AND CONTAIN COST

Abstract

Providing quality care is the utmost goal of health care organizations. For nurses, who are the largest body of health care professionals, to perform at high level, it is essential to provide them the sufficient resources mainly medical supplies necessary to perform their service. The lack of these resources would compromise the quality of care, patient safety, and cost containment. At AUBMC, although the organization has shifted to electronic documentation, nurses are instructed to write down on a paper all the items used on each patient and give to the floor clerk who will do the financial charging. This inefficient practice is leading to delays in care, staff dissatisfaction, and increased cost. The main objectives of this project are to identify evidence-based automated methods for charging medical supplies on a hospital unit then use a decision-making tool to choose the best-fit method for AUBMC. The result of the search yielded three automated charging methods: Automated dispensing cabinets (ADC), Barcode and Radiofrequency identification. The advantages and disadvantages of each technology were assessed using a decision-making matrix; the final recommendation was to use ADC in closed units and Barcode in open units. The implementation of this new charging process will help improving patient care and satisfaction, staff productivity and satisfaction, in addition to reducing financial and supplies waste. The decision methodology followed in this project showed that reaching an optimum decision lies in properly assessing the problem, specifying the expected outcomes, and accounting for the context barriers and facilitators where it occurs. The findings of this paper can add up to the currently available literature concerning the importance of managing and controlling not only medication management but also medical supplies management. Future studies are necessary to assess the effectiveness of combining ADC and barcode technologies in charging medical supplies on patient safety, staff satisfaction, and cost containment.