Operations

By Carrol Van Stone

Regulation and reimbursements are the most common pain points for healthcare organizations, which means they are continually open to discovering new solutions and revamping their purchasing programs.

That is why I sat down with Tom Dunn, CEO of FRONTLINE Selling, a leading SaaS cloud-based platform helping B2B sales teams across all industries, including healthcare, reach decision-makers faster, create more high-quality appointments, and consistently hit quota.

He has over 20 years’ experience building healthcare sales teams, consistently achieving remarkable revenue growth and helping organizations operate more efficiently. Below are highlights from our conversation.

Why do B2B healthcare sales take so long? These are long sales cycles because the people who do the buying are rarely the people who do the using. And, unlike other industries which are set up for execs to budget and buy as soon as they have the need, the healthcare industry has a long and complicated procurement process with multiple checkpoints of committees, regulations, and complex decision processes. For example, a hospital may be the actual buyer, but will seek input, nods, even approvals from doctors who aren’t employees, but will utilize the purchase. [Read more…] about How to Overcome Complexities in the B2B Healthcare Sale

By Stefanie Weiland

Mothers and newborns in East Africa lack access to quality healthcare services and suffer from extreme rates of mortality. Every day, 830 women unnecessarily die from pregnancy and childbirth. 99 percent of those deaths occur in developing regions like East Africa. Newborns in this region also disproportionately bear the burden of inadequate access to quality healthcare. Sub-Saharan Africa suffers from one of the highest rates of under-five death in the world, with one-third of those deaths occurring during the first month of life.

International agencies agree that as many as 66 percent of newborn deaths and 74 percent of maternal deaths could be prevented through implementation of known, evidence-based best practices. Hundreds of thousands of maternal and newborn deaths could be prevented every year if health workers in developing regions were trained and equipped to put evidence-based, high-impact interventions into practice at their local health centers.

Trained and equipped health workers are key to improving healthcare outcomes for mothers and newborns. LifeNet International (LN) is one organization working to improve healthcare in East Africa, especially for mothers and babies, from the ground up through its results-oriented partnership network. East African health centers in its network receive a bundle of interventions, including in-person training for medical and management staff, pharmaceutical and equipment supply, and ongoing quality assurance. [Read more…] about Basic Healthcare Training Saving Maternal and Newborn Lives in East Africa

Know Your Holiday Decoration Policies

By Larry Lacombe, VP of Program Development & Facilities Compliance, Medxcel Facilities Management

The holidays are typically a time of year full of joy and cheer, and the twinkle lights, sparkly garland and ornaments seem to get most of us into the holiday spirit. However, holiday decorations do pose a severe fire threat if not properly controlled. If you are not careful, this joyous season could create hazards that impact the safety and compliance of your facility. 

For instance, what if the nurses decorating their wing have run out of hooks to hang stockings with each staff members name neatly printed on them along the wall.  But wait – there is a fire extinguisher with what appears to be a hook-like fixture.  Next thing you know, John’s stocking is hanging on the fire extinguisher temporarily until a more suitable hook can be found.  But the days and weeks pass, and a suitable hook still hasn’t been located – so John’s stocking continues to hang from the fire extinguisher, creating a hazard.  It may seem completely innocent and was intended to be very temporary; however, by doing this, now the patients, staff and visitors’ safety have been put at risk in the event there is a fire and a need for the fire extinguisher.

Reviewing your holiday decoration policies and communicating to staff of these policies is a great first step in ensuring your facility remains compliant during the holiday season.  Some of the decorations you wouldn’t think twice about putting up in your home may not be as suitable for the healing environment as you may think.  Do you know your healthcare facility’s policy on lights – can they be electric, or should they be battery powered?  What about trees – how tall can they be and what material can they be made out of?  Is it acceptable to put a wreath on the door to the OR? All of these answers plus a ton more are likely very detailed and included in your hospital policies. [Read more…] about Keeping Your Healing Environment Safe amongst the Tinsel and Trees