Materiel management: a clinical experience.

It is easy to understand why unit managers are eager to embrace a comprehensive approach to materiel management. The system allows for the professionals from the purchasing, supply, and distribution areas to meet and work with the managers of individual departments and units. Recognizable outcomes of this system are improved staff satisfaction because of standardized products; improved nursing competency secondary to product familiarization, and improved quality of patient care because area managers have more time to devote to their individual unit functions. The serendipitous benefit is that areas and personnel within a hospital that were once diverse in goals and functions may now develop positive working relationships around the hospital's prime goal of quality patient care, a marketable commodity.     

Materiel management and nursing: partnership planning.

An integrated materiel management system should not be developed by any one department; rather it should be a collaborative effort and partnership using the expertise available in both user and supplier areas. The keys to developing a sound system are accurate data collection, careful assessment of needs, establishment of realistic objectives, refinement of systems, and active promotion of the program throughout nursing.     

Materiel management reengineering: value creation through innovation

By reengineering their department's core processes, materiel managers can expand their role in the health care setting while realizing significant cost savings. Using a team model, Inova Health System materiel management staff integrated their processes for vendor selection, purchasing, inventory reduction, and utilization across three hospitals and ancillary services. An integrated approach at all levels of the organization gained buy-in from administrators and staff systemwide.     

Materiel management and internal audit: a team approach

Materiel management and internal audit share common objectives--the promotion of organization efficiency, the prevention of fraud and abuse, and an interest in the creation of and adherence to policies and procedures. By working together, these two departments can help each other meet their objectives and, in the process, better serve their institution.     

Installing management by objectives: A new perspective on organization change

The successful installation of MBO requires the development of results-oriented, responsibility-sharing, and non-zero-sum attitudes in all managers. And the creation of those attitudes may require a mini-cultural revolution.