Alisha Hutchens
Alisha Hutchens
- Senior director, supply chain administration, Novant Health, Inc.
- Novant Health consists of 14 medical centers, 480 outpatient locations and 2,585 beds.
Following nine years at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Alisha Hutchens joined Novant Health in 2008 as a strategic sourcing manager for capital equipment, with an emphasis on radiology and cardiology. She assumed her current position in 2013, after developing Novant’s new product and technology program and serving as department director for three years. Today, she provides leadership and oversight for Novant Health’s supply chain administration team.
The Journal of Healthcare Contracting: What has been the most challenging and rewarding project you have been involved in recently?
Alisha Hutchens: That would be the enhancement of our value analysis program by creating a full supply chain project implementation program. We currently have two nurses in our value analysis department who provide our system with the critical link between supply chain and our clinical team members in the facilities. For years, they have successfully provided our customers with clinical supply chain support. However, our historical service level standards are no longer enough to support the contracting demands of our organization. To ensure the long-term success of our supply chain projects, and guarantee our patients receive the highest quality care possible, our nurses have taken an even more proactive approach in working with our strategic sourcing team, as well as operations and logistics, during product conversions and project implementations. In order to facilitate clinical and supply chain engagement, as well as assist our value analysis nurses, we have developed a full supply chain implementation program designed to walk each responsible party through the stages of work needed for successful product conversions, trials, pilots, etc. As part of our value analysis program enhancement project, we have also reviewed our various recall management policies and workflows. After identifying the need for a more thorough and systematic approach to managing recalls, we worked with our general counsel, risk management and our chief medical officer to develop a systemwide recall policy that successfully mitigates risk to the organization and our patients by streamlining communication pathways and synchronizing action throughout the system, using a series of checks and balances.
JHC: Please describe a project you look forward to implementing in the next year or two.
Hutchens: It is very important to continue our plans to further develop the value analysis program. The next phase of the program focuses on product quality as it relates to supplier performance. We have a supplier scorecard program now that measures various key performance indicators, but isn’t readily linked to product quality. Our goal is to develop a supplier quality program that links product performance, quality, backorders, product related infections and recalls to overall supplier performance in the organization.
JHC: What are the most important qualities you look for in a supplier partner?
Hutchens: I expect our suppliers to recognize the importance of our mission, vision, and values, as well as identify with the Novant Health brand and what it means to serve the communities in which we live.
JHC: What is the greatest change we can expect to see in healthcare contracting in the next five years?
Hutchens: I expect to see even more consolidation of suppliers, as well as an increased focus on developing more meaningful and strategic partnerships with their customers.