Chief Operating Officer,
Capital Division Supply Chain HealthTrust Supply Chain
August 2024 – The Journal of Healthcare Contracting
Dallas Brummell currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer for HCA Capital Division Supply Chain. Brummell is responsible for all Supply Chain operations for the division, covering (15) hospitals across (18) campuses and (9) associated free-standing emergency rooms, (2) distribution warehouses and (1) medical equipment depot. He coordinates with Supply Chain functional area leaders that include Clinical Excellence, Contracting, Pharmacy, Procure to Pay and Support Services to assist in leading a team of HealthTrust professionals in the movement and availability of all supplies, equipment, and overall support for their hospitals and care providers.
Any recent stories of wins/successful Supply Chain projects you can share?
Two come to mind:
- Supply Chain & PPR (Physician Provider Relations) Engagement: Facility/Hospital collaboration between PPR and Supply Chain leadership is vital. A structured, on-going forum to review new technology, equipment, supplies and contracting needs for our providers as they onboard and/or expand services in our hospitals and communities supports them in providing high quality care.
- Equipment Shared Services: While we currently manage mobile medical equipment in our central and northern Virginia hospitals, we are expanding our equipment management model to our hospitals in southwest, Virginia, New Hampshire and all associated Free-Standing Emergency Departments. Using RFID technology, data analytics, and equipment-focused leadership, mobile medical equipment is readily available when needed, has increased visibility by the caregiver, and allows for streamlined inventory management across our division.
What upcoming initiatives are you excited to get started on?
We are very excited about our Service Line Engagement Initiative; specifically partnering with service line leaders and clinicians in our Operating Rooms, Cath Labs and Interventional Labs, to better understand their needs as they relate to patient care: equipment needed, new technology, first-to-market and new services for the community.
We are also excited about technology upgrades and integration of AI into our systems. Capital Division is in the middle of upgrading our warehouse inventory management technology. With AI integration and the ability to analyze historic data, this technology will assist in supply/demand forecasting and will ultimately optimize our overall Supply Chain. We have already instituted AI in requisitioning of replacement equipment parts; more specifically, automating the review of SKUs across multiple item catalogs to identify the most readily available items at the best price for our hospitals. AI is an area that we are very excited about expanding to additional functional areas of our Supply Chain over the next few years.
How do you measure the success of your team and its impact on the organization as a whole?
In my mind, success is our clinical teams having quality, cost-effective supplies, equipment, and service that allows them to provide exceptional patient care. HealthTrust’s ability to add value and expand our scope of service each year is one of our key strengths.
What’s the biggest takeaway for you as a supply chain leader over the last few years of marketplace disruptions?
It is of the utmost importance to expand our vendor network and relationships and ensure that supply contingencies are in place. We, as an organization, have looked at sourcing differently over the last few years post-pandemic; understanding that we need to have multiple ways to source critical supplies and equipment.
What are the most important attributes of a successful Supply Chain team today?
A successful Supply Chain team is adaptable and can move together with the market and/or an unexpected event to provide exceptional services in the midst of change.
From a service-level perspective, our Supply Chain teams understand their impact on our patients and care providers daily. Every functional area makes a difference; from warehouse distribution, technicians stocking clinical units in our hospitals, to contracting and value-based clinical initiatives. Our goal is to support our care providers in a way that allows them to spend more time at the bedside with their patients. Our ability to have the right supplies and equipment, in the right place, at the right time is imperative to achieving that goal and allowing our clinical teams to focus on their mission.
From a financial perspective, the ability to invest funds into new technology, equipment, and hospital infrastructure is imperative. In order to support the growth at our facilities approach, our Supply Chain teams review savings initiatives through value analysis, contracting/sourcing, rental expense reduction, prompt payment discounts and operating efficiencies.
What are the keys to a successful provider/supplier relationship?
Transparent communication with our suppliers and the ability to monitor and/or measure vendor/supplier performance across our functional areas; via monthly and quarterly business reviews. Understanding potential supplier risks and external threats to our suppliers is extremely important. The pandemic was certainly an eye-opening time for many organizations; specifically related to the overall inability to provide goods/services. In our world, these goods and services still need to be available for our clinicians to provide care for our patients. Today, more than ever, we and our vendor partners understand the importance of having sourcing contingencies and the ability to pivot amongst our contract portfolio to make sure we are providing quality products timely for our care providers – regardless of external factors.