Ten People: Ann Archuleta

This month JHC features its Ten People to Watch in Healthcare Contracting. We’ll provide excerpts and information on each person featured. For the full feature and August issue of JHC, visit www.jhconline.com

Ann Archuleta, supply contracts administrator

MidMichigan Health, Midland, Mich. — 459 beds across four medical centers; annual spend of approximately $100 million in supplies.

Journal of Healthcare Contracting: What has been the most challenging and rewarding project you have been involved in recently?

Ann Archuleta: Our most challenging and rewarding project has been the reorganization of our value analysis physician preference process. Our goal was to improve communication and reduce the lead time. We are still in the implementation phase and working on education of all clinicians and physicians involved.

JHC: What is the biggest change we can expect to see in healthcare contracting in the next five years?

Archuleta: The biggest change we can expect to see in healthcare contracting in the next five years will be linking procedural supply costs to reimbursement. We also will have to engage physicians in the processes such that they work with the health systems and are accountable and financially responsible when bringing new technology to the health system. Physicians will increasingly collaborate with health systems on cost reduction initiatives as they see the effects these initiatives have on the health system in which they work, as well as on the healthcare industry as a whole.