Thursday, August 4, 2016

Keeping Your Options Open: Part I

Every healthcare facility has a handful of medical devices that at some point need to get replaced. Some of those devices are “used and abused” and deserve a proper burial, but some still have a pulse.

The question is, will the ones with the pulse be handled just like their battered counter-parts? 
Will the Hospital Departments trade them for shiny-new next generation models without consulting Corporate Office? 
 
Will they be forever retired into an offsite barn used as a storage or, live in the hallway until Joint Commission arrives and then get quickly relocated into a nearby closet or worse, a bathroom (true story!)?

There are five alternatives to consider in addition to the antiquated trade-in or the "out-of-sight, out-of-mind" methods when replacing end-of-use medical devices. 

Each has its pros and cons but all are better alternatives than locking equipment in barns or using as foot stools under the nurse’s station.

The five most common alternatives are:
  1. Internet Sales
  2. Auctions
  3. Hospital Site Sales
  4. Direct Vendor Sales
  5. International Container Load Sales
A 250 bed hospital has an average of 3,250 devices and since majority of devices are different, different selling strategies should be utilized. For the sake of keeping interest and time, let’s explore “Internet Sales” option in this post and reserve the rest for next time. 
 
Internet Sales Pros:
  • Setting Asking Price: let’s face it, we all have access to the internet and if we can
    self-diagnose the root cause of that annoying cough, we can probably determine ballpark price of the equipment.
Quick Tip: Prices published on websites such as eBay and DOTmed should be discounted by at least 33%.  Prices listed on these platforms are almost always negotiable which is why it is imperative for facilities to maintain own database with prices received for sold devices. Also, please don’t assume that asset book value Finance Department has on record is the same as street value. It’s not!
  • Unlimited Selling Cycle: you’re not bound by time limit and can continue selling until you receive a price that meets your expectations.
  • Reaching Global Buyers: you expand your reach beyond vendors personally known to you or working for your facility to a wide range of prospective buyers located in US and abroad.
  • 24 Hour Visibility: whereas online auctions and site sales provide limited visibility hours, the internet is always open.
  • Reduced Commission/Service Fees: establishing an online store can cost as little as $0 or as much as $200/month, depending on the platform used, but that pales in comparison to 20-60% fees charged by providers offering online auctions and equipment consignment/storage services. 
Internet Sales Cons:
  • Time Consuming: it can get time consuming (and irritating for anyone holding a full time job) to respond to prospective buyer’s inquiries, reply to emails, return phone calls, host inspections or verify if the screw holding the plastic case on the bottom of the unit is grey or silver.
  • It takes approximately 2-4 hours to sell common general biomedical device.
  • It takes approximately 40-60 hours to sell a fixed imaging system.
  • It can take months to sell a unique, specialty-focused system or laser.
Of course, sale process can be decreased if you give away the system for the cost of de-install, but if you’ve read this far, I don’t think that is your goal.
  • Choosing Selling Platform – there are plenty of online platform to choose from and it appears as if a new one pops up every day. From medWOW, DOTmed and eBay to SoluMed and MediBid just to name a few. Each platform has its own advertising criteria, fee structure and customer traffic that must be evaluated.
  • Payment Processing: when selling online, buyers need to have payment options and at very minimum, facilities need to be able to process payments by credit card, PayPal, domestic and international wires.
  • Logistics: managing logistics is a pain! And it will be even more painful if buyer is located abroad. It’s not a rocket science to figure out how to ship a 30lb box to Poland, however the process will take on a life of its own when the job calls for de-installation, crating and shipping via ocean-carrier to Australia or determining which consolidated clearing house to use for a shipment to Mexico.
There is definitely some effort involved when selling end-of-use medical devices on the internet, but the financial benefits almost always outweigh the labor involved. 
 
Don’t be afraid to incorporate Internet Sales into your equipment decommission program. Even if you determine it is more beneficial for your facility to trade-in that end-of-use asset, the vendor taking it on a trade just may be more generous with trade-in value if they know you have other options.
 
If you would like to learn more about the benefits of an in-hospital, centrally managed Medical Equipment Decommission Program, please visit www.ecomedhtm.com or send an email to med@ecomedhtm.com.