When it comes to surgical supplies, you get what you pay for.
So-called “premium” surgical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) are an investment into providing the highest level of care to your patients and ensuring the safety of your healthcare team. As medical advancements continue to evolve, the demand for innovative and superior-quality surgical supplies and PPE has risen significantly. But what’s the return on investment (ROI) for your facility when you have to spend more upfront?
Cheap surgical supplies and PPE come with a lot of risks. Premium PPE helps your facility mitigate the risks of skyrocketing labor costs, facility shutdowns, and even surge pricing.
Before you order another crate of cheap PPE, let’s talk about the hidden costs inside those discount boxes.
The Cost of Injury & Illness
The safety and well-being of your healthcare staff depend on having immediate access to the right personal protective equipment (PPE). Unfortunately, using cheap PPE can have detrimental consequences.
When healthcare staff are equipped with low-quality or inappropriate PPE, they are at a higher risk of injuries and illnesses. For instance, inadequate shoe covers may fail to provide sufficient protection from fluids or blood, leading to potential exposure to serious infectious diseases. This not only endangers the health of your staff but also compromises the safety of patients and the hospital environment in general.
The financial implications of these injuries and illnesses cannot be overlooked.
In 2022, the cost per medically consulted work-related injury was $40,000. Nationwide, injuries and illnesses to nursing aides and orderlies cost the healthcare industry 2.2 billion dollars; costs were 900 million dollars for registered nurses and 40 million dollars for licensed practical nurses. (Pubmed)
In addition to the direct costs associated with medical treatment and workers’ compensation, there are indirect costs that impact the hospital’s bottom line. These may include hiring temporary staff to cover absences, reduced productivity due to staff shortages, and potential legal expenses if negligence is proven.
Loss of Time & Productivity Due to Work-Related Injuries
Time and labor are the most expensive line items on any hospital’s budget. When substandard PPE causes work-related injuries or illnesses, the hospital must bear the burden of additional expenses and reduced productivity.
- Expenses: Hospitals have to cover the costs of hiring temporary staff or paying overtime to other employees to maintain proper staffing levels. These additional expenses can quickly add up and strain the hospital’s budget.
- Reduced productivity: When staff members are out of work, the remaining employees may need to take on additional responsibilities, leading to increased workload and potential burnout. This can hinder productivity and may result in decreased quality of patient care.
- Delays in patient care: With a reduced workforce, hospitals may experience longer wait times for patients seeking medical attention. This can impact patient satisfaction and potentially lead to negative feedback or loss of trust in the hospital’s services.
- Worker’s compensation claims: Injured employees may be entitled to worker’s compensation, which can further impact the hospital’s finances. These expenses can include medical treatment, rehabilitation, and potential legal costs if the employee pursues a lawsuit.
- Training and orientation: When new staff members are brought in to cover for absent employees, time and resources must be dedicated to training and orienting them to ensure they can effectively perform their assigned tasks. These resources could be better utilized elsewhere if not for the absence of injured staff.
Work-related injuries and illnesses affect the well-being of employees and present serious financial challenges for hospitals. It’s better to make an investment in the highest quality, premium PPE from the outset.
About Those Staffing Costs
Hospitals often face the challenge of ensuring adequate staffing levels, especially when regular staff members are unable to work due to illness or injury. It’s common for hospitals to hire temporary staff to cover these absences. Even if your hospital already budgets for temporary staff, as most do, you may have forgotten a few hidden costs here, too.
Recruitment costs: When hospitals hire temporary staff, they have to undergo a recruitment process, which includes advertising the position, conducting interviews, and performing background checks. This process requires time and resources, which incur costs.
Diminished productivity of existing staff: Temporary staff will require training and orientation to become familiar with the hospital’s policies, procedures, and equipment. This training involves the allocation of resources, as well as the time and efforts of other staff members or trainers.
Diminished experience on the floor: Temporary staff may not have the same level of experience or expertise as regular staff members. This could result in even more reduced efficiency and productivity, as the temporary staff may require additional supervision or guidance.
Higher temporary wages: Another factor contributing to additional staffing costs is the need to pay higher wages for temporary staff. Hospitals may need to provide incentives to attract temporary employees, as they are often paid more than regular staff members. This increased wage expenditure can strain the hospital’s budget even further.
Ultimately, these expenses impact the hospital’s budget and add to the challenges hospitals already face in maintaining adequate staffing levels. It’s a lot easier to opt for the highest quality protection for your staff to keep them from becoming ill or injured in the first place.
The Cost of Disrupted Services
The worst-case scenario in an outbreak is a disruption to the essential healthcare services your hospital or facility provides. If a bloodborne or fluid-borne illness makes its way out of containment, it can have significant financial implications. Here’s why:
- Decreased patient volume: When a facility is unable to provide services due to an infectious outbreak, patient visits naturally decrease. This leads to a decline in revenue from consultations, surgeries, and other medical procedures.
- Increased expenses: Dealing with an outbreak requires additional expenses such as infection control measures, personal protective equipment, and disinfection supplies. These costs can quickly add up, further straining the facility’s finances.
- Staffing challenges: In the event of an outbreak, some healthcare workers may become infected or need to self-isolate, leading to a shortage of staff. Hiring temporary replacement personnel can be costly, impacting the hospital’s budget.
- Negative reputation: Those patients you lost during the outbreak may never return. Your facility’s reputation is crucial for attracting and retaining patients. If a hospital or healthcare facility becomes known for an outbreak or its inability to contain the spread of infectious diseases, patients will seek care elsewhere. This loss of trust can have long-term financial consequences.
- Legal repercussions: If it is determined that a facility’s negligence contributed to the spread of an infectious disease, it may face legal action, resulting in potential financial penalties and damage to its reputation.
Cheap PPE just isn’t worth the risk. Hospitals and healthcare facilities must invest in infection control measures, including premium PPE, to prevent outbreaks and safeguard their financial stability.
The Cost of Being Under-Prepared
The COVID-19 pandemic wasn’t the last one we’ll face in our lifetimes. 57% of senior disease experts now think that a strain of flu virus will cause the next global outbreak. Many more are watching the mutation of a virus called Disease X with trepidation. Regardless of which virus is responsible, another pandemic will occur. Knowing this, hospitals and healthcare systems maintain a stockpile of PPE to ensure the availability of adequate supplies for their essential workers. This proactive approach is crucial in safeguarding both frontline healthcare workers and patients.
When a pandemic strikes, the demand for PPE skyrockets, resulting in shortages and increased costs. Hospitals that lack a stockpile may find themselves grappling with inflated prices and limited access to essential protective gear. This not only jeopardizes the safety of healthcare providers but also hinders their ability to effectively treat patients.
Hospital budgets are usually designed to accommodate predictable costs. However, surge pricing disrupts these plans as the sudden price hikes for PPE strain their financial resources. When faced with surge pricing, hospitals may be forced to choose between PPE of acceptable quality but at an inflated cost or lower-quality supplies at a reasonable price. This can jeopardize the safety of healthcare workers and compromise patient care.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, surge pricing for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) significantly impacted hospitals and healthcare systems financially unless they were relying on a North American supplier like Sloan Medical. The facilities that stocked Sloan products during the COVID-19 pandemic had less wastage due to our superior product and could keep their supplies on hand thanks to our self-contained supply chain.
Investing in premium PPE from a North American manufacturer can help hospitals avoid the financial burden of under-preparedness. Since the supply chain is and remains connected in North America, your hospital or health system doesn’t need to maintain a stockpile as large as it would if it relied on PPE manufactured overseas.
Investing in North American-made, Premium PPE
Sloan Medical is committed to producing top-notch PPE that meets the highest industry standards. Our products are designed by a surgeon, for surgeons. We understand what it means to budget for a hospital or healthcare clinic because we’ve been in your shoes.
It is, by far, more budget-friendly to invest in premium PPE than it is to fight surge pricing, try to rebuild a damaged reputation after an outbreak, or find the temporary staff you’ll need to fill in the gaps caused by staff injury or illness.
Investing in North American-made PPE means you can have quick and reliable access to these essential safety products. No long shipping times or facing uncertainties related to global supply chains. With a local manufacturer, you can rely on a consistent and timely supply.Developed by a surgeon, for surgeons everywhere, our PPE is guaranteed to keep everyone dry and safe during surgery. Take our products for a test drive, free.
