6 Challenges with Medical Device Reps in the Operating Room
It is no wonder 75% of hospitals are taking steps to restrict medical device rep access in hospitals. Here are six reasons why hospital operating room managers are looking for ways to restrict medical device rep access from the operating room.
It is no secret that medical device reps provide updates on new product lines during a procedure while in the OR. This can lead to physicians requesting higher cost devices. However, as hospitals move towards a capitated model, they are looking more and more for cost:benefit when purchasing medical devices – not just physician preference.
“They are really good at having surgeons request products that are more expensive than we’d like to buy.” –OR Director
The OR team (physician, nurse coordinator and OR scrub tech) have enjoyed the luxury of having an onsite rep from the medical device manufacturer present in the OR during almost every procedure.
“I talk with the nurse coordinator…laugh…who is the vendor and who is the physician…feel like the vendors are almost performing the surgeries.” –OR Director
Even with vendor management solutions such as RepTrax and Vendormate, hospital struggle to manage medical device rep foot traffic in and out of the operating room. Some hospitals have gone as far as dedicating a specific individual from procurement to police the ORs and escort out reps that are not not authorized, preventing them from returning for up to a month.
“So many (medical device) vendors coming in and out of the OR, very challenging for us to control.” –Nurse Coordinator
4. Delays in Patient Care
With no system or processes in place, having reps from multiple medical device manufacturers coming in and out of the OR is not an efficient process and results in delays. These delays cost time and money for the hospital.
“It is difficult for us to contact the rep for a particular device. Sometimes we can’t get in contact with them for several hours and we can’t start the case without their support.” –Nurse Manager
Having an additional body in the OR poses additional infection risk. With 10% of the average hospital budget spent on infection related costs, reps in the OR increase this risk.
“There can sometimes be 2-3 reps in the (OR) room. It really is an increased infection risk.” –Orthopedic Surgeon
Medical device reps are, by definition, considered HIPAA compliant. However, medical device reps are exposed to significantly more patient protected health information (PHI) than they should be while in the operating room.
“I can see the patient charts, the records, it’s all readily accessible. I probably see much more (PHI) than I should while I’m in the OR.” –Orthopedic Rep
It is clear that these challenges are becoming more top-of-mind to hospitals. Hospitals will need to find a way to more efficiently manage reps in and out of the OR, while balancing the need for the OR team to obtain quality support.
