Healthcare Industry News:  Premier healthcare alliance 

Devices Group Purchasing

 News Release - September 17, 2009

Welch Allyn Selected as Sole-Source Vendor for Standardized Blood Pressure Cuffs by Two of the Largest Nonprofit Healthcare Purchasing Coalitions in the U.S.

Single Connection FlexiPort® Cuffs Connect to Devices in Virtually Any Patient Care Area, Reducing Inventory and Risk of Infection

SKANEATELES FALLS, N.Y.--(HSMN NewsFeed)--Welch Allyn, a leading global manufacturer of frontline medical products and solutions, was recently selected as the sole-source vendor for standardized blood pressure cuffs by non-profit healthcare purchasing coalitions Yankee Alliance and Catholic Healthcare Partners (CHP). The agreement will make blood pressure cuffs with Welch Allyn FlexiPort® technology available at special pre-negotiated pricing to nearly 100 hospitals across 22 states. Welch Allyn FlexiPort blood pressure cuffs have a single common connection that reduces waste as well as the risk of spreading infectious disease.

“Welch Allyn understands the benefits of standardization within a healthcare facility,” said Steve Meyer, president, US/Canada and executive vice president at Welch Allyn. “Standardized products such as the FlexiPort blood pressure cuff lessen inventory and eliminate hassle for healthcare workers. We have good relationships with Yankee Alliance and CHP, and we are confident our blood pressure cuffs will make life easier for nurses and biomedical engineers at healthcare organizations within their systems and, ultimately, enhance the safety of their patients.”

CHP is a mission-driven, nonprofit health system that operates healthcare organizations that meet the needs of people in Tennessee, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Indiana. Yankee Alliance is a nonprofit member-driven organization of healthcare providers from across the country that provides a wide range of services designed to enhance its members' financial, operational, and clinical effectiveness. CHP and Yankee Alliance will both access this agreement through a contract with Premier Purchasing Partners, L.P., the group purchasing unit of Premier, Inc.

Welch Allyn FlexiPort blood pressure cuffs are the first cuffs designed to work with devices in any patient care area. FlexiPort cuffs connect to virtually any manual or electronic blood pressure device, so patients can be freely moved from room to room, floor to floor and department to department without forcing clinicians to find new cuffs for each different device. Assigning a FlexiPort cuff to a patient when s/he is admitted to the hospital allows the patient to move freely throughout the facility without having the cuff changed every time the patient is hooked up to a new device, which reduces waste as well as exposure to other hospital-borne illness.

“Facility standardization with FlexiPort blood pressure cuffs can reduce the typical hospital’s cuff part numbers by up to 60 percent.” added Meyer. “The reduced part numbers mean a reduction in inventory levels—so blood pressure cuffs are easier for clinicians to find and easier for purchasing managers to order. Caregivers are under a lot of pressure to save time, screen and diagnose accurately, and treat patients quickly without compromising care. By offering a way for them to standardize their cuffs, we help reduce these pressures so practitioners can be more productive and focus on their most important task—enhancing patient care.”

About Premier Inc., 2006 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient

The Premier healthcare alliance is more than 2,200 U.S. hospitals and 58,000-plus other healthcare sites working together to improve healthcare quality and affordability. Premier maintains the nation's most comprehensive repository of clinical, financial and outcomes information and operates a leading healthcare purchasing network. A world leader in helping deliver measurable improvements in care, Premier works with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the United Kingdom's National Health Service North West to improve hospital performance. Premier has offices in San Diego, Charlotte, N.C., Philadelphia and Washington.

About Welch Allyn

Founded in 1915 and headquartered in Skaneateles Falls, NY (USA), Welch Allyn is a leading global manufacturer of medical diagnostic equipment and a complete range of digital and connected solutions. With over 2,500 employees working in 20 different countries, Welch Allyn specializes in helping doctors, nurses, and other frontline practitioners across the globe provide the best patient care by developing innovative products, breakthrough technologies, and cutting-edge solutions that help them see more patients, detect more conditions, and improve more lives. More information about Welch Allyn and its complete line of connected products and solutions may be found at www.welchallyn.com.


Source: Welch Allyn

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