How to Save Money When Buying Gynaecology Laparoscopic Instruments Manufacturers

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Searching for specialty surgical instruments used to be difficult, time consuming, and costly. In many ways, it still is. The rise of GPOs has made the search somewhat easier for larger hospital systems but it hasn't necessarily reduced cost. In fact, the ease and accessibility of cost specialty instrument found on many GPOs has decreased the likelihood that those responsible for instrument procurement often fail to compare cost. And that can be a costly mistake.

#1: What's important, the brand or the pattern?

When a surgeon places a request for an instrument, (s)he often references the instrument by the brand name simply out of habit. Quickly ask the surgeon to verify if the brand is important. In most cases, the surgeon is only interested in the pattern.

#2: Kick the GPO Habit.

Many specialty surgical instruments aren't listed on the GPO. And the ones that are, quite often, aren't discounted at all. They are simply there for your convenience. By blindly assuming that these instruments are presented at a discount, you could be wasting tens of thousands of dollars a year.

#3: Don't Set Your Mind on Sets.

What your surgeon considers an instrument set is not necessarily what the manufacturer considers a set. Instrument companies often build and market sets that contain unnecessary parts so they can charge you more. If you build your own set, focusing your attention on only the instruments you need, you can save thousands of dollars.

#4: Shop before You Drop Your Money.

Most instrument companies do not make the instruments they sell. This means that you can get the identical instrument from more than one instrument company. That's a good thing because it means you can save money by shopping around. But it also means that there can be many manufacturers for the same instrument pattern. Choose to work with an instrument company that offers you a satisfaction guarantee.

#5: Continue the Discontinued Search!

When a surgeon asks for an instrument and the manufacturer tells you that it's been discontinued, the path of least resistance is often to take them up on their offer to have one custom made for you - at a very steep price. Other vendors, however, may carry that instrument - or be able to have it made - at a much lower cost than the original manufacturer.

Put simply, you can save a lot of money simply by asking for a quote for the specialty instruments you require. You can email us or call us at 1-800-600-0428 for a hassle-free quote.

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It might sound counterintuitive: How can an instrument that costs you several hundred pounds save you money compared to lower quality instruments that you can buy for a fraction of the price?

Below are four clear reasons why:

1.       Longevity

High quality surgical instruments are always manufactured with longevity in mind. Crafted by experts in instrument design and metallurgy, they understand how to create surgical tools that optimise performance and durability.

For example, top manufacturers will always choose the highest quality stainless steel rather than lower grade metal, as this will significantly enhance instrument longevity.

They are also likely to produce ceramic-coated instruments, which provide four to five times higher surface hardness than stainless steel, reduced abrasiveness and greater resistance to rust and corrosion.

They might also make instruments in Titanium, which is another high-performance metal that is recognised for its superior durability, being both fracture-proof and non-rusting.

What’s more, instruments that are hand-crafted, rather than made by machine, can have incredibly long life expectancy.

For example, in a study to test whether Stille hand-crafted surgical scissors really did deliver on the manufacturer warranty of 30 years, it was found that 74% of the Stille scissors used in a busy surgical centre were actually older than 50 years.(1)

2.       Cost-in-Use

Of course, whilst top surgeons and the sterilization services team might well value long-lasting surgical instruments, procurement teams charged with reducing operating room costs might find it hard to justify larger upfront costs for buying these products.

This is where a lifetime warranty comparison can really shine a light on the value of investing in higher quality instruments. By simply comparing the length of instrument warranties and dividing those time periods either by instrument cost or instrument use, it can be easily seen that the highest quality instruments will always be the star performers when it comes to value for money.

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Obviously, high quality instruments with the longest warranties will prove the most cost-effective, so whichever instrument you are looking to purchase, make sure to research the various manufacturer warranties before buying anything. Whilst some will offer a 30-year warranty, others may only offer 1-5 years.

Alternatively, if your procurement team is considering single-use disposable instruments, a cost-in-use comparison with a high quality reusable instrument will invariably show the latter to be the most cost-effective investment.

For example, one study of laparoscopic instruments showed that “the total cost for single-use instruments would have been more than seven times that for reusable instruments.”(2)

3.       Minimal servicing costs

Another cost advantage to purchasing high quality surgical instruments is that they will often only need servicing every couple of years and some brands even offer the first service free within the initial purchase price.

What’s more, some high-quality instruments will be designed to allow for the instrument parts to be dismantled during servicing by the manufacturer, allowing for thorough inspection of corrosion at the joints to help maximise instrument longevity.

Low-quality instruments will not only require servicing more regularly, causing greater cost and disruption to instrument availability, they are also more likely to develop hairline fractures and corroded surfaces that mean effective servicing is no longer possible.

4.       Less environmental cost

There is also an environmental cost benefit for choosing long-lasting quality instruments over cheaper reusables in many cases.

For example, a study that compared mainly German brand reusable scissors to both German and Pakistani disposable scissors revealed that the reusable scissors were better for the environment. (3)

This is because whilst they take more energy to come to market, the reusable scissors are used thousands of times more than the disposable ones.

In addition, there is less ongoing environmental impact from servicing high-quality reusable surgical instruments than low-quality ones, which will require much more documentation, packaging, labelling and transportation for servicing.

Hold out for high quality

As can be seen from the above, it is easy to justify the greater outlay for purchasing high-quality reusable surgical instruments, even in the face of significant budgetary pressures.

In fact, the rapidity with which poor quality instruments degrade means that, even if you have missed the boat for submitting instrument requests for this financial year, it is worth waiting until you have the budget to buy the best in twelve months’ time.

To view our range of high-quality surgical instruments.

You can also contact our Cairn instrument team on 0845 226 0185 to arrange for a demonstration of our surgical instruments or to evaluate instruments on loan.

REFERENCES:

(1) Dahl G, Ölveback T, Wiklung L. Quality surgical instruments best investment. Presented: SEORNA, Swedish Operating Nurse Association Conference Meeting, 29-30 November 2012

(2) Gabriel N Schaer, MD, Ossi R Koechli, MD and Urs Haller, MD. Single-use versus reusable laparoscopic surgical instruments: A comparative cost analysis. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology Volume 173, Issue 6, Pages 1812-1815, December 1995

(3) http://www.sustainable-manufacturing.com/files/ 982_JGARG-Review_1-2012_Scissors_Aug2012_7g0i26.pdf

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