Article

Provista’s Non-Acute Advisory Councils Pave a Path to Member Successes

April 23, 2024
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Provista offers Advisory Councils for members who specialize in non-acute care. These councils provide a clinically integrated, member-led sourcing process to ensure that Provista delivers consistent and ongoing industry-leading value. This value comes collectively from factors including:

  • Business and clinical strategies
  • Products and services inside and outside of healthcare
  • Programmatic offerings to address healthcare needs
  • A national contract portfolio 
 

“The councils are made up of our most engaged members who enjoy providing feedback on their contracting needs and networking with others,” explains Abbi Manson, sourcing director for Provista. “I would describe it as a collaborative group of people working toward the same goals, which are to save money on supplies and manage supply chain challenges effectively.”
 
Council members help with all aspects of contracting, such as sharing which contracts deliver the most value and spotting any compliance issues. By giving as many members as possible a voice in contracts, Provista helps ensure that its offerings meet the needs of members across all classes of trade.

STAYING AHEAD OF INDUSTRY TRENDS AND CHALLENGES

Council members can share their insights about potential industry challenges or emerging opportunities with each other and with Provista representatives. These insights and perspectives allow Provista to help mitigate issues or enable member organizations to capitalize on new or changing markets.
 
People who serve on the councils can also assist in developing criteria for bidding on new contracts and developing new programs, offerings or solutions. Input from council members has directly resulted in changes to contracts and led to new offerings.
 
“The council is continuously providing feedback, which results in changes to contract awards, added products, added suppliers, custom agreements and more,” Manson says.
 
All Provista members ultimately benefit by having the most optimal contracts needed for current and future needs. The contracts cover clinical, business, IT and other areas for non-acute healthcare facilities. 

 
POSITIONING MEMBERS FOR ONGOING SUCCESS

Non-acute councils offer a vehicle for sharing market insights and intelligence with healthcare peers. Providing input is one advantage of serving on a council. Rob Joubert, Director of Procurement Operations at Lutheran Life Communities, says one of the most valuable aspects of serving on a council is the chance to learn and think differently. 

“Being a council member is valuable because of the ability to collaborate, share ideas and often find meaningful opportunities with like-minded people who have a similar role and background,” Joubert explains. “Too often in our day-to-day, we get bogged down in details and become too familiar with situations. The time with the council provides us with an atmosphere to hear voices and learn new things that we may not have thought about.” 

Other benefits to being on a council include learning from others in non-acute care. Plus, members have a platform to freely exchange ideas and test drive new programs, services or tools before they are available to others.
 
“Having their voice heard and being able to influence change not only for their own facility, but for the broader membership benefits the entire industry,” Manson says. “Being able to participate in meetings where curated content, specifically for your class of trade, is presented is also appealing to members.”
 
Additional key advantages of joining a council include interacting with staff from Provista and Provista’s trading partner Vizient and being able to advance members’ businesses. Learning from others in the industry helps members stay current on issues and best practices. In addition, council members receive an invitation to attend the Vizient Connection Summit, which includes an exclusive council networking dinner.

For Joubert, sharing industry insights is important. “In addition to the great time shared with peers, I really do enjoy the insights into what is going on in the industry overall, what is trending and the ability to be at the table to influence the vendors, contracts and evaluations that Vizient and Provista are making available to the greater community of long-term care and home health organizations,” he says. 

Members who serve on a council can also gain publicity for their companies by sharing their success stories and potentially being featured in a customer case study created by Provista. This allows council members to share how they’re solving challenges and enabling high-value outcomes.

“We aim to avoid isolated decision-making. At Vizient and Provista, we prioritize a member-centric approach to contracting.

—Abbi Manson, sourcing director for Provista”

A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO ADVANCE AND SHAPE NON-ACUTE HEALTHCARE

While there are clear benefits to members who join a council, Provista and its larger membership base also benefit. That’s why Provista looks for active and informed people who can provide expertise.
 
“The ideal candidate should not be shy to speak up and participate on calls. The biggest asset is being able to provide contract input,” Manson explains. “We understand that not everyone is the subject matter expert on every category, but the council member should be able to review the agenda in advance, go to their teammates and gather that information, and bring it back to the council.”
 
Provista uses council members’ feedback to actively drive improvements in all aspects of procurement and contracting. Having a seat on a council is a powerful way to shape the Provista non-acute healthcare portfolio.
 
“We aim to avoid isolated decision-making. At Vizient and Provista, we prioritize a member-centric approach to contracting,” Manson says. “This entails actively involving our councils, integrating their perspectives and seeking their support in shaping our strategy for the non-acute space.”
 
The application process to join a non-acute council is simple. Provista members can fill out a form online to get the process started.

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