Transformation Begins Here!

Wow!! What great presentations at the virtual conference this year! It started off with a bang with the CVAHP Review Workshop on Monday, Oct. 26. Beth Potter, BJ McCloskey, Anne Marie Orlando and Karla Barber did a great job reviewing Value Analysis concepts for attendees getting ready to take the certification exam.

Sherry Markwell from the FDA Medical Product Safety Network (Medsun) presented on types of medical device issues and patient safety. Participants were appreciative of the information as well as how to report issues to the FDA. Kristin Wills, a professor from Arizona State University, spoke on creating collaborations and partnerships to drive improvements in health care access and outcomes.

Dr. Michael Overcash is a chemical engineer who developed the technology for the Environmental Genome mapping creating the largest chemical life cycle database. His presentation on reusable textiles and the research into environmental sustainability of reusables versus disposables was fascinating. Attendees were captivated by the data he presented. He was followed by Susan Miller and Mary Beth Edger who described the evolution of their VA program at Jefferson Health through this pandemic.

AHVAP Past President Robin Lane gave a compelling presentation on the VA processes and techniques to attendees on how to grow and mature their VA programs. Regional meetings were held, and members were updated on AHVAP activities and shared experiences and ideas.

On the second week, VA 101 and VA 201 were offered as pre-sessions to those who are new to Value Analysis or needed additional information on how to grow in the VA role. Gloria Graham presented VA 101 with a focus on the basics of Value Analysis and the methodology of healthcare Value Analysis. Barbara Strain presented VA 201, which reviews more advanced strategies as well as physician relationships.

Tim Browne from ECRI provided information on how to vet non-traditional suppliers of personal protective equipment/supplies during this pandemic as well as testing of those products for efficacy. Heather Waters did a session on the tools and techniques that have helped her transition from the role of Infection Preventionist to that of Clinical Value Analyst at Cincinnati Children's.

Barbara Strain moderated a 2-hour panel of AHVAP leaders, featuring Robin Lane, Boyd (BJ) McCluskey, James Russel and Elizabeth Eisenberg, on the impact of the pandemic on the Value Analysis role as well as the collaborations and processes that have resulted.

On the last day, AHVAP Past Presidents Dee Donatelli and Barbara Strain presented information that focused on suppliers’ understanding of the Value Analysis process and useful tools to engage both the suppliers and the providers.

Dan Hermes and Karen Conway ended the conference with a presentation on supplier relationships and the transition of relationships from prior to COVID and post COVID.

And the winner of the raffle is Dorcas Lewe from Nationwide Children’s Hospital – Congratulations! Dorcas visited all of the supplier booths during the virtual event and won free registration to the 2021 Annual Conference.

Overall, it was a great conference. It was not without its challenges. It was difficult for attendees to engage with the suppliers in the Supplier Showcase at times. Creating a virtual booth was not easy for the suppliers. We truly thank the suppliers who attended for their support of AHVAP and their tolerance with some of the technical issues. AHVAP could not have provided this educational opportunity to you with them.

We had outstanding speakers, and they did a great job with their recordings. Many had not ever had to record presentations in the past. It certainly has been a learning year for sure in many ways. I think we all came away with some new nuggets of knowledge from each speaker.

Thank you all who attended. The PowerPoint presentations will be available on our website in the conference archives of the members tab in a couple of weeks. Those who registered for the conference have access to the presentation recordings via vConference until Dec. 3. (The video of Shelly Markwell from FDA Medsun is not working, and we will try to post it on the AHVAP website in the archives as soon as possible.) We also plan to be able to offer the CVAHP Review Workshop and VA101 and 201 as recordings in the near future.

Thank you to the members of the Conference Committee and to all of you who support AHVAP and are members. Barbara Strain and Karen Niven will be the 2021 Annual Conference Co-Chairs for the live event (hopefully) next year in Scottsdale, Arizona, Oct. 27- 29, 2021.