 Corporate Overview
Value, Quality, Commitment
Alliant Purchasing, the outreach arm of Norton Healthcare for affiliation with Premier, offers unsurpassed materials management services and programs to healthcare providers. Using national contracts negotiated by Premier and our regional agreements with manufacturers and distributors plus aggregated price contracts, Alliant Purchasing reduces total materials purchasing expenses by 8 to 20 percent. In addition to BEST price, Alliant Purchasing members enjoy enhanced productivity through product standardization, financial stability through multi-year contracts, and flexibility through multiple source options and a distributor-of-choice policy for medical/surgical products. Our strengths are grounded in mutually beneficial long-term partnerships that emphasize value, quality, and commitment.
The Alliant Purchasing Model is Unique
A partnership between Blue Management Services, LLC and Norton Healthcare, a Premier shareholder and the largest healthcare system in Kentucky, Alliant Purchasing provides pricing and benefits that are unequalled by any other regional group purchasing organization.
Alliant Purchasing members enjoy:
- Access to BEST price
- Enhanced productivity through standardization
- Financial stability of extended price protection
- Maximum financial benefits through increased contract utilization
- Flexibility of dual/multi-source agreements for many products and services
Alliant Purchasing has 193 members that in 2006 purchased over $120 million. Established in 1991, Alliant Purchasing has developed a nationally recognized service model designed to achieve maximum member satisfaction, not maximum annual financial growth. Alliant Purchasing is known for exceptional customer service and support provided by an infrastructure of experienced staff using innovative tools and approaches.
Customer Satisfaction
Annually, Alliant Purchasing measures member satisfaction through a customer satisfaction survey. Measured on a four point scale (strongly disagree, disagree, agree, strongly agree), in 2006 our customer satisfaction rate was 3.80 or 95 percent. Alliant Purchasing has earned a 95 percent or higher customer satisfaction score for six consecutive years.
Members agree strongly that:
- contract knowledge of the Alliant Purchasing staff is outstanding
- response received from the Alliant Purchasing staff is outstanding
- clarity of written communications from the Alliant Purchasing staff is outstanding and received promptly
- the on-site visit is an effective way to communicate about Premier contract utilization and financial benefits
- follow-up documentation (after the on-site visit) is helpful
- accessibility of the Alliant Purchasing staff is outstanding
- customer business meetings are well organized and important for understanding Premier contracts/maintaining peer contacts
Service
Alliant Purchasing assigns a specific service representative to each new member. Our service representatives are available by telephone or email during normal business hours to answer questions and provide information. Alliant Purchasing representatives annually schedule 1 to 2 mutually agreeable on-site visits with each member. During these working visits, the service representative meets with administration, materials management, and the individual department directors-- dietary, laboratory, radiology, pharmacy, and nursing--to answer questions, provide information, review current financial benefits, and plan.
Specialized Reports Measure Annual Savings
The facility overview report was created three years ago by Jennifer Armento, a Service Department Program Manager with more than 20 years of group purchasing experience. The facility overview report quantitatively measures a member’s participation and highlights changes to improve future materials savings. This report is used by our service representatives during each on-site visit to summarize current purchasing activity and plan.
- click here to view Acute Care Member Facility Overview Report Form
- click here to view Long-Term Care Member Facility Overview Report Form
Customer Business Meetings
The complexity and dynamics in today’s healthcare environment demand that attention be routinely given to educational development and knowledge transfer. The Alliant Purchasing service model includes two customer business meetings scheduled annually designed to enhance two types of educational opportunities:
- Sessions conducted by Alliant Purchasing, Premier, or vendor representatives which review contracts and other operating/developmental issues to educate participants about a specific program or contract. A purchasing representative from each member facility is invited to attend, as well as other appropriate facility personnel.
- Alliant Purchasing provides an educational program pertinent to a current materials/healthcare industry issue. Emphasis is placed on the purchasing role to improve quality and productivity of services through product usage analysis or product standardization.
Alliant Purchasing customer business meetings enhance the leadership skills and abilities of our members while fostering knowledge transfer and educational development. Each customer business meeting offers our members the opportunity to network, share ideas, and exchange information. Alliant Purchasing invests in the development of our members, allowing them to benefit from these informative and interactive meetings.
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