5 Ways to Get the Most from Your Surgical Supply Vendors

By: Dianne Taylor

Published: 10/10/2007

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If you develop a personal relationship with a sales rep, you'll find that you can save time and money.


With modern communications tools such as e-mail, online shopping and fax machines, it's easy to purchase supplies without ever coming face-to-face with vendors' sales representatives. No muss, no fuss. But before you close the door on an old-fashioned customer-supplier relationship with a sales rep, consider that these relationships can save you time and money in ways that are impossible when you purchase without dealing directly with the rep. Here are five benefits that only a strong personal relationship with a rep can bring you.

1. Money-saving favors. Good reps invest in long-term success. This means they will see the value in making deals that will save you some money and encourage your future patronage. For example, Chris Holmes, the purchasing manager with Oregon Eye Surgery in Eugene, says she no longer pays re-stocking fees for returned items, thanks to rep relationships that she says are based on "mutual respect." She also gets free napkins and tablecloths when the center hosts parties or special events, thanks to a good relationship with her linen supplier.

Another hospital administrator says her surgical supply rep is helping her meet a budget cut. Informed that the hospital imposed a 2 percent cut in the supply budget, she turned to her rep and he suggested a cheaper brand of surgical caps and boot covers, "If I didn't have a forward-looking relationship with him, he would not have seen the benefit in making this suggestion. Rather, he would have preferred the bigger short-term profit that the more expensive items bring," she says.

2. Research on demand. Do you need product information or to do a cost analysis? A reliable rep can do it for you. When Ms. Holmes needed to find out the manufacturer of certain stabilization hook that a surgeon requested, she asked her rep. "It wasn't even an item he sold, but he looked it up and referred me to the company," she says. "He saved me a lot of time."

Tricia Camacho, the director/administrator of the San Marcos Surgery Center in Texas, says her surgical scrubs rep put pencil to paper and helped her decide whether to launder the scrubs in-house or sign up with a service. "Our rep ran the numbers and showed us that it is clearly more cost-effective to wash [the scrubs] ourselves," she says.

3. Help in a pinch. When you find yourself in need of a drug, implant or other item for a case that is scheduled to begin in an hour, a good rep will work hard to get it to you in time. "Recently, we used our sterile implants and needed them for another case. We couldn't get them resterilized fast enough, so we called our rep. He borrowed a set from another hospital and delivered them to me on time," says the administrator of an orthopedic surgical hospital.

Building Blocks For Strong Vendor Relationships

The success of your relationship with a vendor depends not only on finding a capable rep, but also on your ability to communicate your expectations. Consider these pointers:

  • Meet with reps. Although many OR directors delegate rep meetings to buyers or materials management personnel, many say it makes good business sense for directors to meet directly with reps about larger issues such as contracts. Chris Holmes, the purchase manager for Oregon Eye Surgery, advises that you take the time to learn a bit about the rep. "Ask how long they have worked for the firm and why they chose to work for that company," she says. "Ask them to describe their job. Give them real-life scenarios and ask how they'd handle them for you." Ultimately, she advises, if you don't think the rep will work well for you, say so. "I'll call the company if I have concerns about a rep, and the companies will listen."
  • Set ground rules. The rep must have a clear understanding of your price and service expectations. "We don't play games. We tell our reps they have to keep prices down or we'll look elsewhere for the items. But they also know we don't make our judgment solely on price," says Pam Neiderer, RN, BSN, the administrator of the surgical center of York in York, Pa.

    Command and give respect. Every administrator echoes the sentiment that mutual respect is the foundation of a good relationship with a rep. "I treat them as I expect to be treated." says Tricia Camacho, the director/administrator of the San Marcos (Texas) Surgery Center. "I am not discourteous unless they cross the line, but I will not allow them to denigrate another rep or competitive product. They're here as partners to help solve problems and improve patient care, not so that I can get them a sales commission."

  • Don't over-standardize implants. If you use a lot of implants, don't over-standardize. Maintaining a bit of competition in your OR is healthy, and it means your implant reps will go the extra mile to keep your business, says Ms. Camacho. "We split our implant business among a select group of suppliers and, as a result, these reps are more willing to consign," she says.

- Dianne Taylor

Ms. Holmes has had similar experiences. "I've had reps go online, find a local pharmacy that carried the drug I needed and hand-deliver the drug to me. When I needed extra warming blankets for our patients, the linen company delivered them within a half-hour," she says.

4. Training coordination. Good reps can educate the entire staff, as they are on top of the most up-to-date product information. When a couple of surgeons at the Surgical Center of York, Inc., in York, Pa., informed administrator Pam Neiderer, RN, MSN, that they wanted to do more shoulder arthroscopy on-site, Ms. Neiderer says "our sales rep provided not just the equipment, but also arranged the training and was very helpful throughout the process."

5. Cost-free evaluations. A great benefit of working with reps is that surgeons can try new products- even costly ones - without assuming financial risk. "We recently tried a new $300 orthopedic implant, but the patient's bone was too soft," says Gerald I. Falke, DPM, the medical director of the Long Meadows ASC in Hagerstown, Md. "Because we work well with our reps, we didn't have to pay for it."

More than just business Not every relationship will be as fruitful as these because much depends on the individual rep's capabilities. Even so, if you establish sound working relationships with receptive and knowledgeable sales reps, everyone stands to benefit. As Ms. Holmes says, you get results when you "value each other, both personally and professionally."

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