A new study by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society's Analytics research unit found that many hospitals use electronic commerce in their purchasing process but that they still are not realizing the complete value of e-commerce, Health Data Management reports.
E-commerce vendor GHX sponsored the survey of 199 hospital purchasing officers.
The study found that of acute care facilities with more than 150 beds, at least 95% electronically order at least some supplies (Goedert, Health Data Management, 3/23).
In addition, the study found that a median of 65% of purchase orders are handled electronically and that 70% of purchase orders are sent as electronic data interchange transactions (HIMSS Analytics release, 3/23).
Respondents also identified several challenges related to e-commerce, including:
- Processing of invoices;
- Real-time discrepancy reporting;
- Exception management; and
- Supplier reluctance or inability to conduct business via EDI (Health Data Management, 3/23).