Hospital medical devices: building a well-managed system for the long term
This year, Pharmac set up a new Medical Devices directorate to lead the work on the management of hospital medical devices in Health New Zealand hospitals.
“Pharmac’s work in the hospital medical devices space is a great example of the new approach to funding healthcare in New Zealand as part of the health reforms,” says Catherine Epps, Pharmac’s Director, Medical Devices.
“Moving to a new way of managing hospital medical devices is a significant change for Pharmac, as well as the rest of the health and disability system. We are working with Health New Zealand to develop effective, efficient, and sustainable systems and processes for hospital medical device management.”
“Right now, Pharmac’s national contracts cover close to $550 million of Health New Zealand spending each year out of an estimated $840 million on hospital medical devices. As we continue to establish national contracts with suppliers and build the list, we’ll see this figure increase.
“This work means that Health New Zealand hospitals in Auckland and in Christchurch can – and will be able to – buy the same hospital medical device from the list, at the same price, and with the same terms and conditions. This supports a more consistent and equitable experience of our health system.”
“The hospital medical devices programme is closely aligned with Pharmac’s purpose – to support a healthcare system that is equitable and meets the needs of those who currently face barriers to accessing or using hospital medical devices.”
This year we have:
- Finalized national contracts for around 9,000 devices, which means that we have completed about 63% of the list.
- Established a new medical devices directorate to work towards a new way of managing and curating a list of approved medical devices purchased by Health New Zealand for use in public hospitals.
- Signed a joint National Medical Devices Action Plan with Health New Zealand, to help us meet the clinical, strategic, and sustainability aims of both organizations, without unnecessary and accidental duplication.
- Worked with Health New Zealand on the Hospital Medical Devices Programme to utilize the skills of our people and to improve health outcomes.
- Contributed to important discussions about devices in research spaces such as the HealthTech Congress and Te Titoki Mataora, to share what we’re doing in the hospital medical devices space and how we assess the relative value of medicines and medical technology with our colleagues across the sector.