Hospital selection of home infusion therapy companies as preferred providers

The process by which a hospital selected home infusion therapy providers is described. Administrators at a 379-bed teaching hospital decided to attempt to reduce the high mean length of stay by expanding the use of home infusion therapy. Direct diversification into this field by the hospital was not feasible, so it was decided to establish contractual agreements with providers. A task force was appointed to evaluate and choose vendors in the area and to increase the number of patient referrals. The task force examined reports on past experience with providers, price lists, the range and level of services offered, and the amount of free care given and visited the companies' facilities. The group designated three providers as preferred and two as unacceptable. The number of patients referred increased from 21 during the 12 months before the task force was convened to 46 in the first 9 months afterward, for a saving of 2198 patients days. After one year the task force met again to consider company requests for evaluation or reevaluation, establish a plan for publicizing the benefits of home infusion therapy, and replace the site visits with a requirement for accreditation by the Joint Commission. After two years, the task force developed provider-evaluation criteria to streamline the process and reflect the experience gained. The responsibility for reviewing providers was transferred to the P&T committee. When a direct venture into home infusion therapy is not fiscally desirable, contracting for services can still offer the advantages of reduced length of stay and decreased drug expenses.