“Are outsource O&M support service firms more or less cost-effective than in-house operations?” Their responses were:
All the opinions expressed above came from in-house facility engineers who also recognize that their management has tolerated this double standard, much to their dismay.
It was also noted that outsource firms are better prepared to meet the hospital executive’s interpretation of O&M support services primary function because:
When the question was asked, “Do outsource firms have a better database to run today’s complex O&M support services?”, The answer was a unanimous “Yes.” Outsource firms have multiple sites to draw upon for information and are more conscientious at collecting this data. Here again, hospitals that have partnered or merged should have the same potential to produce this performance database.
In closing the forum, I asked the audience how many of their hospitals had changed and/or added a eye-catching logo to their facility and on their letterhead. More than 50% of the attendees’ facilities have new logos and letterheads. The reason hospitals are projecting a “new image” is because they are competing to survive in the healthcare industry. Hospitals either have in-house marketing or they hire a marketing firm to get the message out. At the same time, outsource firms are also very aggressive at marketing their services. The only ones who are not consistently out marketing themselves are the in-house, facility support service groups.
What’s that tell you?