Nursing Budget

[txdon]

I need help with my nursing budget. I need to make drastic reductions and would like some ideas on how to reduce spending costs on nursing supplies.

[CapeCodMermaid, RN]

Call all your vendors and play let's make a deal. Honestly you have to be pushy to get them to cut costs but if you shop around you can save from 5-10%. Take a look at wound supplies. I worked in one place and everyone got EPC cream which is $25 or so a tube. I changed to $0.89 A&D....skin was great and saved tons of money. It's a process.

[nola1202]

I know floor nurses will hate me! But one person to log and distrubute supplies makes a huge difference esp with office supplies like pens! I have no problem with providing supplies but it's a well known fact that Nurses are hoarders. (esp if it's an item we run out of (ie O2 x-mas tree adaptors, or vaccutainer butterflys. A certain kind of dressing change product. From the wound care aspect, develop a formulary after researching similar products, then use it.

Always allow for a new or better product or for the situation where the less expensive generic isn't as good as the generic. (mepilex border is far superior IMHO to the cheaper adhesive border gauze generic. It ends up costing more since you can't lift it up to peek at the site without replacing the whole dsg.)

Enlist your staff to look for things that could be done better with less. Like recycling it only works if we all work toward a green world.

[nola1202]

and avoid using agency nurses! Give regular staff a bonus for coming in

[CoffeeRTC, BSN, RN]

Suggestions from the floor nurse

Look at the wound care supplies....don't short orders but start looking at the type of supplies...do you have multiple types of hydrocolloids? limit them to one type or brand. You probably do see a buch of overlapping types and brands.

Look at the treatment orders....I have to agree on the EPC cream (didn't know it cost that much) we have a lot of people ordered it that don't really need it or can go with the cheaper A and D or zinc.

Cut out a good bit of the office supplies. We did years ago. Most nurses were bringing their own pens etc anyway.

buy quality supplies...cheap briefs / diapers won't save money if they aren't doing the job.

work on retention and don't use agency staff. I know alot of nurses would work extra shifts if they got a bonus..paying a nurse $100 an extra shift will save you money esp when you need to pay an agency 40-50/ hr per nurse.

make sure the nurses know where your order supplies from and when they will come. After hrs things might need to be ordered and getting them from a certain place might cost more.

Talk to the nurses and ask them where you might be able to cut back.