Healthcare and Construction
March 23, 2010
A little over a year ago, ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) allocated billions of dollars to improve healthcare infrastructure, providing a boost to the healthcare industry as well as the construction industry charged with building, repairing, and renovating health centers across the United States. Consequently, construction companies are positioned to help alleviate the costs of healthcare facilities through well-executed, on-budget projects. With the development of new technologies in both industries—prodded along by federal funds—we’ve only just begun to see how each industry can benefit the other.
In the AEC (architecture, engineering, and construction) arena, ARRA funds have presented a need to pursue new efficiencies and cost-saving measures. Stimulus-funded construction projects must stay on budget, and companies need an accurate way to track (and present) money spent versus money remaining throughout a job’s lifecycle. This heightened need for good documentation has made a strong case for companies to invest in technology such as project management software.
Healthcare is experiencing a similar push from ARRA to adopt new IT systems. In fact many funds are awarded specifically to advance the “widespread and meaningful use” of health information systems.
Steps toward more efficient technology for both industries are also being taken, as evidenced by a new partnership between MedAssets, www.medassets.com, Alpharetta, Ga., and e-Builder, www.e-builder.net, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. The two companies announced the launch of the MedAssets Construction Services program, a solution that will leverage the advantages of MedAssets’ GPO (group purchasing organization) and e-Builder’s Web-based technology to help hospitals and health systems get the most value out of a limited budget.
MedAssets, which partners with healthcare providers to implement solutions that optimize operational efficiency, says the program can provide greater fiscal control over a project through comprehensive front-end planning, which delivers a detailed design/build feasibility study and improves the accuracy of budgeting processes for project financing.
The MedAssets Construction Portal facilitates overall project management, tracking, monitoring, and reporting; plus gives access to key statistics; and tracks contract savings with realtime reporting.
“A centralized information management network enables healthcare facility owners, architects, contractors, engineers, and suppliers to manage a project’s lifecycle through planning, design, and construction stages,” says Jonathan Antevy, CEO, e-Builder. “The result will be better executed construction projects and measurable cost savings in the U.S. healthcare system.”