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The nation's largest group purchasing organization for Catholic hospitals has decided it wants to grow larger. Consorta Catholic Resource Partners, Rolling Meadows, Ill., has begun seriously courting new members for the first time since it was formed in July 1998.
The GPO has embarked on a recruitment effort aimed at boosting it beyond the current 50,000 beds and $2 billion annual purchasing volume. It is also pondering, as it has long promised, inviting non-Catholic hospital systems to join.
In February, Consorta announced, along with the Fiscal Year 1999 financial report, a new recruitment program called "The Emerging Voices," a brochure featuring testimonials from current members.
It also reported a $20 return in cash and savings on every dollar invested in membership fees. In addition, Consorta returned 54% of 1996 revenue to shareholders.
Contracting success
The group has completed about 180 contracts since it was created in July 1998 by the consolidation of Catholic Materials Management Alliance (CMMA), St. Louis, and Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother-Diversified Health Services (SSM-DHS), Milwaukee. But it also manages 800 more contracts inherited from CMMA and SSM-DNS.
Consorta has already made waves with some innovative deals of its own. Its first capital equipment group buy, in the early months of 1999, drew $51 million in spending commitments by members and was followed by a deal on linear accelerators that generated $15 million (see HMM, October 1999).
In September 1999, the GPO put teeth in its social responsibility policy by contracting with minority-owned companies for a wide variety of soft goods and plastic patient supplies. For one of the two firms chosen, it was the first national group contract.