September 17, 2021 – Sacramento, CA USA

TAGCarts, Inc. salutes and congratulates the 1st US Carbon Neutral Health System!(1.) It is increasingly clear healthcare has embraced corporate sustainability. With goals dating back five to ten years, we now find ourselves on the eve of twenty twenty-two, and in the initial manifestation of their economical, social, and environmental goal achievements. As a whole, these healthcare system values’ are now driving corporate decision making, supply chain partners, and spend commitments.

Consumerism in Healthcare

As a share of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, health spending accounted for 17.7 percent (2.). As the nation’s largest employer(3.), healthcare employs one in eight of us accounting for 12.5% (4.), and is expected to grow an additional 14% by 2028 due to the aging population (5.). This means healthcare isn’t an industry island of isolation, but rather consumers are healthcare and healthcare systems are consumers. This readily explains the rapid insurgence of consumerism into all facets of healthcare. Trends in consumer market = trends in healthcare. Accordingly a large percentage of those of us who work in healthcare, are the same consumers of healthcare. Today’s informed consumer is today’s informed patient as well as today’s healthcare worker. This is the driving force of compounding sustainability in healthcare and consumers will patronize healthcare systems who operate with forward thinking values that reflect their own.

Sustainability Phased Integration

With healthcare systems sustainability priority goals targeting greatest impact within their control, operational efficiencies, design, the built environment, and green energy consumption represent their first and second stage adoption of sustainable healthcare. These phases required dedicating their own resources toward new and innovative systems of operation and use; through their own capital and with applied grants and government / organizational rebates. The secondary and tertiary phases of adoption to sustainability, will actually cost healthcare far less capital and resources as they place the burden of “Shift” on their supply chain partners.

Product Differentiation

In the scope of hospital capital equipment, “Hospital Grade”, use to represent proven efficacy, durability, and ever lasting utility. Today, in light of current and past global pandemics (COVID-19, Ebola, etc.), informed patients (consumers) understand more than ever the link between their health and the health of their community and planet.

Has the casual “Consumer Grade” standard evolved beyond “Hospital Grade” for capital medical equipment? Perhaps when it comes to to the sustainability component of the products, yes…temporarily. However the evolved procurement processes and policies enable healthcare’s supply chain to slingshot past the consumer market where “Hospital Grade” represents sustainable production, manufacturing, and supply chain for approved vendors and diversified suppliers.

Vendor Differentiation

For the last few decades, being a diversified supplier to healthcare was enough to shine and win committed spend; Veteran-Owned, Woman-Owned, Minority-Owned, Small Business, and more. In the last ten years we have seen that grow into the suppliers who have policies of “Corporate Good” and policies of giving back. Examples are performing charity on weekends, highway clean-ups, adopting a less fortunate hospital across the globe, and more. The real evolution is taking place now. Environmental Preferred Purchasing and Sustainable Procurement policies are the new normal…

• What are your products made of?
• Where are they made?
• Who makes them?
• Is there a carbon footprint score or certification available?
• How is your company promoting wellness and good outside of your primary revenue core competencies?

Consumers – nurses, procurement, administration, staff, c-suite, management – are smart and informed. They peel back the layers of the marketing with a click on their phones or mouse – to fact check if the spirit of the marketing and positioning message are consistent with their products and actions.

Wherever healthcare supplier / vendor companies lie on the sustainability spectrum, being true and authentic to your commitments, goals and impact will deliver the highest rewards.

For Your Medical Cart Solutions,

Tagg

TAGCarts – Powered by Design, Designed for Care.

To see TAGCarts features and benefits for nurses and healthcare professionals please click here and review our “Suitable Medical Cart Applications.” To learn more about TAGCarts’ core sustainability commitments please click here. For questions about this article, share your next project, schedule a demo or contact us please click here.

Site References:

1. https://about.kaiserpermanente.org/community-health/news/first-carbon-neutral-health-system-in-us

2. https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHealthExpendData/NationalHealthAccountsHistorical

3. https://www.exploremedicalcareers.com/1-in-8-americans-employed-by-u-s-healthcare-industry/

4. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/10/health-care-still-largest-united-states-employer.html

5. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/home.htm

The post 1st US Carbon Neutral Health System – Pioneering Healthcare appeared first on TAGCarts®.

TAGCarts is pleased to officially welcome Dr. Karen K. Giuliano, PhD, RN, FAAN, MBA, to the TAGCarts Board of Advisors.

Karen brings over 25 years of experience in critical care nursing, medical product innovation and clinical outcomes research. Karen has made numerous contributions to the literature, with over 80 publications in more than 20 different journals and is also a frequent presenter. While her knowledge is in general acute and critical care, Karen’s specific interests are focused on the intersection of clinical needs and medical technology use, development and innovation.

In mid 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Registered Nurse, Karen K. Giuliano, was featured on the “Handoff” podcast by Trusted Health – For the Modern Nurse, as a nationally recognized nurse-innovator. TAGCarts reached out to Dr. Giuliano to appreciate her interview and share the work they were doing to elevate nursing with highly designed medical carts for healthcare.

Karen recognized the medical cart market as antiquated and ripe for disruption. Embracing TAGCarts’ vision and culture, Karen was attracted by how the company had made nurse input vital to their research and design process. In light of the CEO’s experience in medical carts for healthcare, Karen was impressed with the depth of end-user / nurse feedback TAGCarts integrated as part of the due diligence product development process. (TAGCarts and it’s partners conducted a multitude of interviews, performed in depth research, and hosted a three-day design charette with nurses in Berkeley, California in January 2020).

In the fall of 2020 TAGCarts engaged Karen’s consultancy firm, Pace-Setter & Associates, to perform clinical research and collect data around a potentially life saving medical cart innovation project. In addition Karen participated on the design team for their first generation supply / treatment / procedure medical cart.

Karen and CEO Taggart Neal met in Boston, Massachusetts in April of 2021 as her role soon progressed from consultant to Advisor.

Dr. Giuliano’s professional and educational background can be seen on her Advisor profile here.

The post Nurse Innovator Joins TAGCarts appeared first on TAGCarts®.