A Novel Point-of-Care Solution to Streamline Local Wound Formulary Development and Promote Cost-effective Wound Care.

Abstract

To develop and implement a point-of-care digital solution to streamline the creation and maintenance of wound care product formularies and promote cost-effective wound management. Researchers used Design Thinking methodology to develop the Formulary Module, a point-of-care digital solution within a clinical and reimbursement decision support web application for wound care and hyperbaric clinicians. The module was implemented in a US hospital-based outpatient wound clinic as follows: A baseline list of products was established, with brands automatically grouped by product category. Brands within each dressing category were compared, and redundancy eliminated. Study authors assessed the financial impact of formulary implementation in the wound clinic by comparing inventory expenditure before and after implementation. Implementation of the digital Formulary Module resulted in a 36% decrease in products (67 to 43 across 22 types), 38.73% decrease in the monthly average dollar spent on chargeable products, 29.56% decrease in the average dollar amount spent on chargeable products per patient visit, and increased staff efficiency. The Formulary Module has the potential to increase the adoption of cost-effective practices in wound care significantly.