GHX WebDirect2 Connects Small- to Mid-Sized Healthcare Suppliers with the Industry's Largest Online Trading Community

With GHX WebDirect2, smaller businesses can meet customer demand for an electronic, automated ordering process without having to make major investments in equipment, technology or support staff. Healthcare providers send purchase orders (POs) directly from their enterprise resource planning (ERP) or materials management information systems (MMIS) systems through the GHX Exchange. Suppliers then use an intuitive Web portal to view POs and respond with electronic purchase order acknowledgements, advance ship notices and invoices. With the Direct Download feature, a supplier can download POs in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet or via a custom file format from the GHX WebDirect2 portal and upload this information into its internal systems, eliminating the need to rekey orders, reducing the risk for human error and cutting PO processing time.

On the buy side, GHX WebDirect2 enables healthcare providers to use their internal systems and existing GHX Exchange connectivity to process orders from small- to mid-sized healthcare suppliers just as they would from larger suppliers directly integrated with the GHX Exchange. This provides them with a highly efficient and cost-effective single business process through which they can seamlessly transact electronically with both large and small suppliers alike. As with any transactions routed through GHX Exchange, providers can leverage GHX applications, such as Provider Intelligence and contract management solutions, to improve order and pricing accuracy, drive contract compliance and gain greater visibility into their purchases.

"When we work with a supplier that only accepts purchase orders by fax or by phone, it really takes us away from automated processes that we try to maintain," said Brent Pacanowski, director of Purchasing at Norton Healthcare. "There is an opportunity cost associated with every transaction, and when we have to deviate from our current processes, it takes time away from strategic sourcing or increasing customer service levels."

"GHX is dedicated to growing the online trading community so that all participants – providers, suppliers, group purchasing organizations and distributors – can work together to drive down the cost of doing business," said Derek Smith, executive vice president, Marketing and Product Management, GHX. "For larger suppliers that are equipped to handle electronic transactions, this has been relatively straightforward, but smaller businesses have struggled because most don't have the internal capabilities to support B2B commerce. GHX WebDirect2 provides small- to mid-sized suppliers the support they need to successfully participate in the GHX community, meet customer demands for e-commerce and take an active role in sustainable healthcare transformation."

About GHX

Global Healthcare Exchange, LLC (GHX), a healthcare technology and services company, helps reduce the cost of doing business in healthcare by enabling better supply chain management. GHX makes it easier for hospitals, other healthcare providers and the suppliers that do business with them to drive cost and inefficiency out of their processes. Working with GHX, the healthcare organizations that make up the GHX Global Network are on track to save $5 billion by 2014—savings that can be invested in such things as hiring more nurses, providing care to uninsured children or developing new medical products. GHX is owned by organizations on both the buy and sell side of the healthcare supply chain, including some of the largest companies in the world. Find GHX on the Web, on Twitter @GHX_LLC and on Facebook @GHX.

SOURCE GHX