University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Joins AROK Purchasing Coalition, LLC

IRVING, Texas, June 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- VHA Inc. today announced that the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has joined the AROK Purchasing Coalition, LLC. The AROK Purchasing Coalition, a VHA supply network, includes more than 50 health care organizations across Arkansas and Oklahoma. Their members collaborate to increase efficiencies and reduce expenses by establishing contracting strategies that meet unique needs and aggregate spend across the supply chain.

"We are excited to welcome UAMS to the AROK Purchasing Coalition. The continued growth and collaboration between member hospitals in our supply network helps reduce supply chain costs and drive operational efficiencies beyond what they could achieve on their own," said Scott Snider, VHA vice president of market management and supply networks.

UAMS is Arkansas' only academic health sciences university. UAMS Medical Center has 430 beds and staff physicians treat hundreds of thousands on an outpatient basis each year. UAMS also provides care through eight regional medical centers and a comprehensive Rural Hospital Program. It's Myeloma Institute for Research & Therapy has treated more than 10,000 patients from every state in the U.S. and more than 50 countries.

"By joining AROK, UAMS will be able to access resources to quickly improve supply chain performance as well as collaborate with a network of our peers to foster innovation and improvements that will benefit our patients and the communities we serve," said Roxane Townsend, M.D., UAMS Medical Center CEO and vice chancellor for clinical programs.

The AROK Purchasing Coalition was established in 2008 to stabilize and drive down non-salary expenses of the member organizations for supplies, pharmaceuticals, equipment, new technology and purchased services. AROK transacts over $705 million annually in member purchases and has saved members approximately $50 million since its inception.

About VHA
VHA Inc. is a national network of not-for-profit health care organizations working together to improve performance and efficiency in clinical, financial and operational management. Since 1977, when VHA established the first hospital membership organization, the company has applied its knowledge in analytics, contracting, consulting and network development to help members and customers achieve their strategic objectives. In 2013, VHA delivered $2.2 billion in savings and additional value to members. Serving approximately 5,000 health system members and affiliates, VHA represents more than a quarter of the nation's hospitals. VHA also serves more than 118,000 non-acute health care customers enterprise-wide. VHA is based in Irving, Texas, and has 12 regional offices across the U.S. VHA, together with UHC, owns Novation, a supply chain company, and aptitude^TM , the health care industry's first online direct contracting market. VHA also owns Provista, a supply chain company serving the non-acute market as well as hospitality, education and corporate markets. For more information, visit www.vha.com and follow us on Twitter (@VHAInc).

About University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS)
UAMS is the state's only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a statewide network of regional centers; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute, the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging and the Translational Research Institute. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has more than 2,865 students and 785 medical residents. It is the state's largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including about 1,000 physicians and other professionals who provide care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children's Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS regional centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com.

SOURCE VHA Inc.