The two financial components to a remote language or interpretations services program are the services and the hardware used for remote interpretation. Services are typically billed on a per minute basis while hardware can be provided by the interpretation services provider or purchased outright by the hospital. Our client had multiple providers across the health system with various financial models in place. One supplier was providing hardware in exchange for a commitment to a monthly minimum amount of interpretation minutes, which was typically higher than the actual volumes needed by the system resulting in significantly increased costs
Our clinical purchased service consultants formed a system-wide, cross functional evaluation committee including representation from end users, risk, IT, finance, and supply chain to participate in a competitive request for proposal process. Suppliers providing services across the system were evaluated for organizational capability, interpretation quality, service delivery, and financial model.
The evaluation committee selected the supplier that offered the most competitive comprehensive proposal. In addition to enhancements in service quality, the selected supplier was projected to drive a 36% reduction in annual spend by eliminating monthly minimums and reducing service rates.