From the June 2015 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
Immediately after Three Mile Island, when there was a shortage of nuclear measuring equipment, some of his competitors were over-charging to take advantage of the situation. Reiss, however, charged a fair price and as a result, this helped his business to build a loyal customer base. I visited Reiss’ factory a few years ago and was impressed with his lean manufacturing processes and efficient delivery method. He told me his is a fully integrated company. He designs and builds every product he sells. Part of the power of his lean manufacturing success is the engagement with employees. By asking employees for advice, more insight is provided for processes and a greater sense of worth and involvement is created among employees.
Reiss brought up the troubling fact that many U.S. companies are buying back their own stock rather than investing in research and development. So many executives, especially at public companies, are driven by the near-term quarterly profits.
Bogutski discussed the role that GE Capital played in the growth of GE Medical Systems. GE could sell equipment for more than other companies because of their finance arm, but as interest rates have dropped, GE Capital has played less of a role. GE has continued to streamline that business sector, with the most recent news being that in March GE Capital’s Australia and New Zealand consumer lending arm was going to be sold to a private equity firm for $8.2 billion. I would be surprised if that is the last of the news from that front.
Reiss brought up the point that among the greatest strengths of American companies have always been innovation and creativity. So this shortsighted vision surrounding short-term profits does not bode well for the future. As our corporate giants spend less on developing new products, we are going to lose some of our prominence in the world.
From there, Bogutski moved the discussion to the use of iodine 131, used to ablate the remnants of tumors after surgery. This is not new but it is noteworthy. Goldsmith and Bogutski also talked about Bexxar and Zevalin, which have been used successfully when everything else fails for patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. These radioimmunotherapeutic regimes beat the odds and most people survive beyond five years. However, the cost of the drugs is prohibitive, with the amount in excess of $40,000. Although significant, this is consistent with competing therapeutic options. So according to Goldsmith, the reason for poor utilization is not cost but rather lack of understanding and competition amongst practices.
