Unlocking the GPO puzzle

In this episode of Vet Watch, our host Christopher Lee, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, DACVM (Parasitology), invited guest Katee Spence, MBA, CVPM, to take listeners into the world of group purchasing organzations. Throughout the show, Lee and Spence chat about what exactly GPOs are, benefits of GPOs veterinary professionals may not know about, and what veterinary professionals should look out for when evaluating GPOs.

Below is a partial transcript, edited lightly for clarity

Christopher Lee, DVM, MPH, DACVPM, DACVM (Parasitology): Just to back up a little bit, can you just explain what is a GPO, and why would an independent veterinary hospital consider joining one?

Katee Spence, MBA, CVPM: Yeah, absolutely. So a GPO, like I said, is a group purchasing organization. So essentially, I think the easiest way to compare it as a private practice is, you know, we look at the Banfields and VCAs and now SVP/MVP, those big corporations that have a lot of practices in their network, if you will, those practices collectively can come together and have buying power, and that's how they can negotiate contracts, discount, and pricing with manufacturers and distribution and other vendor partners. And that's the goal of a GPO.

So our goal is to bring private practices together in that kind of like minded space, where we can work with vendor partners to bring whether it be upfront discounts in different situations or back end rebates, to the practices to help you be more profitable, bring down your cost of goods sold, and positively affect your bottom line.

Lee: So you get the benefits of being large with the buying power of something like Banfield, but you remain and keep your independence.

Spence: Yeah, absolutely. I think that it is one concept that sometimes is a little bit difficult to quite understand how it works on the back end. But essentially, it comes down to buying power. If we can work together as private practices, still practice our own style of medicine, which is the beauty of private practice, right? But also work alongside clinics that are like minded as us, and maybe using the same vendors that we use, then we can create some more buying power. Then definitely, if you're a 1-2 doctor, practice, would be able to have on your own.

Check out the full episode to hear the rest of this conversation!