Case Study
How to Tighten Perioperative Access
Without Risking Regulatory Citations
Overview
Challenges
Core Problem:
At Ocean University Medical Center (OUMC), the manual appointment-approval process for vendor check-ins created a significant administrative burden for procedural staff. It also caused delays with last-minute vendor access. With the lack of automation, this increased the risk of non-compliant vendors entering restricted areas, weakening policy enforcement and regulatory adherence.
Initial Struggle:
The vendor check-in system through GHX Vendormate was dependent on manual approvals of appointments from staff. Staff were required to log into GHX Vendormate and approve vendor’s appointments prior to the vendor being allowed to check-in. This process took upwards of 10 hours per month across procedural department leadership and introduced delays with approval processes for last minute submissions.
Vendors with incomplete or expired credentials could still access restricted areas, increasing the manual workload on staff to verify credentials and compliance statuses. Thus, contributing to the risk of regulatory gaps and exposure to enforce policy.
The Solution
Integrated Credentialing and Scrub Access
OUMC linked its credentialing system, GHX Vendormate, directly with RepScrubs – creating a unified process that restricted scrub access to only fully credentialed vendors. The integration enabled the system to check a vendor’s compliance status in real time before granting access to clinical attire or procedural areas.
Automated Hard Stop Enforcement
If a vendor’s badge status was not fully compliant in GHX Vendormate, the system blocked access to RepScrubs. The integrated system replaced time-consuming appointment approval processes, where staff no longer had to question a vendor’s compliance, as long as they were wearing RepScrubs. (RepScrubs became a head-to-toe badge).
Real-Time Monitoring
The integration between RepScrubs and GHX Vendormate enabled automated monitoring, eliminating the need for hospital staff to manually approve vendor appointments. Through real-time visibility in the RepScrubs Portal, staff could quickly confirm which vendors were on-site and fully credentialed before accessing sensitive procedural areas.
“If you’re not green, you can’t go in the OR period.”
The Impact
Automated Compliance & Verification
Compliance enforcement shifted from a manual process to a fully automated system. Following the integration, OUMC achieved 100% vendor compliance, effectively preventing access for any vendors who were not credentialed in GHX Vendormate.
Staff Time Recovered
Prior to integration, procedural and administrative staff spent up to 10 hours per month manually approving vendor appointments. Through the automated system and the removal of appointment setting, the compliance verification process alleviated staff from this manual burden to focus more on clinical priorities.
Clear Policy Enforcement
The real-time credential validation ensured vendors without a “Compliant” status could not retrieve RepScrubs or enter procedural departments where clean attire is mandated.