R
unning a lean and
mean surgical facility
is more important
than ever during
COVID-19, so why
should you buy premixed and prela-
beled syringes from a compounding
pharmacy when they're more expen-
sive than the medications you draw-
up and label in-house? Because put-
ting too much of an emphasis on the
going rates of your commonly used
medications could cost you more
down the road. Before writing off
prefilled syringes, consider what
you're actually getting for the price.
You might find out it makes perfect
sense (and cents) to go the ready-
made route.
Beyond convenience
The use of prefilled syringes isn't an
all-or-nothing proposition. For some
drugs — such as medications that
cost less than $10 per dose in stan-
dard vials and twice that amount in
prefilled syringes — you might be
willing to pay extra for the conven-
ience of not having to dilute and
label the medications before admin-
istering them. That calculus changes
for medications that normally cost
$200. Paying twice that amount to
receive the agents in prefilled
syringes might not be worth it.
"My advice for purchasing prefilled syringes is
advice that applies to anything — you can't take a
blanket approach," says Merlin Wehling, MD, a
board-certified anesthesiologist and the director of
anesthesia at Kearney (Neb.) Regional Medical
Center. "You need to make a data-driven case for
spending more."
He suggests gathering the exact dollar amounts
you spend on commonly used drugs to determine
the direct costs of preparing and administering
medications while also considering a variety of fac-
tors that could lead to soft savings:
5 0 • O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • A U G U S T 2 0 2 0
The True Price of Prefilled Syringes
Focusing too heavily on the upfront costs of premixed
medications can come back to hurt you in surprising ways.
Jared Bilski | Managing Editor
VALUE ADDED There are benefits to investing in prefilled syringes when you factor in indirect savings and increased
patient safety.
