To ensure better compliance with infection control standards and top-notch management of sophisticated surgical instruments, United States (U.S.) and Western Europe-based health care centers are increasingly outsourcing central sterile supply department (CSSD), also known as sterile processing department (SPD), functions, according to a news release from Frost & Sullivan.
“Until 2022, third-party sterilization service vendors will focus on becoming end-to-end solution providers, covering CSSD layout design, tracking and managing workflow, cleaning, sterilization and logistics services,” according to Frost & Sullivan. “This will reshape the competitive landscape as original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) will race to include value-added services, such as equipment repair, inventory management and CSSD integration in their portfolio.”
“Market players, especially sterilization and disinfection equipment manufacturers struggling with diminishing sales, are adopting aggressive strategies to bolster their service offerings and expand operations locally and internationally,” said Frost & Sullivan Transformational Health Senior Research Analyst Anuj Agarwal. “These measures include acquiring rivals to gain market share and joint ventures with local players to enter new markets. Bigger players will look at value-chain integrations to gain broader strategic advantage.”
“Third-party Sterilization Services for Care Providers in the U.S. and Western Europe, Forecast to 2022,” an analysis from Frost & Sullivan’s Transformational Health Growth Partnership Service program, explores service models in the U.S. and Western European markets, and factors driving OEMs to embrace a service-based model over the traditional product-centric approach. The research also details major market trends such as commoditization of standalone sterilization equipment business, operating room (OR) and CSSD integration, and replacement of managed services by integrated CSSD or OR solutions.
By 2022 up to 45 percent of care providers in the U.S., United Kingdom, Italy, Germany and France will opt for third-party sterilization services for CSSD management, according to Frost & Sullivan. The surgical department’s lack of awareness about the quality of services is hindering this adoption. To overcome this, service providers must build credibility and brand value.
“Third-party sterilization services are the first step towards better infection control and potentially open further avenues of growth for market participants by putting them in direct contact with key decision makers in care settings,” observed Transformational Health Industry Principal Sowmya Rajagopalan.
Grand View Research, however, predicts growth in the equipment market over the next several years.
“The global sterilization equipment market size was valued at $3.9 billion in 2015. The increasing number of surgical procedures and aging populating are the major factors expected to propel the growth,” according to Grand View Research. “In addition, the rise in the incidence of chronic diseases and various initiatives taken by the government to ensure adoption of essential sterilization standards in hospitals and research centers is expected to drive the growth of the sterilization equipment industry during the forecast period (2014-2025). Currently, stringent medical safety and infection control norms are increasing public awareness of the global population resulting in shorter hospital stays and lesser health care costs.”
