Written and maintained by CASRAI Editorial Board
Last updated
General information about hospital purchasing programs, drawn from two hospital supply-chain pages checked on 2026-11-01. It is not medical advice and does not describe how any product should be used on a patient.
Short answer
Value analysis in healthcare is a hospital’s organized, team-based way of deciding whether a product, technology or service is worth adopting. Requests go through a defined intake, a review against published criteria, and a committee decision. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist describes its program as an “organized and systematic approach” to determine the value of technology, products and services. The form, the criteria and the job titles differ from one institution to the next, so there is no single universal process, tool or template.
Definition and scope
Wake Forest Baptist states the goal of its value analysis program as developing and implementing an organized and systematic approach to determine the value of technology, products and services, while supporting process improvement, outcomes, safety, quality and financial stewardship. Its multidisciplinary committee structure reviews all new products and services, and its page also covers requests for a replacement product, not only new ones.
This page treats value analysis as a hospital-wide program: the people, intake, criteria and decision together. The meeting itself, including membership and the step-by-step committee flow, is covered in Value Analysis Committee: How Hospital Approval Works, so it is not repeated here.
How the value analysis process runs in practice
Two hospital pages published by their own supply-chain departments show the same program in two different shapes.
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS)
UAMS publishes a six-step workflow for new product requests. Since 13 May 2024 requests start with a physician or clinician, called the Sponsor:
- The Sponsor submits a short form of 10 questions covering their contact details, the product name and the vendor representative’s contact details.
- The vendor representative receives an emailed link to a long form; most product information is likely to be pre-filled from the Symplr product library.
- The Sponsor decides whether to advance or reject the request and, if advancing, answers supplemental questions about how the product will be used at UAMS.
- A Value Analysis Team (VAT) member checks that the required information is present, and a specialized VAT adds supporting data such as projected financial impact.
- The Sponsor presents to the Value Analysis Committee at one of its monthly meetings.
- The Committee votes and issues the final decision.
Wake Forest Baptist
Wake Forest Baptist says value analysis teams review requests for evaluation, including possible trials, and the decision to adopt a product or service. Requesters download a new product request form from the forms section of the intranet. Teams are supported by a value analysis facilitator and an executive sponsor. The page lists a value analysis facilitator for surgical services and a strategic sourcing facilitator among its personnel.
For what a request form typically asks a requester, see Medical Product Evaluation Form: What a Hospital Value Analysis Request Asks For.
Roles, coordinator and nurse: what the sources name
| Role | Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist | UAMS |
|---|---|---|
| Requester | Staff member who completes the new product request form from the intranet | Sponsor: a UAMS physician or clinician |
| Vendor | — | Vendor representative completes the long form |
| Team or committee | Multidisciplinary value analysis teams review requests, possible trials and the adopt decision | VAT checks and enriches the request; the Value Analysis Committee votes |
| Facilitator | Value analysis facilitator supports the teams | — |
| Executive sponsor | Supports the teams | — |
Searchers often look for a “value analysis coordinator” or “value analysis nurse”. Neither page names a role with those titles, so their duties are set by each employer rather than by a shared definition. Where a clinician is involved, the UAMS page calls that person the Sponsor and says the Sponsor may be a physician or clinician. The professional body for the field, the Association of Healthcare Value Analysis Professionals (AHVAP), lists a CVAHP board certification and Standards of Practice on its website (checked 2026-11-01); the homepage does not set out a process.
Criteria hospitals publish
Wake Forest Baptist publishes its review criteria. It states that products and services are reviewed with consideration of the following. The grouping below is an editorial reading aid; Wake lists them as one set.
| Reading group | Criteria as Wake words them |
|---|---|
| Quality and outcomes | Product quality; impact on patient outcomes; product effectiveness; benchmark information |
| Safety and compliance | Safety and OSHA considerations; infection control and engineering issues; waste stream and environmental impact |
| Reach and use | System impact (how wide an impact if approved: one department, the whole system or certain areas); operation and repair criteria; necessary education and training |
| Commercial and supply | Price, storage requirements, regular availability and packaging; contract compliance |
Practical reading for a requester: each criterion is a question someone on the team will expect to see evidence for. The Wake page does not say which party supplies which evidence, so confirm that with the requesting institution’s own form.
Value analysis tool and template
There is no universal value analysis template. Wake Forest Baptist uses a request form kept on its intranet. UAMS uses a two-part electronic workflow, a 10-question short form and a long form, supported by software called Symplr Spend and a Symplr product library that pre-fills product information. UAMS does not publish the long form’s question list on its page, so this page does not itemize it.
Where it matters for labs, clinics and suppliers
- Replacement products are in scope. Wake Forest Baptist invites new or replacement product review requests, so swapping a familiar consumable for another maker’s version can still go through review.
- A clinical requester is expected. At UAMS the process starts with a physician or clinician Sponsor, not with the vendor.
- Suppliers participate through the hospital’s process. UAMS emails the vendor representative a form link once the Sponsor starts a request. For the supplier’s view of how contracting, value analysis and credentialing fit together, see Selling to Hospitals, and for purchasing-group context see group purchasing organization.
- Supplier paperwork is separate. Registration documents are a different step from product review; see Vendor Onboarding Documentation Checklist. Spend organization across product groups is covered under category management.
Common misunderstandings
- “Value” does not mean lowest price. Wake Forest Baptist’s published criteria put quality, outcomes, safety and infection control alongside price and contract compliance.
- It is not the same as the committee vote. The vote is the last step; at UAMS, intake, vendor information and VAT review come first.
- One hospital’s form is not every hospital’s form. The two institutions described here use different forms, tools and role names.
- Value analysis is not a clinical practice guideline. It decides which products and services an institution adopts; it does not tell clinicians how to treat a patient.
FAQ
What is value analysis in healthcare?
It is a hospital program that uses a multidisciplinary team structure to judge whether technology, products and services are worth adopting, with criteria that include quality, patient outcomes, safety and price (Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, checked 2026-11-01).
What is the value analysis process?
It varies by hospital. At UAMS a clinician Sponsor submits a short form, the vendor completes a long form, the Sponsor advances or rejects, the Value Analysis Team reviews, and the Value Analysis Committee votes (UAMS Supply Chain, checked 2026-11-01).
Who is involved in value analysis?
The two hospital pages name requesters or Sponsors, vendor representatives, value analysis teams, a committee, a facilitator and an executive sponsor. Titles and duties are set by each hospital.
Is there a value analysis template?
No universal one. Hospitals publish or use their own request forms; Wake Forest Baptist uses an intranet form and UAMS uses a Symplr-based short and long form.
Sources
- Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, Value Analysis, checked 2026-11-01.
- UAMS Supply Chain, Product Request: Value Analysis, checked 2026-11-01.
- Association of Healthcare Value Analysis Professionals, ahvap.org, homepage checked 2026-11-01.
