2016 Medtech Company of the Year Finalists: Stryker

Stryker

Stryker expanded its analytics platform to help customers cope with bundled payments for joint replacement procedures.

Nearly every medtech company today pays lip service to the idea that providers are no longer willing to pay more for technologies that come with new bells and whistles but no real added value. But Stryker, it seems, is actually taking that cliché to heart.

Consider that the company hasn't launched a new total knee since its Triathlon launched in 2011. Instead, Stryker has concentrated on adding value to the existing product, launching a 3-D printed tibial base plate that allows for cement-less implantation a couple of years ago and working to bring the Triathlon to its Mako robotics platform, which will happen sometime next year.

This year, the company stepped up its commitment to value-based care even more. In February, Stryker acquired Sage Products, a maker of products to prevent costly hospital-acquired infections. In March, it offered up a money-back guarantee to providers if its SurgiCount program intended to prevent surgical sponges from being left inside patients after procedures fails.

Stryker has also been a leader in helping customers cope with the mandatory Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement model that went into effect in April, providing a patient engagement platform that offers pre- and post-op support and expanding its data analytics platform to help providers find opportunities to reduce the total cost of joint replacement procedures. 

[image courtesy of STRYKER]