We purchased a CT system from a trusted partner that we have an excellent relationship with. When our team arrived on site at 8am they found the CT room in shambles. The customers general contractor had taken it on themselves to start the demo of the room before we even arrived. The worst part is they had removed the main power disconnect from the room and there was no way to get power back onto the CT so we could do our final acceptance testing before taking ownership of the scanner.
Most system buyers would do 1 of 2 things. They would either walk aways and leave their partner hanging or they would immediately try to take advantage of the situation and try to get the scanner for free knowing their partner has a tight timeline to keep their project on schedule.
Walking away would have been a reasonable call here.
The Decision to Move Forward
We had built such a strong partnership with this vendor over the years we knew we could call them and find a win-win solution. They asked us to proceed in good faith and promised that we would work out any issues on the back end.
We understood the facility on the other side of this deal had a timeline for installing their new CT system that depended on us finishing our job on time. Walking away wouldn't have just affected us and the vendor. It would have affected a facility and a team of people who had nothing to do with the situation we were standing in and most importantly the delay could have affected the care of a patient in the future. We wouldn't stand for that.
So we made the call to proceed. We deinstalled the system, rigged it out, and brought it back to our warehouse.
Problems become apparent
When we staged the system and finally were able to get power back on we found the X-ray tube had starting arcing the day before removal. Anyone in the industry knows what that means. There is a significant problem and a large part of the value of the used system is most likely gone. Along with the tube arcing we found that the HVM had failed as well most likely due to the arcing tube.
We picked up the phone and called our partner. We told them what we had found and sent over our testing reports and true to their word we worked through it together and landed on a price that was fair for everyone. Nobody won big on the deal but nobody was burned either.
What Partnership actually looks like
Thats the part most people miss about partnership. It's not the easy deals where everyone walks away happy without any issues. It's the messy ones where something goes wrong and you find out the character of your vendors and what type relationship you truly have.
In healthcare the stakes behind every piece of equipment are higher than in most industries. A CT system that is down isn't just a business problem on a balance sheet. Somewhere there is a patient waiting on a scan that could provided a life saving diagnosis. The vendors and partners who understand that and who actually feel the weight of it are the ones worth building something with.
When a partner picks up the phone and works through problems not just sells you parts you remember it. Every deal after that one gets easier because of the trust that is built.
Why this is how we operate
This is the standard we hold ourselves to on every deal we do. Whether we're the buyer or the seller on the other end of the phone. Systems and parts done always show up exactly as expected and when that happens we'd rather have an honest conversation and work it out than let a contract or T&C's do the talking.
If thats the kind of partner you are looking for reach out to us at sales@allegiantimagingpartners.com