PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SharedClarity has hired Dr. Alex McLaren, a noted and respected orthopedic surgeon, professor and researcher, as Vice President of Clinical Outcomes, a critical senior-level position for the company.
McLaren, who has more than 30 years of experience in orthopedic surgery, will oversee all clinical review efforts, the foundation of SharedClarity’s mission. McLaren will work closely with the company’s member-owners and their physicians, especially those who participate in the clinical review councils.
SharedClarity conducts independent clinical reviews to identify effective medical devices and then negotiates preferred pricing of those products for its member-owners. The company’s overarching goal is to promote positive patient outcomes, one benefit of which is reduce readmissions, an ever-increasing concern for the health care industry from health system executives and surgeons to employers and insurers.
“Dr. McLaren has decades of experience in orthopedic surgery, clinical, education and research, and is an excellent fit for SharedClarity and our mission,” said SharedClarity President Mark West. “The company, our member-owners and their physicians are excited about having Dr. McLaren on board and overseeing all clinical review efforts.”
McLaren was most recently Program Director of the University of Arizona, College of Medicine--Phoenix, Residency Program in Orthopaedic Surgery, serving in the position since 2006. McLaren oversaw the intense residency program that accepts only four aspiring orthopaedic surgeons from more than 500 applicants each year.
“Orthopaedics is a highly sought after and highly competitive specialty,” said McLaren, who moved from his native Canada to Phoenix in 1990 to pursue his academic and clinical interests in orthopedic infections, revision arthroplasty and complex musculoskeletal trauma.
McLaren is the former Director of Orthopaedic Education for Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix. He was the Program Director of the Phoenix Orthopedic Residency Program at Maricopa Medical Center between 1998 and 2000. He has also been in private practice during his career in Phoenix, focusing mainly on extensive revision surgeries needed for failed or infected hip and knee replacements and complex fractures.
McLaren’s decades of connections and experience will benefit SharedClarity, its member-owners—Advocate Health Care, Baylor, Scott & White Health, Dignity Health, McLaren Health Care and UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH company)—as well as surgeons and, most of all, patients.
The health care industry “needs organizations like SharedClarity” that use data to choose effective devices and contract market-leading prices with suppliers on behalf of its member-owners, McLaren said.
“Most surgeons make a concerted effort to choose the best implant for each patient’s needs,” he said. “An insightful compilation of the available evidence will be very helpful to identify implants with desirable performance characteristics.”
McLaren adds that change is difficult, especially when surgeons are comfortable inserting devices they are familiar with, whether it’s hip or knee replacements, pacemakers or stents.
McLaren graduated from Queen’s University School of Medicine, Kingston, Ontario, Canada, in 1977. He completed his orthopedic residency at the University of Western Ontario in 1982 and a fellowship in orthopaedic research at the University of Southern California in 1983. He is involved in the MusculoSkeletal Infection Society (MSIS) and continues to investigate and publish studies on local delivery of antimicrobials.
SharedClarity has completed clinical reviews and awarded contracts for cardiac rhythm management (pacemakers and defibrillators), bare metal and drug-eluting cardiac stents, and peripheral stents. The company, which is looking to add four member-owners, will soon issue contracts for surgical mesh used in breast reconstruction and hernia repairs.
About SharedClarity
SharedClarity is a unique joint venture between health care systems and UnitedHealthcare that uses clinical data to study the effectiveness of high-impact medical products. SharedClarity uses the results of the studies to select effective medical devices for patients and negotiate market-leading purchasing agreements with manufacturers. For more information, please visit www.SharedClarity.net.
