September 28, 2020
Triangle area-based MAKO Medical Laboratories has partnered with health care supplier Medline to help meet customer demand in this rapidly changing COVID-19 environment.
“Operational efficiency is a key component to be able to meet the increasing needs of health care providers, government organizations, and businesses when it comes to providing testing services,” said Clever Prince, Supply Chain Director, MAKO Medical. “We’ve all heard stories of citizens waiting longer than desired for test results. At MAKO, we’ve been intentional about managing our infrastructure and processes to rapidly serve our customers.”
To help meet customer demand, MAKO Medical and Medline implemented an online ordering system, enabling MAKO customers to place lab supply orders online and efficiently receive MAKO branded test kits shipped directly from Medline’s distribution centers. Customers then use the test kits to gather samples and send them to MAKO’s lab for processing.
“One of the key parts of a lab’s operations is turnaround time because the patient at the end of the service chain needs accurate results on time so they can manage their health needs,” says Zach Heyl, Education & Research at Medline. “To assist MAKO, we spent a lot of time working side by side with their team to understand their needs and to put in place a process to make sure they are successful.”
“98% of our COVID test results are provided in under two days once they arrive at our Henderson, NC facility,” said Josh Arant, COO, MAKO Medical. We are committed to investing the time and resources to provide rapid, reliable turnaround times.”
MAKO Medical is a College of American Pathologists (CAP) accredited laboratory. Since April, the MAKO team has processed more than 1.3 million COVID tests from more than 20 states in the U.S. Among the company’s 500+ employees are a significant number of U.S. Military veterans who are foundational to MAKO’s elite and high touch client services model.
The COVID-19 pandemic presented both challenges and opportunities for MAKO Medical. Initially, the pandemic reduced regular business close to 40% and forced layoffs. In just over two weeks, MAKO completely altered its operations to begin providing COVID-19 testing to medical providers, employers and governments – turning around results in what one state leader called an “ultra-fast” way.
- In August, MAKO Medical announced the company scored 100% on CAP COVID Proficiency Testing, demonstrating MAKO’s commitment to quality lab results.
- MAKO provides an online portal allowing test results to be reported electronically.
- MAKO is the official COVID-19 test provider for both The ACC and The Big South Conference, providing rapid, reliable testing results for student athletes and staff. MAKO Medical is also the testing partner for the North Carolina Courage and the North Carolina FC.
- Earlier in the year, Forbes Magazine included MAKO Medical in the publication’s inaugural list of America’s Best Startup Employers. Only 500 companies nationwide earned the distinction.
- The company is committed to the military. At MAKO’s founding, leaders carved out divisions of the company to hire U.S. military veterans.
**PHOTO: Clever Prince, Supply Chain Director, standing alongside MAKO team members as they process testing results.