SCM for Hospitals

 

INTRODUCTION

Healthcare supply chain management involves obtaining resources, managing supplies, and delivering goods and services to providers and patients. In healthcare, managing the supply chain is typically a very complex and fragmented process.

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT PROCESS

THE IMPORTANCE OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

1. Boost Customer Service

2. Reduce Operating Costs

• Decreases Purchasing Cost
• Decreases Production Cost
• Decreases Total Supply Chain Cost

3. Improve Financial Position

• Increases Profit Leverage
• Decreases Fixed Assets
• Increases Cash Flow

FIVE HEALTH CARE SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT TRENDS

1. Web-based tech will push health care supply chain management market past $2.2 billion by 2021

In four years, the size of the supply chain management industry for health care will hit $2.22 billion. A variety of factors are driving market growth, including compliance with the Specific Recognition Initiative of the Food and Drug Administration, increasing pressure on hospitals and health systems to increase operational performance and profitability, and the acceptance of technologies for cloud-based supply chain management. Web-based models help minimise administrative and operating costs, citing that technology as a particular area of growth for health care organizations.

2. Use of data and analytics to drive supply chain management performance will increase

The need to reliably forecast supply chain outcomes will drive the increased use of advanced analytics to improve supply chain management performance.

3. Push for population health management will reshape health care supply chain management

Population health management – the art and science of keeping healthy people healthy and people with chronic medical conditions as healthy as possible – will remake health care supply chain management.

4. Risk-based contracting between providers and suppliers will redefine supply chain relationships

As health care providers assume more clinical and financial risk under value-based reimbursement contracts with payers, they want to share that risk with their suppliers.

5. Health care supply chain leaders will need to upgrade and expand their skill set in the future

In four competencies, the "ideal" supply chain leader would excel: communication, negotiation,analytics and presentation. They will have health care, supply chain, people management, project management and technology expertise.They will have an advanced degree be accredited and have leadership training in Lean / Six Sigma. Their five ideal personal characteristics are the capacity to see the big picture, to be an active listener, to be successful individually, to be versatile and to be ethical.

CHALLENGES FOR SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT FOR HOSPITAL

1. Hidden Costs

2. Drug Shortages

3. Data Shortage

4. Lack of Integration

5. Poor Workflow Design