Reimagining the Healthcare Supply Chain to Bolster Resilience and Efficiency

Supply chain leaders are reconsidering the industry-standard just-in-time inventory model, which dictates that supplies be delivered essentially on a daily basis to sites across a health system.

The approach is popular because it keeps down costs and does not require a vast infrastructure to accommodate bulk distribution, but it leaves organizations vulnerable to disruptions.

At the start of the pandemic, VUMC set up its own warehouse and started a self-distribution program for supplies that its analytics suggested could be in jeopardy.

Going forward, Dail said, “We’re going to keep some of that stock on hand as safety stock for ourselves.”

Cost concerns have become increasingly urgent in healthcare, never more so than during the pandemic. But those considerations shouldn’t always prevail in supply chain strategy.