Optimizing the way products are received and stored is a key strategy hospitals can use to contain distribution costs, eliminate waste, free up storage and reduce touches by staff throughout the supply chain, according to Matt Bruggeman, director of solutions development for the Presource Products and Services business at Cardinal Health
Mr. Bruggeman shared the following tip with Becker's Hospital Review.
"If you think about all those labor hours, not just in handling the product once it arrives, but the work that goes into ordering and procurement … looking at your supply mode can reveal some real opportunities to drive efficiencies," he said.
In addition, it is important to standardize supply mode solutions across a health system, Mr. Bruggeman said. Although different hospitals within a network may have different challenges as it relates to storage capacity, layout, etc., by aligning on a consistent supply mode framework and processes around it, you can get closer to standardization while still accommodating those facility differences.
"Standardizing supply mode solutions across a health system — whether it's in custom packs, logical unit of measure distribution, or product standardization — can really reduce touchpoints and drive scalable savings."