To provide the best possible care for patients, the NHS undergoes a constant process of identifying, testing, and procuring equipment. These can be commonly used goods that healthcare providers need regular access to, as well as brand-new products and technology that allow for the improvement of treatments and procedures.
However, the NHS is a massive organisation and, as such, requires a colossal amount of different goods and products. The NHS has a complex supply chain system in place that allows it to acquire products efficiently and in a cost-effective manner. Let’s take a look at this supply chain in more detail.
What is the NHS Supply Chain?
The NHS Supply Chain is the name given to the body that is responsible for sourcing, procuring, and delivering a range of different healthcare products and service goods for NHS trusts and organisations.
From hospital food to medical instruments like an abdominal retractor, the Supply Chain delivers more than 35 million lines of goods to the NHS every year from a roster of over 930 suppliers. The Supply Chain processes at least 7.7 million orders annually across a total of 16,705 locations.
The NHS Supply Chain’s Aims And Objectives
In order to clearly define what it does, the NHS Supply Chain has published a business plan with a list of the organisation’s aims and objectives. These include:
- Partnering with trusts to provide the best healthcare services
- Building and improving relationships with trusts
- Optimising strategies while remaining cost-effective
- Implementing data collection and analysis techniques to maximise performance
The Supply Chain strives to meet these objectives and to provide the best possible service and care for patients.
What Are The Benefits Of The NHS Supply Chain?
By using a body like the Supply Chain, both the NHS and product manufacturers and suppliers see a wide range of benefits.
For the NHS, trusts and organisations offer quick and efficient delivery of goods, with the ability to rapidly identify, procure, and roll out new products and technology. The Supply Chain uses clinical expertise in all its work, so the NHS can be assured that it is operating with specialist experience and knowledge. Collaboration means the NHS is more involved in the decision-making process, while cost-effective practices see savings redistributed among frontline healthcare services.
For suppliers, working with the NHS Supply Chain is the most effective route for them to get their products on the market and in use. The Supply Chain offers them a single route into this national market, with the opportunity for lower overheads for distribution and marketing. Suppliers designing and manufacturing new and innovative products are offered a way to introduce and trial these in the healthcare industry.
Conclusion
The NHS is an enormous, multi-faceted organisation comprised of hundreds of different bodies and departments. Keeping the NHS stocked up with all the goods and products it needs is no easy task, which is why the NHS Supply Chain is so vital and carries out incredibly important work.
