operating rooms shut down during the pandemic ,” says Elliott .
In response , Medline and Legacy Health set up a custom reporting system with a minimum of 25 data points . Weekly surgical kit inventory supply reports , monthly reviews of needs and capacity , and quarterly forecasting also were implemented . In addition , physicians and surgical staff were interviewed and have since become a more integral part of the forecasting process .
The changes dramatically improved forecasting , with the hospital reporting an average of two shortages every six months .
“ This experience helped us isolate problems that we could fix — controllable versus non-controllable — and make impactful changes ,” says Kevin Rocha , Sales Representative for Acute Care , Medline .
The problem-solving partnership and subsequent success received an SMI Tom Hughes Collaboration Award Honorable Mention .
“ The goal is to do quarterly forecasting so we can stay on top of demand ,” says Elliott . “ We also let Medline know in advance if there are going to be any operational changes . If for some reason Medline sees demand isn ’ t meeting the forecast , they flag it and we discuss the change in forecast before adjusting the production .”
Elliott attributes success to Medline ’ s
willingness to work closely with Legacy Health to solve the issue .
Success was due to “ better communication and transparency ” and collaborative forecasting , he says . “ Medline also was very open to embracing the Lean principals that we were in the process of adopting and using .”
Trent Larsen , Director of Supply Chain Logistics , Legacy Health , remarks , “ Surgery leadership , staff , and physician participation was essential to achieve a higher level of collaboration , transparency , and trust with our Medline partners . Open and honest transparency when discussing internal process gaps and challenges , from both sides , is a must .”
The “ open dialogue ” benefits both parties , says Ginger Henry , Vice President of Supply Chain , Legacy Health . “ The supplier is not overproducing and the customer has the products they need when they need them .” ■
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