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pler and cleaner . To fill a supply order to a med-surg unit , there is often a multitude of suppliers and , depending on how many of those supplies go through a primary distributor , the processes can be disparate and traditionally inefficient . There are often too many transactions and the need for labor to support all the processes , adding cost and complexity to the supply chain . The more a system can force supply chain operations through a single source of supply , like dedicated warehousing and CSCs — getting all support services from a service center — the more efficient the end user supply chain becomes .

Economics . A CSC is dedicated warehousing and more for a

given system , doing predominantly low unit measure deliveries to member facilities for regulated distributed items , manufacturer-direct items , and maybe some complementary services like IT , imaging , clinical engineering , equipment repair , and biomed equipment repair . Those might be aggregated into a facility like this , whereas without a CSC a system typically couldn ’ t justify those costs . Healthcare systems that have service centers essentially have dedicated distribution centers . Medline has the distinction of being one of the only vendor partners in the industry that has true med-surg distribution , along with the manufacturing arm . This breadth of inte-

“ There are often too many transactions and the need for labor to support all the processes , adding cost and complexity to the supply chain . The more a system can force supply chain operations through a single source of supply , like dedicated warehousing and CSCs — getting all support services from a service center — the more efficient the end user supply chain becomes .”

— Peter Saviola , vice president of supply chain optimization , Medline

gration supports any one of the CSC models that are in operation right now .

The Case for Consolidated Service Centers The concept of a CSC involves streamlining and centralizing operations such as procurement , inventory management , distribution , and logistics for healthcare providers — including hospitals and clinics — often through the building and management of a system ’ s own dedicated warehousing space . After all , when you think about it , the cost per square foot for hospital space is considerably more valuable — so if a system

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8 SUPPLY CHAIN OPTIMIZATION Issue 9 / 2024