Inventory Management |
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products they need to treat their patients.
According to Advisory Board, it’ s a lack of trust that those products will be there when they need them that leads to stashing. Healthcare workers carry what Villain calls“ longterm memories” of past supply failures, moments when they couldn’ t access critical items. Those experiences create lasting impressions.
“ We have long-term memories when it comes to remembering things that didn’ t work in the past,” Villain explains.“ And so we tend to hang on to those and basically tell ourselves stories.”
The COVID-19 pandemic amplified these fears. As personal protective equipment disappeared from shelves, healthcare workers had to scrounge and save. Even as supply chains have stabilized, the psychological impact lingers, driving continued stashing behaviors throughout hospital systems.
The fear is both personal and professional. A nurse who can’ t find the right IV catheter isn’ t just facing an inconvenience— they’ re potentially compromising patient care while the clock ticks. For many healthcare workers, maintaining a personal stash feels like the best way to ensure they can do their job when it matters most.
The hidden costs of hidden supplies And while it may be funny to think of poking a ceiling tile and a trove of gauze raining down, widespread stashing can create significant problems for health systems. When inventory is stashed away, it’ s uncontrolled. That means it could expire or become contaminated. Or if a
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“ We have longterm memories when it comes to remembering things that didn’ t work in the past,” Villain explains.“ And so we tend to hang on to those and basically tell ourselves stories.”
product has been recalled and staff aren’ t aware, having it stashed away means it could remain in circulation. Stashes can also have financial implications. Secreted supplies may trigger over-ordering as supply chain professionals work to keep shelves stocked. The practice also undermines accurate demand forecasting. When supplies disappear into personal stashes, supply chain managers can’ t properly track usage patterns or predict future needs, potentially leading to actual shortages that fuel more hoarding— a vicious cycle that perpetuates the problem.
“ It really, at the end of the day is not very efficient for the organization,” Villain notes.“ It’ s also a hidden cost because of the cost of inventory that expires, inventory that just is not seen.”
The shadow supply chain Villain says all of this can result from what she calls the“ shadow supply chain”— informal networks of staff members who have taken on supply management responsibilities outside the official system. These might be administrative assistants who started ordering supplies
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for their unit during a shortage, or nurses who became unofficial inventory managers because no one else was available.
Again, it’ s not out of bad intentions. As one nurse on Reddit wrote a few years ago, she had pulled saline bags from one area and stashed them in her own:“ I thought I was doing them a favor since the supply people don’ t work weekends.”
“ It’ s usually people who kind of have fallen into it because in the past, for whatever reason, someone was just designated,” Villain explains.“ A clinician said,’ You know what, we’ re running out of XYZ. Can you please take care of it for me?’ And then it became their thing.”
The problem intensifies when these unofficial supply managers face issues. Unlike trained supply chain professionals who have worked with vendors for years, someone wearing a supply chain hat may lack the knowledge and connections to navigate shortages effectively. When problems arise, they frequently turn to hoarding as their only solution.
“ I can’ t tell you how many times people who have taken on that role get completely lost when there’ s a crisis,” Villain says.“ When there’ s a shortage, they don’ t know what to do because they’ re not used to that.”
Building trust through communication The solution isn’ t enforcement or punishment— it’ s building trust between supply chain teams and clinical staff. Villain advocates for what she calls a“ reset” approach, acknowledging past problems while demonstrating reliability.
“ Let’ s just try to reset,” she suggests.“ Help me understand what you’ re looking for. Help me understand what you’ re try-
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ing to accomplish. And let us do that because we want you to really focus on taking care of the patients.”
This trust-building requires supply chain teams to understand the unique needs of different hospital units. An ICU has different requirements than a burn unit, which differs from neonatal care. A one-size-fits-all approach fails to address the specific concerns that drive stashing in each setting.
Villain says she often helps lead huddles with specific units. If supply chain professionals can go deeper into the organization and work closely with clinicians, say huddling in the morning to understand the needs of the unit that day, it can build communication that leads to more trust and efficiency.
Increasing visibility to chase away the shadows Addressing healthcare’ s secret stash problem requires more than policy changes— it’ s about increasing communication between supply chain and clinical staff to help build trust.
The goal isn’ t to poke every ceiling tile and eliminate all personal caches overnight, but to create systems reliable enough that healthcare workers feel safe operating without them. This means maintaining open communication channels and demonstrating consistent reliability over time.
And, as Villain says, it means helping clinical staff recognize that supply chain is there to support them as caregivers.
“ We don’ t want you to be distracted,” Villain says.“ We are the people behind the scene who are making things happen, and we know how to do it. Give us a little bit of that trust.”
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