NHS Supply Chain supports the National Health Service (NHS) in England, and other healthcare organisations in England and Wales, by providing procurement and logistics services.
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NHS Supply Chain supports the National Health Service (NHS) in England, and other healthcare organisations in England and Wales, by providing procurement and logistics services.
In February 2016, Lord Carter's report into efficiency and productivity identified unwarranted variation in procurement across the NHS. Following this report, a "new operating model" for NHS Supply Chain was established. The design of a new supply chain service was planned to help the NHS deliver clinically assured, quality products at the best value through a range of specialist buying functions, and leverage the buying power of the NHS to negotiate the best deals from suppliers, with the aim to deliver savings of £2.4 billion over five years.[ citation needed ]
Oversight and operational management of the operating model are by Supply Chain Coordination Limited (SCCL), a company wholly owned by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which began operations in April 2018. Services were transferred to the new model in stages during 2018 and early 2019. [1] Over 200 staff were transferred from DHL Supply Chain and NHS Business Services Authority to the new company.[ citation needed ] Some elements of the NHS Purchase and Supply Agency were also transferred to the new organisation.
Until April 2019, the contract to run the service was managed from 2006 by DHL Supply Chain [2] on behalf of the NHS Business Services Authority. Earlier, the organisation was called NHS Logistics Authority and then NHS Logistics. In July 2018, logistical control of the supply chain was passed from DHL Supply Chain to Unipart. [3]
In February 2018, NHS Supply Chain notified all its NHS clients that Mondelez International, owners of Cadbury chocolate, had been 'delisted' after the company put up its prices, which the agency was "not prepared to accept ... on behalf of [its] customers". [4]
Jin Sahota, the chief executive, resigned in September 2020 shortly after the Department of Health and Social Care and the Cabinet Office announced a review of the agency following the crisis in the supply of personal protective equipment. [5]
A four-tiered demand management system to “maintain continuity of supply of critical products to the NHS where normal supply is disrupted” was established in response to the persistent problems in global supply chains that began with the rise of Covid in March 2020. In August 2022 it was reported that 271 products were in the two most stringent levels of rationing, including dressings, tracheostomy tubes, products for epidurals, blood collection equipment and ventilators for sleep therapy. [6]
In April 2022, it took over responsibility for the Department of Health and Social Care’s Personal Protective Equipment programme. [7] A group of business analysts researched the ICN advice notices from suppliers in the last two weeks of November 2022, to look for trends and causes of delays in medical equipment throughout the NHS. They found that global component shortages caused over 60% of the NHS's medical equipment delays. The research also found that the number of delays peaked between 30 and 60 days at 22%, before dropping significantly to just over 1% between 90 and 120 days. [8]
The organisation has a number of warehouses:[ citation needed ]
There are also office sites in:
In commerce, supply chain management (SCM) deals with a system of procurement, operations management, logistics and marketing channels so that the raw materials can be converted into a finished product and delivered to the end customer. A more narrow definition of the supply chain management is the "design, planning, execution, control, and monitoring of supply chain activities with the objective of creating net value, building a competitive infrastructure, leveraging worldwide logistics, synchronising supply with demand and measuring performance globally".This can include the movement and storage of raw materials, work-in-process inventory, finished goods, and end to end order fulfilment from the point of origin to the point of consumption. Interconnected, interrelated or interlinked networks, channels and node businesses combine in the provision of products and services required by end customers in a supply chain.
Logistics is a part of supply chain management that deals with the efficient forward and reverse flow of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the point of consumption according to the needs of customers. Logistics management is a component that holds the supply chain together. The resources managed in logistics may include tangible goods such as materials, equipment, and supplies, as well as food and other consumable items.
DHL is an American-founded German logistics company providing courier, package delivery and express mail service, delivering over 1.8 billion parcels per year. A subsidiary of the German logistics firm Deutsche Post, its express mail service DHL Express is one of the market leaders for parcel services in Europe and Germany's main courier and parcel service.
Procurement is the method of discovering and agreeing to terms and purchasing goods, services, or other works from an external source, often with the use of a tendering or competitive bidding process. The term may also refer to a contractual obligation to "procure", i.e. to "ensure" that something is done. When a government agency buys goods or services through this practice, it is referred to as government procurement or public procurement.
Reverse logistics encompasses all operations related to the upstream movement of products and materials. It is "the process of moving goods from their typical final destination for the purpose of capturing value, or proper disposal. Remanufacturing and refurbishing activities also may be included in the definition of reverse logistics." Growing green concerns and advancement of green supply chain management concepts and practices make it all the more relevant. The number of publications on the topic of reverse logistics have increased significantly over the past two decades. The first use of the term "reverse logistics" in a publication was by James R. Stock in a White Paper titled "Reverse Logistics," published by the Council of Logistics Management in 1992. The concept was further refined in subsequent publications by Stock (1998) in another Council of Logistics Management book, titled Development and Implementation of Reverse Logistics Programs, and by Rogers and Tibben-Lembke (1999) in a book published by the Reverse Logistics Association titled Going Backwards: Reverse Logistics Trends and Practices. The reverse logistics process includes the management and the sale of surplus as well as returned equipment and machines from the hardware leasing business. Normally, logistics deal with events that bring the product towards the customer. In the case of reverse logistics, the resource goes at least one step back in the supply chain. For instance, goods move from the customer to the distributor or to the manufacturer.
NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) is a Non Departmental Public Body which provides advice and services to the rest of NHS Scotland.
DHL Supply Chain is a division of Deutsche Post DHL and is affiliated with DHL. Headquartered in Bonn, Deutsche Post has 510,000 employees.
A special health authority is a type of NHS body which provide services on behalf of the National Health Service in England. Unlike other types of trust, they operate nationally rather than serve a specific geographical area.
Unipart Group is a British multinational logistics, supply chain, manufacturing and consultancy company headquartered in Cowley, Oxfordshire, England. It has operations in Europe, North America, Australia and Japan and works across a variety of sectors that include automotive, retail, technology and rail.
Owens & Minor, Inc. is a global healthcare logistics company. It employs over 17,000 people in 70 countries. A Fortune 500 company, it was founded in 1882 in Richmond, Virginia, where it remains headquartered. The company has distribution, production, customer service and sales facilities located across the Asia Pacific region, Europe, Latin America, and North America. President and CEO Ed Pesicka joined Owens & Minor in March 2019.
Emergency medical services in the United Kingdom provide emergency care to people with acute illness or injury and are predominantly provided free at the point of use by the four National Health Services (NHS) of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Emergency care including ambulance and emergency department treatment is only free to UK residents and a charge may be made to those not entitled to free NHS care.
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department of Health and Social Care which provides a number of support services to the National Health Service in England and Wales. It was created on 1 October 2005 following a review by the Department of Health of its "arm's length bodies". It began operating on 1 April 2006, bringing together five previously separate NHS business support organisations.
The National Health Service (NHS) are the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the "NHS" name. Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland was created separately and is often locally referred to as "the NHS". The four systems were established in 1948 as part of major social reforms following the Second World War. The founding principles were that services should be comprehensive, universal and free at the point of delivery—a health service based on clinical need, not ability to pay. Each service provides a comprehensive range of health services, free at the point of use for people ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom apart from dental treatment and optical care. In England, NHS patients have to pay prescription charges; some, such as those aged over 60, or those on certain state benefits, are exempt.
Exel was a supply chain and logistics company operating in North America and Europe, which became a subsidiary of the German firm Deutsche Post in 2005. It reported annual revenues of about $4.2 billion in February 2012.
VSE Corporation is an American company which provides supply chain management support and consulting services for land, sea, and air transportation assets. VSE serves commercial customers as well as the United States Government, including the United States Department of Defense (DoD). Operations include: supply and distribution; maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services for ground transport and aviation; vehicle and equipment refurbishment; IT and health care IT solutions.
Third-party logistics is an organization's long term commitment of outsourcing its distribution services to third-party logistics businesses.
The George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust runs George Eliot Hospital in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England and the Urgent Care Centre at Leicester Royal Infirmary.
Disability is an issue that directly affects a significant proportion of the population of the United Kingdom. Section6(1) of the Equality Act 2010 defines disability as:
"A person has a disability for the purposes of the Act if he or she has a physical or mental impairment and the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities."
Supply Chain Coordination Limited is a company registered in England and Wales on 25 July 2017 to manage the new NHS Supply Chain operating model, adopting its current company name on 15 November 2017. It was set up by the Department of Health and Social Care in 2018, and was intended to save £2.4 billion within 4–5 years. Consultants Ernst & Young were reportedly paid up to £20 million to help to establish the company. Running costs for the financial year 2018/19 were £180 million, but costs are predicted to grow to £250 million in 2019/20 and to £260 million in 2020/21. This will be taken from the tariff payments to NHS trusts.
Clipper Logistics plc is a retail logistics company based in Leeds which serves retailers selling fashion, tobacco, alcohol and other high-value goods in the UK and Europe. It has 47 sites across Europe. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by GXO Logistics in May 2022.
