Manitoba 2020: How centralizing the healthcare supply chain helped with pandemic management. Issue 2 (March 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Metge, Colleen J.; Islam, Md. Anisul
• Is Part Of: Healthcare management forum. Volume 35:Issue 2(2022)
• Page Start: 86
• Page End: 89
• Publication Date: 2022-03
• Subjects: Health services administration -- Periodicals; Health services administration -- Canada -- Periodicals; 362.1068
• DOI: 10.1177/08404704211057055
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0840-4704

Abstract

A case study design was used to understand Manitoba's response to accessing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in the first wave of the global coronavirus pandemic. By evolving early on in the pandemic to a provincially led structure dedicated to the healthcare supply chain, Manitoba was able to avoid major shortages in access to PPE. Leadership was focused on the possibilities for action and implementation (ie, dynamic, adaptive, and collaborative) rather than trying to respond within the status quo (ie, a more linear and traditional approach). As a result, few structural items other than the creation of an effective, province-wide digital network to fully visualize the healthcare supply chain are needed going forward. Manitoba's healthcare supply chain had a number of successes during the initial wave of the global pandemic including many new processes like the local production of PPE and the establishment of new supplier relationships.