National Health Care Supply Chain Week (October 5-11) is an opportunity to recognize the importance of the health care supply chain professionals and honour them for their exceptional contributions to patient care and the innovative ways in which they support their health care organizations and communities.

The theme this year, “Confidence in every decision, care in every step”, celebrates the dedication of health care supply chain professionals who ensure quality, safety, and value at every turn, making informed choices, strengthening patient outcomes, and advancing the mission of care – the true embodiment of advancing health care through supply chain excellence. Here are some of the ways supply chain professionals at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre have contributed to organizational goals this year:

• Navigated supply chain challenges due to newly imposed tariffs by sourcing contracts with Canadian businesses.
• Collectively, Purchasing and Stores placed 17,107 purchase orders over the past year, which included 1,226,497 products, to over 852 suppliers.
• The Stores department orders, picks, and delivers out of four warehouses, which store over 1,538 unique products.
• Stores has topped up 3,501,274 individual stock items in the last year.
• Purchasing placed 239 capital purchases orders in the last 12 months.
• Purchasing currently manages over 1,400 contracts to ensure compliance and to deliver best value for money.
• This year Purchasing and Stores have serviced 219 functional cost centres.