NICOLA HALL explains exactly what the NHS eProcurement strategy means for clinicians and how the standards offer significant advantages.
It has been one year since the NHS eProcurement Strategy was published and hospitals are also now expected to have a GS1 adoption strategy in place; meaning inventory management and procurement has fallen firmly into the spotlight. NICOLA HALL explains exactly what this means for clinicians.
In May 2014, the Department of Health published the eProcurement Strategy, which outlines a range of measures to enable transparency and efficiency in NHS procurement to help support patient safety. By introducing e-procurement, the strategy expects to generate savings of between £3 million and £5 million per hospital. The strategy also includes a mandate that means any service or product procured must be compliant with GS1 standards;1 these provide globally unique identification, using barcodes, and aim to increase patient safety, drive supply chain efficiencies and improve traceability.2
There is certainly a mixed response from clinicians across the sector; while some are fully conversant with exactly what it means to their roles, and have been embracing the changes for some time, others are unfamiliar with the developments and feel it has been engulfed by confusion.
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