Supply Chain

Supply chain issues have become part of the new normal in healthcare—in 2021, 99% of hospitals and health systems reported challenges in supply procurement.

As hospital supply chains endure inflationary pressures, the surge of multiple viruses and typical "end-of-the-year chaos," medical supply experts told Becker's their top concerns heading into 2022's winter.

Philips, an Amsterdam-based medical device company, will cut 4,000 jobs as it weathers a recall of 18 million sleep apnea masks, The Wall Street Journal reported Oct. 24. 

The baby powder shortage lasted months after Abbott Laboratories shuttered its main manufacturing site for the product, and the company is now planning a new $500 million facility, CBS News reported Oct. 21. 

A shortage of liquid helium, a nonrenewable element that has been dwindling in supply, is worrying physicians because MRI machines require the ultra-cold material for its magnets, NBC News reported Oct. 22. 

Here are 10 health systems and hospitals that posted job listings seeking supply chain expertise in the last week. 

Since their September recall of more than 17 million sleep masks, Philips Respironics bumped that number up to 18,670,643 units on Oct. 19. 

Medtronic, a medtech company based in Ireland, reported two recent updates to its heart devices:

The COVID-19 pandemic forced healthcare organizations and their supply chain partners to address shortages and solve operational challenges under extreme pressure.

A Missouri law barring hospitals from limiting patient visits is 11 times more expensive than early projections predicted, and the cost of personal protective equipment is driving the expense, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Oct. 12.