Supply Chain Innovation at Banner Health

Digital Conversations

Supply chains are typically fairly rigid, well planned operations that are difficult to adjust quickly. As the COVID-19 pandemic spread, shortages in supplies have been well documented, with PPE for care teams being among the most pressing challenges. At Banner Health, their innovation group was asked to apply different thinking and find alternative ways to get vital supplies distributed and protect thousands of front line employees across their six state network of hospitals.

Two former supply chain executives, Greg Kefer from LifeLink, and Steve Lindsey from Banner, connected and discussed some of the ways the Banner Innovation Group (BIG) helped secure masks, face shields, sanitizer, and other vital PPE materials, condensing procurement lead times from months to a few days. Some of the efforts involved cutting and gluing assembly lines, while others involved advanced digital printing. But all of it required outside the box thinking that fulfills the BIG charter of providing novel, untested ideas and products to benefit the whole healthcare industry.