Medical supplies, second only to staffing, are one of the most expensive items in most healthcare institutions’ budgets. 1 Managing a hospital’s supply chain is a difficult task that is rife with inefficiencies at every turn. Executives at all levels and sizes of healthcare businesses are focused on lowering supply costs.
So there are several methods for getting medical supplies and equipment into the hands of medical experts, as well as individuals delivering medical treatment or conducting a surgery on them at home. But what are the most frequent processes, and what supplies are used?
- IV Starter Kits
Patients who require fluids or drugs injected into their bloodstream through an intravenous bag, tube and needle, and securement device are frequent in the hospital or nursing home. Because the operation is so popular, some hospital supply teams have been putting together their own IV start kits for decades. Distributors have also been offering their own pre-packaged IV start kits for some time. These kits are used to begin the IV in the patient. 2 This kit typically contains the following items:
- Preparation, scrubbing, and alcohol pads
- Ampule of PVP (for further infection prevention steps)
- Gloves
- Securing device
- Trays for Central Line Dressing
There are pre-packaged trays, similar to IV start kits that contain everything a nurse needs to replace the dressing around a central line IV. With the possibility of a central line infection at stake, performing this operation is critical and thorough labour.
- Diagnosis Procedures
Many procedures are conducted with the purpose of treating a patient, but others are performed to test a patient for a diagnosis. Following are some examples:
- Sphygmomanometers (blood pressure kits) measure blood pressure in order to screen for hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, to mention a few conditions.
- During an eye exam, ophthalmoscopes are used to peer into the patient’s eye.
Stethoscopes are used to listen to heart sounds to ensure that the heartbeat is strong and rhythmic, as well as to listen to the lungs during inhalation and expiration and blood flow in the arteries and veins.
- Electrocardiographs are used to check for many types of heart disease by measuring the electrical activity of the heart.
- Thermometers are used to assess body temperature at home and in healthcare treatment facilities in order to test for various health problems.
