Integration vs. Collaborative Redesign Strategies of Health Systems’ Supply Chains in the Post-COVID-19 New Normal using Cross-Sectional Survey Across the United States (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiban Khuntia ◽  
Frances Mejia ◽  
Xue Ning ◽  
Jeff Helton ◽  
Rulon Stacey

BACKGROUND How are health systems shaping strategies to restore the supply chain disruptions in 2021? Do they want to improve the supply chain integration? Do they want to collaborate with new start-ups to revamp the supply chain? Given the widespread disruptions to supply chains in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, these questions are essential to have confidence in health systems’ supply chain model strategies. Plausibly, health systems have an opportunity for redesign, growth, and innovation by utilizing collaborative strategies now, compared to the usual strategies of integrating their existing supply chains to reduce inefficiencies. This study is focused on teasing out the nuance of supply chain integration vs. collaboration strategies for health systems in the post-COVID “new normal.” OBJECTIVE We focus on two research questions. First, we explore the impact of perceived supply chain challenges and disruptions on health systems’ supply chain integration (SC-INTEGRATION) and collaborative redesign (SC-REDESIGN) strategies. Second, we examine the outcomes of integration and collaborative redesign strategic choices on growth and service outcomes. METHODS We surveyed a robust group of health system chief executive officers (CEOs) (N=625) across the United States from February to March 2021. Twenty-two percent of the CEOs (135) responded to our survey. We considered supply chain relevant strategy and outcome variables from the literature and ratified them via expert consensus. We collected secondary data from the AHRQ Compendium of the U.S. Health Systems, leading to a matched data set from the 124 health systems. Then, we employed ordered logit model estimation to examine CEO preferences for partnership strategies to address current supply disruptions and the outcomes of strategy choices. RESULTS Health systems with higher disruptions would choose integration over redesign, indicating that they still trust the existing partners. Integration strategy is perceived to result in better service outcomes while collaborations are perceived to lead to greater growth opportunities; however, the role of integration on growth is not completely ruled out. Plausibly, some health systems would choose both integration and collaborative redesign models, which have a significant relationship with both service and growth, establishing the importance of mixed strategies for health systems. CONCLUSIONS The cost of healthcare continues to rise, and supply-related costs constitute a large portion of a hospital’s expenditure. Understanding supply chain strategic choices are essential for the success of a health system. Although collaborative revamp is an option; but still focusing on and improving existing integration dynamics is helpful to foster both growth and services for health systems.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiban Khuntia ◽  
Xue Ning ◽  
Wayne Cascio ◽  
Rulon Stacey

BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic, with all its virus variants, remains a serious situation. Health systems across the United States are trying their best to respond. The healthcare workforce remains relatively homogenous, even though they are caring for a highly diverse array of patients (6-12). It is a perennial problem in the US healthcare workforce that has only been accentuated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Medical workers should reflect the variety of patients they care for and strive to understand their mindsets within the larger contexts of culture, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, and socioeconomic realities. Along with talent and skills, diversity and inclusion (D&I) are essential for maintaining a workforce that can treat the myriad needs and populations that health systems serve. Developing hiring strategies in a post-COVID-19 “new normal” that will help achieve greater workforce diversity remains a challenge for health system leaders. OBJECTIVE Our primary objectives are (1) to explore the characteristics and perceived benefits of US health systems that value D&I; (2) to examine the influence of a workforce strategy designed to balance talent and D&I; and (3) to explore three pathways to better equip workforces and their relative influences on business- and service-oriented benefits: (a) improving D&I among existing employees (IMPROVE), (b) using multiple channels to find and recruit a workforce (RECRUIT), and (c) collaborating with universities to find new talent and establish plans to train students (COLLABORATE). METHODS During February–March 2021, we surveyed 625 health system chief executive officers, in the United States, 135 (22%) of whom responded. We assessed workforce talent and diversity-relevant factors. We collected secondary data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s (AHRQ) Compendium of the US. Health Systems, leading to a matched data set of 124 health systems for analysis. We first explored differences in talent and diversity benefits across the health systems. Then, we examined the relationship between IMPROVE, RECRUIT, and COLLABORATE pathways to equip the workforce. RESULTS Health system characteristics, such as size, location, ownership, teaching, and revenue, have varying influences on D&I and business and service outcomes. RECRUIT has the most substantial mediating effect on diversity-enabled business- and service-oriented outcomes of the three pathways. This is also true of talent-based workforce acquisitions. CONCLUSIONS Diversity and talent plans can be aligned to realize multiple desired benefits for health systems. However, a one-size-fits-all approach is not a viable strategy for improving D&I. Health systems need to follow a multipronged approach based on their characteristics. To get D&I right, proactive plans and genuine efforts are essential.


2017 ◽  
Vol 114 (38) ◽  
pp. E7891-E7899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy M. Smith ◽  
Andrew L. Goodkind ◽  
Taegon Kim ◽  
Rylie E. O. Pelton ◽  
Kyo Suh ◽  
...  

Corn production, and its associated inputs, is a relatively large source of greenhouse gas emissions and uses significant amounts of water and land, thus contributing to climate change, fossil fuel depletion, local air pollutants, and local water scarcity. As large consumers of this corn, corporations in the ethanol and animal protein industries are increasingly assessing and reporting sustainability impacts across their supply chains to identify, prioritize, and communicate sustainability risks and opportunities material to their operations. In doing so, many have discovered that the direct impacts of their owned operations are dwarfed by those upstream in the supply chain, requiring transparency and knowledge about environmental impacts along the supply chains. Life cycle assessments (LCAs) have been used to identify hotspots of environmental impacts at national levels, yet these provide little subnational information necessary for guiding firms’ specific supply networks. In this paper, our Food System Supply-Chain Sustainability (FoodS3) model connects spatial, firm-specific demand of corn purchasers with upstream corn production in the United States through a cost minimization transport model. This provides a means to link county-level corn production in the United States to firm-specific demand locations associated with downstream processing facilities. Our model substantially improves current LCA assessment efforts that are confined to broad national or state level impacts. In drilling down to subnational levels of environmental impacts that occur over heterogeneous areas and aggregating these landscape impacts by specific supply networks, targeted opportunities for improvements to the sustainability performance of supply chains are identified.


2012 ◽  
pp. 1626-1636
Author(s):  
Seyed-Mahmoud Aghazadeh

As the domestic businesses expand, many are making the choice to use foreign products, labor, and services to aid in their production. Global supply chains are minimizing the costs of the production process but are also creating vulnerabilities to home countries. As the global economy changes, the competitiveness between countries grows. Competitiveness can affect everything from a country’s economy to how a firm conducts international business. Addressing the need to find a method to increase the United States competitiveness in the world economy by improving the use of global supply chains would help to make domestic firms more successful in the global economy. Studying how companies position themselves abroad is important to providing insight into how to become more competitive. Worldwide companies are diversifying by moving more of their supply chain to international locations. This is providing them with many benefits such as better markets for products, lower costs, and more advanced technologies. As a result, the competitive strategy of companies is to increase production and decrease costs through the most efficient global supply chain. Maximizing the potential of domestic firms’ global supply chains is one of the most effective ways to increase U.S. competitiveness. If more big businesses in the United States are willing to participate on the global level, then the US will be able to improve their competitiveness.


Author(s):  
Seyed-Mahmoud Aghazadeh

As the domestic businesses expand, many are making the choice to use foreign products, labor, and services to aid in their production. Global supply chains are minimizing the costs of the production process but are also creating vulnerabilities to home countries. As the global economy changes, the competitiveness between countries grows. Competitiveness can affect everything from a country’s economy to how a firm conducts international business. Addressing the need to find a method to increase the United States competitiveness in the world economy by improving the use of global supply chains would help to make domestic firms more successful in the global economy. Studying how companies position themselves abroad is important to providing insight into how to become more competitive. Worldwide companies are diversifying by moving more of their supply chain to international locations. This is providing them with many benefits such as better markets for products, lower costs, and more advanced technologies. As a result, the competitive strategy of companies is to increase production and decrease costs through the most efficient global supply chain. Maximizing the potential of domestic firms’ global supply chains is one of the most effective ways to increase U.S. competitiveness. If more big businesses in the United States are willing to participate on the global level, then the US will be able to improve their competitiveness.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saif Khan

Semiconductors are a key component in fueling scientific progress, promoting economic advancement, and ensuring national security. This issue brief summarizes each component of the semiconductor supply chain and where the United States and its allies possess the greatest leverage. A related policy brief, “Securing Semiconductor Supply Chains,” recommends policy actions to ensure the United States maintains this leverage and uses it to promote the beneficial use of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saif Khan

The countries with the greatest capacity to develop, produce and acquire state-of-the-art semiconductor chips hold key advantages in the development of emerging technologies. At present, the United States and its allies possess significant leverage over core segments of the supply chain used to produce these chips. This policy brief outlines actions the United States and its allies can take to secure that advantage in the long term and use it to promote the beneficial use of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence.


Author(s):  
Ahmad Khan,

Scientists have written numerous papers studying different aspects of health systems in the world. Comparing health systems in the world is essential for policymakers to learn from each other to make healthcare services effective with better outcomes and decrease the cost of healthcare services. In the world, countries have different health systems. The difference in the health systems is a combination of components that are specific to each country based on the financial status of healthcare, workforce, and infrastructures. This paper will evaluate the contrast of Canadian and American health systems payment systems, timely access, and healthcare quality outcomes. Both countries are well-developed countries that have a health system with excellent infrastructure and effective healthcare services. However, the system operates differently in both countries. America does not have a universal healthcare plan and spends more money per capita compared to Canada. The United States has a lower rank than its peer, underperforms in maternal mortality, infant mortality, preventable deaths, and life expectancy. On the other hand, Canada has a universal healthcare plan for all Canadian residents and performs better in life expectancy, infant mortality, and maternal mortality. However, waiting for specialized care is longer than in the United States.


2002 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
James S Keebler

This article describes the development and growth of various modes of transportation in the United States and recent trends in the length, size and value of domestic shipments. Changes in the transportation of goods in the United States are being driven largely by four factors—the shift toward a digital economy, the growth of third-party logistics providers, globalism, and the application of new technologies. Finally, this paper looks at emerging forms of supply chain integration and operation.


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