8 min
30.3.2026
Close cooperation between the supply team and nurses ensures supply security
Text
Karen Gahrn
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SupplyAID
SupplyAID is a digital inventory and logistics system that the Central Denmark Region has developed and implemented in 10 operating departments so far to ensure better supply security for medical devices and implants. The system is closely integrated with the hospitals' daily operations and is designed to ensure that operating departments always have the necessary materials available.
– It has been a huge help in our daily work because we have more time for our patients. Previously, it was the nurses who were responsible for ordering supplies and spent a lot of time on it, says Ane Kirkegaard, who is a specialist nurse in the B&O (anesthesia and surgery) NORD 3 department, which collaborates with Brain and Spine Surgery, one of the first operating departments to implement SupplyAID in May 2024.
– We used to feel like we couldn't go home on a Friday afternoon until we were sure we had enough of things like drains – and if we were short, we had to make sure to request them from other neurosurgical departments. This meant we were constantly on alert regarding what we had in the department and what we were missing. Now we are free from all that because Winnie and her team keep a close eye on not just what we have, but also what is about to expire. It has been a huge help for us in our daily lives.
Winnie Pedersen worked in retail before becoming the inventory manager for the department. A new job function that was introduced as part of SupplyAID. Today, there are three employees on the inventory team.
Every morning, Winnie Pedersen scans GS1 barcodes and data matrix codes on the packaging of the single-use equipment used during surgeries the day before. As the inventory manager, she registers the consumption in the hospital's digital inventory and logistics system so that stock levels are updated, new items can be ordered in time, and the operating department always has the necessary equipment ready.
The work also provides an overview of consumption, documents the traceability of medical devices, and helps prevent shortages in a busy clinical environment.
– We start the day by registering the consumption of what the nurses put in the consumption bags in the operating rooms the day before. We register this in the system under an agreement number linked to the patient procedure. Then SupplyAID tells us what items we need to order, and we place an order in RM Procurement, explains Winnie Pedersen.
– Then we receive goods, which are also entered and received in SupplyAID via the data matrix, so we have all information regarding document number, item number, expiration, and location linked to the item. We also look at complaints and replacement items if something has not been delivered.
The advantage of SupplyAID is that the system integrates directly with procurement, so we know exactly who to contact when there are product issues. Logistics and innovation are my specialties, but I also rely heavily on close collaboration with my colleagues regarding clinical matters.
Shortages can have serious consequences
SupplyAID helps provide an overview of when an item is taken from stock, when it is used in an operation, and which patient or procedure it is linked to.
– I feel that I can focus on what I was trained to do. I’m not trained to manage inventory and order supplies, says Ane Kirkegaard.
– Now I can use my nursing skills in a completely different way. I feel a sense of freedom, mentally as well, because I used to worry a lot about whether we had the supplies we needed. You just tell Winnie, and things get done. It has really made our everyday lives much easier.
If the operating department experiences a shortage of supplies, it can have serious consequences.
– The system helps us avoid cancelled operations by predicting the quantity of products we need to have in stock. We have been through years where there were supply failures. That was a major challenge, and it can be stressful to fear that we might have to compromise on quality, says Ane Kirkegaard.
– If we can't get what the surgeon needs, we have to cancel our patients. It rarely happened because we would go out and fight the battle to get what we needed, but it was, of course, a risk.
That risk is lower today, emphasizes Winnie Pedersen:
– The advantage of SupplyAID is that the system integrates directly with procurement, so we know exactly who to contact when there are product issues. Logistics and innovation are my specialties, but I also rely heavily on close collaboration with my colleagues regarding clinical matters.
SupplyAID helps provide an overview of when an item is taken from stock, when it is used in an operation, and which patient or procedure it is linked to.
– I feel that I can focus on what I was trained to do. I’m not trained to manage inventory and order supplies, says Ane Kirkegaard.
– Now I can use my nursing skills in a completely different way. I feel a sense of freedom, mentally as well, because I used to worry a lot about whether we had the supplies we needed. You just tell Winnie, and things get done. It has really made our everyday lives much easier.
If the operating department experiences a shortage of supplies, it can have serious consequences.
– The system helps us avoid cancelled operations by predicting the quantity of products we need to have in stock. We have been through years where there were supply failures. That was a major challenge, and it can be stressful to fear that we might have to compromise on quality, says Ane Kirkegaard.
– If we can't get what the surgeon needs, we have to cancel our patients. It rarely happened because we would go out and fight the battle to get what we needed, but it was, of course, a risk.
That risk is lower today, emphasizes Winnie Pedersen:
– The advantage of SupplyAID is that the system integrates directly with procurement, so we know exactly who to contact when there are product issues. Logistics and innovation are my specialties, but I also rely heavily on close collaboration with my colleagues regarding clinical matters.
A benefit for patients, staff, and the bottom line
Winnie Bechmann Eriksen is a head nurse with overall responsibility for SupplyAID at the Department of Anesthesiology and Surgery NORD, Neurosurgical Operating Section NORD 3. She also participates in coordinating data meetings between clinicians, supply chain staff, and innovation teams.
– In general, SupplyAID is a huge help in our daily work because the people managing the system know what they are doing. And as Ane says, that is not what we are trained for. The challenge can be product knowledge, which is why close cooperation between the supply team and the nurses is essential. In this regard, Ane can help by scanning the market, for example; in that sense, the nurse's specialized knowledge is indispensable, she says.
– The new system has brought a new professional group into our department. It has required some adjustment from both sides. But it is a dynamic collaboration that evolves the better we get to know each other.
SupplyAID has been a financial gain for the department, the head nurse emphasizes, providing a few examples:
– The supply team can, for instance, observe that we have an item on the shelves that we never use, and then we can contact the surgeons and perhaps have it phased out, which helps us clear things out. We also see financial success in being able to collaborate with the surgical department on bulk purchasing for specific patient groups. This ensures we don't run into supply issues, which is a win for both the patients and our finances.
SupplyAID makes it easy to pull data on when stock levels for a specific item become critical because everything is registered. This makes daily life feel more secure.
– It is important for us to be able to obtain accurate data. We recently needed data on a specific type of drain: How many surgeries do we perform, and how many drains do we use? We were able to go to the supply team, who could find the precise data, says Winnie Bechmann Eriksen.
– We are a very small specialty and use products that you cannot just borrow from other operating departments. What we use for brain surgery is so specialized that we have to stay one step ahead at all times. We receive acute patients who are very, very ill and need surgery quickly, so we are deeply dependent on the navigation working so that we can secure our daily operations.
It has been a great help in our daily work because we get more time for our patients. Previously, it was the nurses who were responsible for ordering supplies, and they spent a lot of time on it.
