Procurement heads criticise ‘failing’ NHS Supply Chain

Performance failings at NHS Supply Chain are impacting patient care, staff wellbeing and retention, and local procurement teams are struggling to mitigate their impact, local procurement chiefs have claimed.

The group of senior NHS buyers have raised their concerns in a highly critical letter to NHS Supply Chain chief executive Andrew New and NHS England’s chief commercial officer Jacqui Rock.

The letter, seen by HSJ, was signed by 22 heads of procurement at trusts and integrated care systems. It raises concerns about the NHSSC’s core functions, like delivering products on time and in full, its governance, and highlights unanswered questions about how it interacts with NHSE’s new central commercial function.

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Source: HSJ, 22 November 2022