Logistics & Supply Chain - The Logistics of a pandemic - preparing for swine flu

All the indications are that swine flu is going to spread widely as we come into the flu season later in the year and Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are required by the Department of Health to have plans in place to cope with this.  Whilst the medical remedies are well understood and stocks of anti-virals are high they are of no use unless they can be distributed efficiently.

There are useful reminders of what can go wrong.  During the Foot and Mouth outbreak amongst livestock a few years ago DEFRA had sufficient stocks of the necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and chemicals but failed to distribute them to where they were needed on time.  After it was over, and keen to ensure that they would be better prepared next time, DEFRA called in the THE LOGISTICS BUSINESS to help put in place a logistics plan for any future outbreak.

More recently there have been a number of articles published in the USA about breakdowns in the medical supply chain when the H1N1 outbreak occurred with local bodies failing to secure sufficient supplies of swabs and face masks.

Now it’s the turn of the Primary Care Trusts.  There are at least two logistics issues to deal with - distribution of anti-virals to infected patients and distribution of Personal Protective Equipment to NHS and other staff.

The first task is to understand the numbers - how much stock and how much throughput - expressed in unit loads.  How many deliveries per day?  What service level is needed?  What hours will sites be open?  And of course where will deliveries be from and to?

Of course this is hard to predict particularly because activity levels need to be condensed down to daily movements and that means understanding at what level the outbreak will peak so in part the question is what level of outbreak you should plan for?  Also don’t forget that you also need to deal with disposal of used equipment and return of unwanted items.

Once the numbers have been agreed these need to be converted into requirements :-

• Buildings - number, size, layout, environmental conditions
• Vehicles - distances they will travel, how full they will be and how many trips they will make?  This will in turn determine the number of vehicles needed
• Staff - what are the processes, what productivity levels can be expected and what hours will be needed?  This will determine the number of people
• Procedures, systems and communication.  Both staff and the public will need to understand clearly what they are required to do and stock control systems will be needed to ensure that sites are neither overstocked nor run out.  These need not be complicated but they do need to be tried and tested.  All of this will in turn require a communication plan.

Now that you have decided what you need the next step is to decide how it is to be delivered.  Will you be using existing buildings and if so what changes will need to be made to them.  You might need to bring in some shelving or racking and how are you going to load and unload lorries when they arrive and leave with supplies?  Will you buy in the logistics resources you need, for example transport, in which case you need to set up service contracts and agree prices.  Do not rely on your existing contracts or suppliers to simply pick this up.

From all of this a logistics plan can be developed.

If this all seems a little daunting or you have a plan but would like to have it independently checked then help is at hand.  THE LOGISTICS BUSINESS has undertaken numerous projects within both the Public and Private sectors and in particular with National Blood Service and other parts of the NHS doing just this.

If you would like to talk to us without obligation to see how we might help or just want to bounce some ideas around we’re happy to help.
THE LOGISTICS BUSINESS, a leading specialist supply chain and logistics consultancy, has experience in planning and developing supply chain, distribution and warehousing operations throughout the world. From supply chain and distribution strategy, to development of distribution operations, warehouse design and layout, as well as manufacturing logistics and IT systems design, its clients include many blue chip companies.

We have also worked on government initiatives on sustainable transport and waste minimisation.For further information please call:Helen Morris, THE LOGISTICS BUSINESS on +44(0)1527 889 060, email helen.morris@logistics.co.uk