Hospital procurement departments are responsible for managing purchasing activity, negotiating pricing for essential items and planning what the organisation will need in the future in order to continue delivering high quality care, as efficiently as possible. An essential function in normal circumstances, during the past few months, the Procurement team have worked incredibly hard to secure supplies of personal protection equipment (PPE) to aid staff in their efforts to care for Covid-19 positive patients.
Nominated by Richard Parker, Chief Executive of the Trust, the team were praised for how they have gone above and beyond to support DBTH throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, especially in regards to the unprecedented demand for PPE supplies.
Across both Doncaster Royal Infirmary and Bassetlaw, colleagues within the department have been working tirelessly to purchase items for colleagues, as well as to accept deliveries seven-days-a-week and to facilitate donations. Despite this incredible pressure and heavy workload, they have pulled together with staff across the Trust describing them as responsive, helpful and enthusiastic throughout recent months.
Jon Sargeant, Director of Finance at the Trust and the Executive Director tasked with overseeing the department, said: “Our Procurement team has adapted to new ways of working – covering evenings and weekends – to ensure that we have had everything that we have needed at all times during these challenges. They have worked tirelessly and have done their utmost to keep all our staff safe, and ensuring our health professionals had the right equipment when it was needed – for that they deserve to be our Team of the Month and I share my thanks with every single one of them.
“As a Trust, we have also been incredibly fortunate to have received a massive amount of support from our local communities, with countless donations of items, ranging from snacks to FFP3 respirators, as well as a significant amount of money which has been directed to our charity for the benefit of patients. As an organisation we are enormously grateful and want to thank, from the bottom of our heart, every single resident of Doncaster and Bassetlaw for their kindness during this time.”
The team were presented with an award and a box of goodies for their diligence and hard work by Richard Parker.