Optimization of the Procurement Process of Pharmaceutical Supplies at Dr. M Goenawan Partowidigdo Pulmonary Hospital with a Lean Six Sigma Approach

Abstract

Internal barriers in the procurement process and pharmaceutical supply planning are barriers that can be controlled through interventions. The research focuses on proposing changes to the pharmaceutical supply management system, particularly in the aspects of planning and procurement within the internal team of the RSPG Cisarua Bogor. The intervention in this research applying lean six sigma extends only up to the “improve” phase. Data collection involves in-depth interviews with informants involved in the pharmaceutical supply planning and procurement process, as well as observation and document analysis. The research ends in group discussions to reach an agreement. The research findings reveal that a lack of established procedures in the pharmaceutical supply procurement process contributes to prolonged procedures and the absence of efficiency benchmarks within the system. Moreover, an unavailability of tools to facilitate the pharmaceutical supply procurement process causes low internal team communication. The “improve” phase of lean six sigma leads to proposed changes to the standards of operational procedures for routine pharmaceutical procurement, indicator applications of procurement efficiency and the utilization of the ABC VEN functioning as a tool within the pharmaceutical supply procurement process. The proposed improvement to tackle the matter includes the utilization of ABC VEN and efficiency indicators to overcome waste overproduction identified during the pharmaceutical supply planning process. In addition, it also involves the establishment of a new standard of operating procedure covering timelines, tools for pharmaceutical supply categorization based on ABC VEN and procurement efficiency indicator to handle waste waiting during the pharmaceutical supply procurement process.