Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the need for a stable and ever-growing source of oxygen supply regularly surfaced as a consistent threat to providing effective respiratory therapy support for the most critical of patients. As the trajectory of Covid-19 evolved into treating a younger population suffering the effects of the highly infectious Delta variant and questionable success of mechanical ventilation, treatment protocols evolved and moved towards high-flow oxygen through the use of non-invasive nasal cannula delivering a high flow of heated and humidified gas, rather than ventilators. As a result, we saw demand for bulk oxygen grow by two to three times that required to operate ventilators, as was the case in the first year of the pandemic.
In the late summer of 2021, hospitals across the Southeast, including those in south Florida were struggling to maintain a sufficient source of oxygen for managing their caseload, with the worst-hit left with only twelve to 24 hours of supply. To the further dismay of this region, as the Covid census grew, so did the conditions adversely impacting a sufficient oxygen supply. Staffing shortages – whether among the generators of oxygen or the drivers of bulk oxygen tanker trucks – created logistics headaches, as did the several gulf storms that disrupted power to the oxygen generating facilities. Seasonal weather, labor shortages and challenges to oxygen generation created a perfect storm of potential disruption during a period of doubled or tripled demand.
Premier Inc., a technology-enabled healthcare improvement and group purchasing company, employs a strategic sourcing team and subject matter experts who work with 4,400 hospitals and health systems and 225,000 other providers across the country. Premier regularly assist these provider organizations in managing through supply chain disruption and ever-changing healthcare delivery and the associated technology issues. Premier’s government affairs representatives participate in federal disaster response planning and are able to channel federal support to such emerging disasters. Throughout the entire pandemic, Premier was in touch with the White House, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Health and Human Services – among other government organizations – keeping them apprised of the oxygen scarcity issues in the Southeast, as well as the implications of oxygen scarcity on a national level.
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