Five Trends Healthcare Suppliers Should Watch and Leverage in 2022

It’s been two years since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and disruptions continue to rock the global healthcare supply chain. There have been shortages of raw materials, labor and manufacturing; issues surrounding shipping, transportation, warehousing and distribution; and now rising inflation hitting the entire healthcare continuum, from manufacturers to distributors to hospitals and everyone in between.

Adding to the rocky landscape are the historic number of supplier mergers and acquisitions in 2021 (activity has been more robust than anticipated with over 3,000 total transactions expected by year-end, an increase of more than 25 percent as compared to 2020) and the “great resignation”, a.k.a. “the big quit”, where the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports an overall turnover rate of more than 57 percent for the year.

It’s a long list of disruptors and given the fact that the fight against COVID-19 is far from over, chances are the list will continue to grow. Finding ways to build a stronger, healthier, more resilient supply chain that can withstand disruptions brought on by the virus and other economic factors is vital – to ensure we emerge from this pandemic better prepared for the future.

Where is the healthcare supply chain headed in 2022? What follows are the five main trends that we believe will define the industry and some insights on how suppliers can set themselves up for success.

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