ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a case study that examines the supply of elective surgery consumables for the operating theatres at Waikato Hospital, a tertiary hospital managed by the Waikato District Health Board (Waikato DHB), in Hamilton, New Zealand. It explains a dramatic change in the internal processes for supplying consumables that occurred over the final five years of a ten-year redevelopment programme of the hospital and its theatres. The chapter outlines the reasons for the change and the wide-ranging benefits gained. The theatre rebuilding project was required not only to reduce surgical outsourcing, but also to bring Waikato DHB into line with modern best practice. The old-style theatres, dedicated to single specialties, allowed surgical supplies to be stored in-situ in wooden joinery around the room. Stores staff restocked the supply rooms daily on the principle of maintaining ‘full shelves’. There was minimal dialogue between the stores staff and the clinical staff.
