You know that frustrating feeling when you are looking for a gauze pad, but you can’t find it? And it turns out you can’t find it because it is listed under New Gauze or the manufacturer of the product on your inventory list? (We can almost see you nodding your head right now.) All you want to do is take care of your patient, but inventory management is making it difficult.
Maintaining supplies may be an essential part of your job as a nurse leader, but we understand it can be hard to keep up with inventory management (or influence it when you don’t control it) when you have so many other responsibilities.
Developing a strong relationship with the materials management department, taking advantage of the capabilities of digital inventory control and using a few old-fashioned tips can help you stay on top of this portion of your job, even on the craziest of days.
Here are a few tips to help nursing inventory supply and to ensure your staff is never without the supplies it needs.
Attracting new patients is a constant concern for most 
It may be a cliché, but your employees really are your most valuable assets. If you fail to create a strong work culture, you risk losing your best employees to your competitors. The entire hospital suffers when your top performers decide there are better places to work. Without the best and brightest, it’s difficult to create a positive culture that not only empowers and engages employees but also improves the patient experience.
