Earlier this year, Cardinal Health voluntarily recalled more than nine million potentially contaminated surgical gowns – a measure that applied to certain lots of AAMI Level 3 single sterile and non-sterile gowns distributed from September 1, 2018 to January 10 of this year.
According to Cardinal Health’s news release surrounding the recall, estimated to cost the company $96 million, the decision to recall the packs arose as a precautionary measure after Cardinal was made aware of a supplier that had shifted production of some gowns to unapproved sites in uncontrolled environments. Consequently, Cardinal Health could not assure the sterility of the gowns, presenting a potential patient safety risk.
Though Cardinal took measures to address supply shortages, including increasing manufacturing at other facilities, offering AAMI Level 4 gowns to ease the shortage, working to identify alternative solutions and mobilizing its national workforce, TPC understood that Members had the need for a quick, collaborative response to offset the gap in supply.
TPC Working Toward Answers
Immediately upon the release of Cardinal’s announcement and the commencement of the recall, the TPC team began extensive efforts to support our Members. TPC is proud to have been able to help ease the burden Members faced throughout the gown disruption by serving as a partner to develop and execute viable solutions.
Specifically, TPC took the following actions to help address the situation:
Established a Cardinal Surgical Gown War Room at TPC to assure a dedicated and thorough response.
Worked to coordinate bi-weekly communication between all parties, including TPC, Member hospitals, and Cardinal.
Coordinated with Cardinal to provide critical on-site support when necessary.
Aggressively explored and engaged new sourcing alternatives.
TPC was committed to acting as a reliable partner to help Members take proactive, effective action to find resourceful solutions that better enabled them to access the supplies they needed. As always, our ongoing mission remains helping Members provide the best possible care, even in the face of these disruptions.
With flexibility and agility, TPC offers unmatched support and valuable opportunities for independent, standalone hospitals to leverage TPC and their fellow Members to make anything possible. In the TPC family, we’re all in this together.
To learn more or reach out with any specific questions, visit tpc1.com.