JHC June 2020

COVID-19

Resourceful and tenacious Challenges abound, but so do solutions, amid the COVID-19 pandemic

Editor’s note: In the following interview, Ed Hardin, vice president, supply chain, Froedtert Health, provided insights into how his health system has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Journal of Healthcare Contracting (JHC): Can you discuss your organization’s response to COVID-19? Ed Hardin: I got involved in the first weeks of my organization’s reaction to COVID-19 in an effort to prepare the organization for increased demands of affected patients. We then moved into an Enterprise Incident Command approach, which directly involves more than 50 and many more indirectly. It’s part of the Hospital Incident Command and a pretty standard and approved way of addressing disasters, and crises. It’s not too unlike what first responders do during natural disasters. We have a number of different sections within that governance. One of them is called the Logistics Section, and I’m the section chief. Within that, our responsibility is basically providing resources where there is a need. It’s not just supplies; it’s HR related, IT related, and training related. It involves a host of things. My world had been primarily supplies and equipment, but this is far

Ed Hardin

broader. Most hospitals actually, I believe, are functioning this way – the big ones for

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sure. I’m real proud of our organization

Hardin: It’s in large part a different and

hose, but it’s a close organization – par-

for what we’re doing.

very intensive type of project manage-

ticularly at the leadership level, we enjoy

ment, I was trained in project management

and respect and one another. So, it's made

JHC: How do you approach