Factors affecting supply chain performance in government health institutions in Kisumu central sub-county, Kenya

Abstract

The concept of Supply Chain Management is inevitable for efficient resource utilization in the modern organization. Chopra et al. (2010) portend that supply chain management represent the confluence of at least three main streams of knowledge and practical experience of the business world spanning almost 60 years. Effective Supply chain management is key to efficient resource utilization and customer satisfaction in service sectors including government health institutions. Efficient Government health supply chain performance is essential for assuring access to health supplies, and thus for positive health outcomes. The Council of Logistics Management defines SCM as the systemic, strategic coordination of the traditional business functions and the tactics across these business functions within a particular company and across business within the supply chain for the purpose of improving the long-term performance of the individual companies and the supply chain as a whole. Supply chain within Government health institutions must effectively link the supply chain trading partners to achieve breakthrough performance in satisfying the end users. To realize the benefits of supply chain management, the government health institutions must therefore address bottlenecks that might be inherent in their systems and which play to impede supply chain efficiency. The study sought to determine factors affecting supply chain performance in government health institutions in Kisumu Central Sub-County. To achieve the study objective, the study employed a descriptive census survey. The targeted population was all the 9 Government health institutions within Kisumu Central Sub-County, while the accessible populations were all stores managers, supply chain managers and administrators of these health institutions. The study collected qualitative likert scale and quantitative data primarily using questionnaires and interview guides from employees of various cadres in Government health institutions within Kisumu Central Sub- County. The study used selfadministered semi-structured questionnaires which were delivered to the respondents in their offices by research assistants. Nine Key Informants interviews (KII) were also conducted by the researcher. Descriptive statistics and factor analysis were used to analyze the collected data with the help of SPSS 20.0 software. The findings are presented in frequency tables and percentages and discussed. The findings show that inadequate funding, lack of cooperation among supply chain users, poor management support and non-compliance to rules and market price fluctuations can impact negatively on effective functioning of SC system with a sample mean of 4.72, 4.38, 4.33 and 4.31 respectively. Inadequate information flow/ sharing can have moderate negative effects with a mean of 3.94, while well aligned value-added processes have a mean of 3.94. Timely information flow through ICT resources can improve the performance of supply chain system with a mean of 3.67, while environmental uncertainty variables can hamper the performance of supply chain system with a sample mean of 3.61. The study recommends that the management remains committed to offering satisfactory health care services to patients through a sense of positive commitment in ensuring adequate funding that supports investment in ICT resources. There is need to establish independent compliant units within the institutions to ensure that rules and regulations are adhered to in order to curb malpractices that reduces effectiveness of supply chain performance. The study recommends establishment of stronger networking and collaboration platform that facilitates sharing of real-time information between supply chain partners. The study further recommends flexible systems that allow for modern state of art technology like just-in-time supply of the required items to reduce storage-related cost.