Why Hospital Supply Chains Need to Think Like Pharmacies—And Pharmacies Like Tech Startups

It’s 7:30 in the morning. The hospital wards are already buzzing, and a nurse is on the phone with the pharmacy, urgently requesting a medication. The bad news? It’s out of stock.

Meanwhile, just a few floors below, boxes of other medicines sit untouched in storage, quietly approaching their expiry date. This is the everyday paradox of hospital supply chains: running out of what we desperately need while wasting what we already have.

If you work in healthcare, chances are you’ve experienced this frustration firsthand. Stockouts, delays, and red tape aren’t just “logistical issues.” They directly affect patient care, staff morale, and hospital budgets.

So how do we break free from this cycle? I believe the answer lies in a mindset shift: hospital supply chains need to start thinking more like pharmacies—and pharmacies, in turn, need to start thinking more like tech startups.

The Pain Points We All Know

Let’s be honest: every healthcare professional has battled with supply issues at some point.

• The chemotherapy drug that arrives too late because of a missing approval.

• The surgical device that no one knew was backordered until the day of surgery.

• The endless phone calls, paper forms, and signatures required just to track a single item.

Behind every one of these stories is more than wasted time. There’s stress for staff, extra costs for the hospital, and, most importantly, potential risk for patients. And yet, many of us have started to accept these inefficiencies as “just the way things are.”

What Pharmacies Already Do Well

Here’s the thing: pharmacies, by nature, are already experts in balance. Pharmacists constantly juggle availability, safety, and cost—always with the patient in mind. Every day, they:

• Manage shortages and prioritize therapies.

• Monitor inventory to avoid errors or waste.

• Make quick, critical decisions when resources are limited.

This mindset—patient-centered, safety-first, and pragmatic—is exactly what hospital supply chains need more of. It’s not just about moving boxes; it’s about ensuring that the right product is in the right place at the right time, for the right patient.

What Tech Startups Teach Us

Now, let’s switch gears. What do tech startups have to do with hospital supply chains? Startups are famous for moving fast. They test, fail, learn, and adapt quickly. They thrive on data, transparency, and collaboration. Most importantly, they encourage a shift in mindset: from “this is how we’ve always done it” to “how can we do this better tomorrow?”. Hospitals don’t need to copy Silicon Valley, but we can learn from its principles. Imagine supply chains that:

• Share real-time data instead of relying on endless phone calls.

• Streamline approvals instead of drowning in paperwork.

• Adapt quickly to shortages instead of waiting for the next committee meeting.

It’s about agility, openness, and continuous improvement—values that are surprisingly rare in healthcare logistics.

The Bridge: Pharmacists as Connectors

This is where pharmacists come in. Pharmacists sit at a unique crossroads: we understand both the clinical urgency of the wards and the complexity of procurement. We know how delays ripple into patient care, and we see firsthand the waste created by inefficient systems.

That makes pharmacists natural connectors between the clinical world and the logistical one. With the right tools—digital platforms, smarter analytics, better communication systems—we can help design supply chains that are not just efficient, but truly responsive.

Time for a Mindset Shift

Hospital supply chains don’t just need new software or more budget. They need a new mindset:

• One that combines the clinical focus of pharmacies with the innovative spirit of startups.

• One that stops accepting inefficiencies as “normal” and starts asking: how can we make this better for patients and staff tomorrow?

The truth is, every delay, every stock-out, every wasted resource has a human face behind it. And that’s why change matters.

Innovation in healthcare isn’t about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about creating systems that serve patients better.

A Call to Action

I believe that the first step toward change is starting the conversation. So let me ask you: What supply chain frustrations do you face in your daily work? And if you could change just one thing tomorrow, what would it be?

Because in the end, innovation in healthcare isn’t about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about creating systems that serve patients better—and making sure the people working in hospitals have the tools and freedom to do their jobs without unnecessary obstacles.

And that change begins with us.