Simulation Kit for Hospital Supplies Replenishment
Par Level vs. Kanban

Supply management is a commonly-mentioned headache for health care providers and administrators.  Stockrooms and par carts bulge with excess items, yet nurses in a hurry can’t find what they need.  What’s wrong?

Several factors can be causing the simultaneous overstocks and out-of-stocks.  Poorly executed procedures will bring down even well-designed systems, and informal workarounds such as hoarding evolve throughout the hospital, further undercutting the formal system.

To address this issue, Lean Hospital Group and Leonardo Group Americas have developed an effective, hands-on training exercise to teach staffers the basics of both the Par Level and Kanban replenishment systems.  Participants set up bins with labels and parts, withdraw supplies from bins according to usage cards for each day of the week, replenish supplies, and take performance metrics at the end of the “week”. 

Developed and tested with hospital teams, this Replenishment Simulation Kit highlights the features of both Par and Kanban systems.  In particular, participants see and experience the substantial labor costs involved with the Par Level system, whether replenished daily or less frequently. 

The Simulation Kit for Hospital Supplies Replenishment comes complete with professional-quality bins, a generous supply of wooden “parts”, printed Par Level and Kanban labels, daily supply usage cards, a tally chart for recording metrics, detailed instructions for the facilitator, and a convenient carrying case.


Available April 1, 2010 from Flow Publishing