The Kolín Hospital opened a new warehouse for 138 million CZK, simplifying supply management

Kolín – The Kolín Regional Hospital has opened a new central warehouse designed to simplify the supply of medical and non-medical materials and enable the creation of larger stockpiles. The hospital previously lacked sufficient storage capacity. The construction of the three-story building, which also includes an archive of medical documentation, cost 138 million crowns and took two years. The founder of the hospital, the Central Bohemian Region, contributed a grant of 67 million crowns for this purpose. Today, during the grand opening of the warehouse, representatives of the hospital and the region shared this information with journalists.

The new storage capacities are expected to allow the hospital to better stock up in advance. The previous system, in which suppliers delivered medical materials directly to individual departments, was not effective according to the hospital's management. The shortage of supplies became apparent especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when the hospital was unable to stockpile critical materials.

According to the chairman of the hospital's board, Petr Chudomel, geopolitical instability may also disrupt the supply of medical materials. "It can happen that if you do not have any emergency stock, you could be left without materials, and that should not happen," said the chairman of the hospital's board, Petr Chudomel.

Supply trucks arrive at the outdoor side of the warehouse, and materials are issued directly to the hospital premises. "Large trucks delivering materials will not enter the premises," Chudomel stated. The building also houses an archive of medical documentation, which the hospital must retain for up to 40 years for hospitalized patients. The original archive was located in Pavilion K, which the builders have demolished, and on its site, they are now constructing a new emergency intake area. The facility also includes operational and administrative spaces, some of which will be used by the hospital's IT center.

The hospital is also acquiring new software for inventory management, replenishment, and issuing supplies. The management hopes this will provide better oversight of materials in the central warehouse as well as in individual departments, and reduce losses caused by expired inventory.

The new warehouse is not the only current investment in the modernization of the hospital complex. In place of Pavilion K, whose demolition began at the end of May, a three-story emergency medicine pavilion is set to be constructed in about two years. Its construction and equipment are expected to cost approximately 1.2 billion crowns, and will include emergency intake for adults as well as operating rooms, laboratories, and a heliport. The reconstruction of the endoscopy center is also nearing completion.