Effective healthcare supply chain management ensures an efficient and prompt distribution process for medical goods from raw materials to the finished product.

"The Health Care Administration Department is eager to introduce supply chain management to Stonehill students," said the Rev. Thomas Gariepy, C.S.C., Chair of the Health Care Administration Department. "The courses will be designed to match the needs of students to the real-world challenges of the industry. The internship placements will give students hands-on experiences in a growing sector of the healthcare industry."

The initiative is made possible by a $30,000 grant from the Kimberly-Clark Corporation, thanks to the efforts of Bob Simpson, ’93 (shown above), a pioneer in medical supply distribution whose company, LeeSar, collaborates closely with the Kimberly-Clark Corporation.

Simpson is the President and CEO of LeeSar, a Fort Myers-based leader in integrated healthcare delivery systems. Under Simpson’s leadership, LeeSar has seen sales increase from $20 million in 2002 to more than $120 million in 2008.

Simpson credits his success to Stonehill’s Health Care Administration Department and especially to the recently retired chair of the Department, Professor Craig Higgins.

An Army veteran who served two tours in Vietnam and one in Korea, Simpson graduated from the College taking seven years of evening courses to complete his degree while working days. Loyal to Stonehill and above all to the Health Care Administration Department, he believes the new area of emphasis will strengthen the already strong education the students receive.

Simpson said that a focus on healthcare supply chain "will give students an edge in the healthcare supply chain field by providing them with the knowledge, skills, and experience necessary to succeed both immediately after graduation and in the long-term."

Stonehill officials and supply chain executives from the healthcare industry will meet this fall to develop the direction of the initiative. These companies and organizations will include Kimberly-Clark, DeRoyal, Healthline Solutions and AHRMM. They will also discuss curriculum and internship opportunities, as well as generate models for fusing mentoring, leadership and development, and training and education for supply chain managers.

Students who complete the supply chain management course will be eligible for a summer internship at LeeSar in Florida that supplements their classroom work. The grant provides a stipend for the internship.

Rebecca Clifford, ’09, and Courtney Cullen, ’09, interned with LeeSar in Fort Myers this summer. In addition to their responsibilities with LeeSar, they
attended the Association of Healthcare Resource & Material Management International conference in San Antonio, TX, where they were guests of this professional society, visited a healthcare equipment supplier in Tennessee, and presented to the Chair of the Board at Lee Memorial Hospital.