Elevate is my word for 2024. 

Instead of making New Year’s resolutions, I like to come up with a word that helps me reflect on my values and intentions for the year.  
 
The definition of elevate is to make someone or something more important or to improve something.  

As a leader I firmly believe that we can only achieve our full potential as a healthcare system and as individuals when we build a supportive network around us and engage in meaningful conversations to rise above challenges - together.  

Central to our success is the degree to which we elevate others. It’s a conscious decision to support teams and encourage them to reach new heights which they may not see for themselves.   

In 2024, I am excited to see our accomplishments elevated and improved upon through an incredible team and national partners. Together, we will build a more resilient, sustainable, and innovative healthcare system.  

Supply Chain Resiliency   

In 2023, we gathered insights from stakeholders around the world on how we can best collaborate to overcome shared challenges in healthcare supply chains. In 2024, these findings will be published in a Healthcare Supply Chain Playbook, a resource that will drive end-to-end collaboration across the supply chain, delivering practical and actionable solutions. Stay tuned for news in the coming months. 

Sustainability  

Sustainability is a journey, and we are walking the walk and taking action!  

Our recently launched, member-led Sustainability Committee – with representation from Newfoundland to British Columbia – will focus on building strategies and tools to help combat the biggest contributors to our healthcare system’s emitters in 2024.   

We also added our Sustainability Scorecard to all of our contracts and increased the weighting of Sustainability criteria used to inform award decisions. The Scorecard evaluates a supplier’s commitment to social, environmental, and economic impacts of their business. In 2024, water stewardship and Bill S-211 reporting on forced labour have been added to the scorecard and I’m thrilled to share that eight countries in the European Union will be adopting HealthPRO Canada’s scorecard to enhance our global sustainability impact. 

Last year, we also launched two online tools to educate and empower members to make more informed decisions. For example, there are now impact assessment tools for inhalers and anesthetic gases to help hospital pharmacists compare and measure the environmental impact of alternative options. These tools will be part of our Sustainability Toolkit – available to all our members.  

Innovation 

Last year we launched our Innovation Accelerator Program and secured 5 new, innovative companies on contract: Canada Masq, P-Stik, Voyce, RegenMed and Mölnlycke Health Care.  
 
As we continue to look for innovative solutions to support our members, we're elevating value to members by exploring service contracts, not just products. Inspired by the success of our telepharmacy contract with Northwest Telepharmacy Solutions (NTS), we're investigating Health Human Resource (HHR) solutions in 2024 like nursing support and digital patient intake systems to optimize care and alleviate staffing pressures in hospitals. 

Stay tuned on these and other initiatives we have planned for 2024.  
Wishing you a healthy, resilient, sustainable and innovative year ahead. 


Christine Donaldson 
Interim President and CEO, HealthPRO Canada