Bridge Medical GPO launches new e-procurement healthcare platform in UAE

The official launch of Bridge Medical GPO’s e-Procurement platform was announced at the ongoing Arab Health 2022 in Dubai on Tuesday.

The software platform was developed by Jaggaer, the developers of Tejari and eSupply, which is the official procurement portal for Dubai government tenders.

Previously, at GITEX Technology Week 2021, Jaggaer had signed an MoU with Bridge Medical GPO Trading that allowed Jaggaer to provide a SaaS based source-to-pay solution to automate routine processes with the help of machine-learning enabling global procurement teams to create more value.

The Bridge Medical GPO e-Procurement, contracting and spend analytics software modules, will allow healthcare providers in the UAE to employ best practices in procurement and supply chain management.

Bridge Medical GPO is one of the first healthcare group purchasing organisations (GPO) to launch in the UAE. The company focusses on optimising procurement practices and reducing supply chain costs for healthcare providers including hospitals, medical centres, medical and dental clinics, and laboratories through membership services.

It has now outlined a plan which will focus on delivering performance optimisation across the entire UAE healthcare sector. This will include implementing best and leading practices, procurement processes, and optimising supply chains to bring increased commercial benefits to healthcare organisations, vendors, and all providers in the region.

James Counts, president and CEO of Bridge Medical GPO, said, “I am pleased to announce our launch into the UAE market today. We have a proven and very successful business model that delivers immense operating efficiencies and value for our members. Speed to value is what we promise, and the world’s best and leading practices is what we deliver. Our e-Procurement and software platforms deliver state of the art procure to pay, analytics, contract management and reporting, to assist in better supply chain management and data driven decision making.”

Darren Martin, director of commercial and group operations, added: “We are certainly not here to replace or compete with vendors and suppliers, we are here to drive industry wide efficiencies that deliver improved profitability for all stakeholders. We have developed powerful analytical software that will be referred to as disruptive technology in UAE healthcare for years to come.”

Read: UAE launches new e-platform for surveillance of future pandemics

Also along the sidelines of Arab Health 2022, the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) launched an e-public health system called Sphere. Sphere provides a unified national database that enhances disease prevention, by sharing and exchanging information locally, regionally and globally. Through Sphere, the ministry aims to provide an integrated system for early monitoring, follow-up, and management of events affecting public health and strengthen linkages with the government and private health sector stakeholders. It includes the reporting of communicable diseases, pathological syndromes, chemical poisoning cases, injuries, and vaccination records too.