Hospitals Turn to Online Matchmakers Such as Indian American-founded Resilinc to Swap PPE Supplies

Facing shortages of protective equipment, two New England hospital systems tried the latest twist in internet matchmaking: online swap meets.

As the coronavirus pandemic stretches on, online platforms have popped up to match hospitals that need masks, gowns, ventilators and even doctors with those that have extras. And other projects have been started to link hospitals with nontraditional sources of equipment.

Logistic software company Resilinc, led by Indian American Bindiya Vakil, said N95 masks, the most protective type, are the top requested item.

Vakil is CEO and founder of Resilinc, based in Milpitas, Calif., and a recognized thought leader in the area of supply chain risk management from companies like Cisco and Flextronics, according to her bio.

She is credited with bringing SCRM solutions into the mainstream since founding Resilinc in 2010. She holds the patent for evaluating supply chain vulnerability and risk of an enterprise. She is also the founder of the Global Supply Chain Resiliency Council, a non-profit dedicated to advancing the discipline of supply chain risk management.

An Advisory Board member of the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, Vakil has a master’s degree in supply chain management from MIT and an MBA in finance.

“There are more than 9,000 items that are in various stages of being rationed,” she said, including some medicines and multiple brands of protective gear.

“There’s a lot of enthusiasm for this,” said Michelle Hood, chief operating officer of the American Hospital Association. “It’s sure made a difference to those who got supplies when they really needed them.”