Southern Cross Healthcare: Partnering with GS1 to Strengthen Data Integrity and Patient Care

Southern Cross Healthcare, New Zealand’s largest independent healthcare provider, partners with GS1 New Zealand as a trusted data-management partner through the National Product Catalogue (NPC). The partnership is helping streamline procurement and inventory management, strengthen data accuracy, and ultimately enhance patient care across the Southern Cross Healthcare network. 

Building a Foundation of Trusted Data 

Southern Cross Healthcare operates 22 hospitals and day-stay facilities across the country, delivering elective care for specialties including orthopaedic and general surgery.  As Head of Supply Chain, Banie Erasmus oversees a team responsible for maintaining more than 200,000 stock-keeping units (SKUs). These records are supported by a single enterprise resource planning (ERP) system that all hospitals access for purchasing and inventory management. 

“Our key challenge is data accuracy and availability,” Banie says. “We manage a dynamic item master, changing around 500 records every month. Without trusted, standardised data, operational efficiency suffers and costs increase.” 

 Recognising this, Southern Cross Healthcare partnered with GS1 New Zealand in 2017 to connect to the NPC, ensuring their item master is powered by consistent, up-to-date product information from suppliers. “Of our medical device suppliers, around 70 are currently onboarded to the NPC, feeding data directly into our system,” says Banie. “The more suppliers use the NPC, the more stable and reliable our data becomes.” 

Why Supplier Participation Matters 

To encourage wider participation, Southern Cross Healthcare is contacting suppliers who are not yet sharing data via the NPC. The communication highlights how standardised data and GS1 identifiers, especially Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs), enable hospitals to accurately record products used at the point of care, improve traceability, and strengthen inventory management.

For suppliers, publishing their product data through the NPC offers several benefits: 

• It eliminates manual data handling, reducing errors and duplication 
• It enables data consistency across multiple trading partners such as Southern Cross Healthcare, Health New Zealand, and others 
• It creates operational efficiency, as product data flows automatically into Southern Cross Healthcare’s procurement systems.

Banie emphasises the significance of collaboration: “As a private healthcare provider, partnership and mutual support are key. When suppliers share data through GS1 New Zealand’s NPC, everyone benefits, including patients.” 

Overcoming Barriers to Onboarding 

Despite strong uptake among larger medical suppliers, Banie says some smaller or niche providers are not leveraging the benefits of the NPC. “They would rather send product data direct by email because their catalogues are small,” he says.  “But those manual processes create risk. We need them in the system too, because their products are often surgeon-driven and critical to procedures.” 

To support those suppliers, GS1 New Zealand’s Healthcare Implementation Team offers hands-on guidance and training for connecting to Southern Cross Healthcare via the NPC. This helps ensure they can also benefit from streamlined integration and improved data quality. Banie says: “Accurate data helps us all run better, safer, and more efficient hospitals.” 

The Impact on Operations and Patient Care 

The partnership’s outcomes are tangible. By embedding GS1 standards and scanning processes into supply chain and surgical procedure workflows, Southern Cross Healthcare can: 

• Track product usage per patient, enhancing traceability and clinical safety 
• Maintain real-time visibility of inventory and supply levels 
• Reduce administrative overhead caused by data inconsistencies.

Banie is clear: “If data accuracy is poor, our processes slow down. It costs money. Operational efficiency is essential to patient experience, which is always our number one priority.” 

Looking Ahead: A Shared Vision for Healthcare

From GS1 New Zealand’s perspective, Southern Cross Healthcare shows how trusted data and global standards underpin the future of healthcare supply chains. By connecting suppliers, hospitals, and systems through shared data standards, GS1 and Southern Cross Healthcare are creating a model for interoperability and efficiency that benefits the entire healthcare ecosystem.

As Banie says: “GS1 provides a good foundation for suppliers and hospitals alike. When suppliers use the platform, we all win, with better data, better visibility, and ultimately, better care for patients.”