Niagara Health first in world to purchase Indigenous-supplied gloves

Niagara Health is making history as the first hospital in the world to purchase medical-grade gloves from an Indigenous supplier.

Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice-President, Finance, Redevelopment and Facilities Angela Zangari called the move a testament to Niagara Health’s commitment to economic reconciliation and in reaching the federal government’s lead of five per-cent of procurement coming from Indigenous businesses.

The gloves are produced by PRIMED Medical products, a company distributed exclusively by Certified Aboriginal Business Medical, Surgical and Safety Supplies (MSS) Ltd.

The gloves themselves feature MSS’s Indigenous stylized bear branding to bring a visible Indigenous presence to operating, examinations, testing and treatment rooms across Niagara Health’s Fort Erie, Niagara Falls, Port Colborne and Welland sites.

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A portion of proceeds from the MSS glove program will directly support Indigenous community.

This is not where the partnership between Niagara Health and MSS will end though. Zangari says that decisions around proposals for new hospital equipment and the construction of the South Niagara site will be made with criteria that emphasizes the importance of the vendor’s Indigenous, environmental and social values.

This will additionally extended to the decision-making on future medical supply purchases.

Niagara Health calls this the first step in building an Indigenous value-based supply chain in its hospitals.

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