JMU supply chain team ships medical supplies to hospitals in Kyiv, Ukraine

Harrisonburg, Virginia — A 40-foot ocean freight container of humanitarian aid is on its way to those affected by Russia’s war in Ukraine thanks to the James Madison University Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM) Student Forum. In coordination with Mihret Medical Supply, the shipment contains vital medical supplies and humanitarian relief such as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), surgical equipment and wound care supplies.

Since September, students in Bill Ritchie’s supply chain class (MGT 461) and the JMU ASCM Student Forum have been inventorying and packaging donated medical supplies. Those supplies were loaded into a shipping container last week, filling the space with medical supplies, furniture and equipment-stacked pallets in under two hours.

The JMU ASCM Student Forum hopes these supplies will make a positive impact on the lives of Ukrainians and help relieve some of the burden as Russia’s continued targeting of civilians raises the humanitarian toll.

The Medical Relief Project also provides real-life supply chain and logistics experiences for students. Once medical supplies are donated, students help to categorize, organize and load shipping containers once or twice a semester. The Ukraine shipment is one in a series of shipments the JMU ASCM has conducted in partnership with Mihret Medical Supply. Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have also received shipments through the Medical Relief Project.

Working closely with Mihret Medical Supply, JMU ASCM aspires to make a difference for those in need and plans to continue the medical relief project into the future. The JMU ASCM is also extremely grateful to the following companies for offering their logistics products and services to ensure a safe and seamless shipment delivery: The Interchange Group, Logenix International, Total Quality Logistics, Crosby Trucking and Odoo ERP software.

JMU ASCM Student Forum team members include Ritchie, faculty advisor; JT Montross, ASCM president; Ava Carr, ASCM vice president; Paul Nicholas; Jake Mayer; Brittany Ryan; Cameron Kerr; Katie Dorey; Austin Schwartz; Derek Haynie; Nathan Olafson; and Meghan Gelerman. Joining the team was Tilahun Goshu and Meseret, co-founders and Treasurer of Mihret Medical Supply, Danny Mace of SentaraRMH and JMU professors Sergiy Dmytriyev, Svetlana Dmitrieva, and Dmytro Babik. For more information on this project, visit the club’s website: www.HospitalCargo.org.

The JMU ASCM Student Forum was made possible in part by Madison Trust donors. 

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Contact: Ginny Cramer, cramervm@jmu.edu