How Efficient Is the Sustainable Management of Healthcare Supply Chains of the United Nations Member States?

ABSTRACT Sustainable practices are essential for the long‐term viability of healthcare systems worldwide, making the study of healthcare supply chains crucial. This research evaluates the efficiency of sustainable healthcare supply chain management across United Nations (UN) Member States by integrating Sustainable Development Goal indicators with network Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). This methodological approach enables a detailed evaluation of efficiency by decomposing supply chains into interconnected stages, capturing the multidimensional nature of sustainability. Unlike traditional DEA models, network DEA accounts for internal interactions within supply chains, offering precise insights into inefficiencies at specific stages. The study reveals significant variability in supply chain efficiency, independent of human development levels, indicating that lower development indices do not preclude high efficiency when effective policies are implemented. Using data from the UN database, this analysis encompasses economic, environmental and social dimensions, challenging assumptions of a direct correlation between higher human development levels and supply chain efficiency. The findings highlight the importance of context‐specific strategies and provide novel insights into the drivers of efficiency, offering a robust framework for targeted improvements in global healthcare supply chains. The unexpected outperformance of some lower‐developed countries underscores the universal potential to achieve more sustainable and efficient healthcare supply chains.