Any inventory management software is only good as the data within it. In some OBL or ASC facilities that task is often more challenging than in many other inventory-centric businesses due to the atypical scenarios that can occur with items. You may have a rep drop off an item; you may have received a promotional item included with a standard delivery; a replacement item may have been issued but the original item is still on your shelves; an extended period of time may pass between items from an order being delivered due to backorder; you may receive a complimentary item for purpose of a trial. Or myriad of other scenarios.
It’s critical to find a way to standardize these non-standard scenarios, to ensure the life cycle of the item is represented in AMSHub. In a scenario where an item is provided free-of-charge by a rep you might think you can just put it on a shelf, or take it straight into a case. The problem arises when the procedure is being tracked in AMSHub and someone scans the barcodes of all the items used in the case. The new item won’t match because it was never entered into inventory and if the choice is made to again just skip the tracking, you’ve now compromised the data in relation to the procedure. Additionally, reporting is also compromised because excluding that item would skew reports that look at items used per case, number of items used per doctor and across the facility, etc.
This is just one example of how you can inadvertently undermine the integrity of data. The solution is to use the existing tools to get every item into inventory as your first step. One of the easy differentiators to consider in these scenarios, is if there is a cost associated to the item. If there is, than regardless of how the item was received, you can simply add it into inventory. It is unlikely this is something you placed an order for, so you won’t use the Delivery area. Instead, you’re simply going to use the Inventory tools to add another item instance to the general item details.
To manually add an item, go to Inventory and scan the barcode or find the item in the list. Select EDIT to access the item details for change. In the Items In Inventory area, click into the blank Lot Number field at the bottom of the list and scan the item’s barcode, or manually enter the lot number and expiration date. The last column of item data is the No$ field. This is a key tool for adding items that may have arrived in unique fashion. No$ means this is a no cost item. Clicking this box for your new item means this was an item provided without cost from the vendor and will use modified rules for this item throughout its life cycle. Select the checkbox as needed and click the SAVE button for your new item. You’ve now placed the item into inventory and regardless of how it was received, it will be tracked and appear as a standard item for the rest of its use within your facility.
Manually Add Item
Making sure all items are included in your inventory will ensure they can correctly be assigned to a procedure when used and will correctly be featured in all of the future reporting. Reinforce the importance of correctly tracking all items and your data will thank you for it!