Dose tracking will be increasingly crucial as health care continues to experience change, since providers must effectively manage patient treatment and protect valuable prescriptions. But how can doctors effectively implement dose tracking in their practice or facility?
In its basic form, dose tracking is simply knowing where every dose is at any given moment. This ideally involves assigning a unique identification number to each dose, and then using that number to track dose movement into and out of the office. In theory dose tracking can be done manually using Excel or pen and paper, but this can quickly become inadequate given the sheer volume of dispensing in, for example, a retina injection practice, ambulance service unit, or veterinary clinic.
A better solution is to use powerful inventory management software that has the ability to track thousands of doses. The best systems create unique barcodes for each dose that can be scanned when the dose is first received from shipping (“scanned in”), or dispensed to a patient (“scanned out”). Medical inventory software can track expiration dates and supply levels and alert you when it’s time to reorder. Some programs even tell you how much to order to avoid overstocking doses that could be lost or expire on the shelf.
Technology has advanced so that secure and easy to use medical inventory software with dose tracking is now more affordable than ever. The best vendors will offer cloud-based solutions so your staff is not distracted with having to maintain a locally installed system, and also convenient installment payment plans that avoid a large upfront cost. Investing in an effective inventory software with dose tracking should be seen as an investment in your practice’s future since you will have a tool that can prevent many of the costs and difficulties that face many providers.As health care continues to change and present challenges to providers, dose tracking will become increasingly crucial for effective practice management. With the right software tools, you can ensure your practice stays on a path of healthy performance for many years to come.
