How do I perform an Inventory Count in 4.0?
This page was created for VetView 4.0 on 4/14/2023 and has been updated to reflect changes in VetView 4.2 on 1/25/2024.
How do I perform an Inventory Count?
The Inventory Count screen is intended for daily or weekly verification of local inventory at the Inventory Location level.
The count can be performed directly within VetView on this screen in a single step, or it can be performed on paper by printing out the Inventory Count, letting an orderly or tech hand record the numbers on the list, and then having a different person enter them later in a two step process.
How do I start a new Inventory Count?
To start a new Inventory Count, click on the New Inventory Count button.
Select the Inventory Area and Inventory Location for which you will be performing the count. The Counted By and Date Counted fields will be pre-populated with your username and the current date and time.
Click on the Save button to create the Inventory Count and load the Inventory Count by Area screen.
An Inventory Count is assigned a unique Count No. that will follow it throughout the life of the count, until it is deleted.
Count at the Smallest Level in a Tree: While it is possible to count at higher levels within an Inventory location, we recommend performing a separate count for each of the lowest levels within an inventory tree. The aggregate numbers will roll up to each higher level. This breaks the counts up into smaller tasks and allows for better accuracy withing each sub location / sub zone.
How do I perform an inventory count?
This process may vary by your hospital's policies. The general practice will be to physically go to the Inventory Area or Inventory Location, identify the product in the location, and manually count the correct inventory remaining.
Items are counted in Sales units on this screen.
As you identify and fill in each line item, you can enter in an expiration date if there is no one present.
If you cannot find a specific product in the location, enter in a 0 to indicate the item is out of stock. (You can leave the expiration date blank.)
Items which have been counted will display a check mark on the left most column.
If you have to pause the Inventory Count process, you can click on the Save button to keep your progress, and come back to the Inventory Count at a later time. (This is also the process to use if you will be printing out the list and providing it to another person to perform the count.)
After filling out all the rows on one page, you can click on the Pagination button at the bottom to move to the next page, if there are multiple pages to count.
Changes between pages will be stored in the background. You can navigate back and forth as needed until you have completed the count.
How do I enter in multiple expiration dates for the same item?
If a line item in the Inventory Count has multiple expiration dates, such as one box that expires earlier than another, you can Split Count Item to create a second line item for the same inventory count entry, and enter a second expiration date.
You can also use this feature to move around inventory within the same Inventory Area without performing a formal Inventory Transfer Request. For example, if you will be taking some of the item out of a closet and moving it up to the front desk for display as part of the Inventory Count task, you can update the location of that portion of the item in this window.
Save first! The Split Count Item feature does not load the values until the item has had a count value entered and saved. If you are seeing an Original Value of 0, double check the row and verify you have a counted quantity entered.
Right click and select Split Count Inventory, or click on the inventory menu at the right end of the row to open the menu instead.
The Split/Merge Dialog box will open.
Enter in the correct quantity for each expiration date, and the Lot/Serial/NDC when appropriate.
The system will validate the total Qty at the bottom in the Current Total Qty section. (If the total is more than expected, it will be highlighted in red.)
After clicking on the Save button, the Inventory Count by Area screen will display two rows of inventory for the item with the unique attributes for each one.
How do I indicate that an expired product will be discarded?
Expired or damaged products can be removed after splitting using the Inventory Adjustment feature.
In this example, a split count has one row entry that has expired and the product must be removed. Select the Add Inventory Adjustment option from the right click or right column menu for the row you want to adjust.
Verify it is the correct row, and select the Type of adjustment. Enter in any comments, and then click on the Save button.
The Inventory Adjustment will be recorded on the Inventory Transaction log, and the new total Adjusted Quantity will appear in the Inventory Count field for that item.
What do I do if I find a product in the Inventory Area that wasn't on my list?
If you find a product that wasn't in the list, you can manually add it to the Inventory Area to include it in the count.
Click on the Add Product button.
The Add/Modify Inventory window will open for you to add the missing product.
Once saved, the item will appear as a new row with the count already entered.
How do I find an inventory count that I previously started?
Once an Inventory Count has been started and saved at least once, it is stored in the system as a historical record. If you must pause during a count, you can retrieve it to complete it later.
The easiest way to find an inventory count that you started previously is to search by your username in the Counted By field.
A list of all inventory counts created by that username will appear in the Inventory Count List below. The Status and Location will also appear to help ensure you are choosing the correct Inventory Count to continue.
Click on the Count No. to open the Inventory Count and resume the workflow.
How do I finish a count that another person started?
If you have been tasked with completing an Inventory Count started and created by another user, you can look it up based on other search criteria, such as a date range, the status, or the Inventory Area.
For example, if you know an inventory count was started for an inventory area during the last week of March, but you don't know who started it, you can search for Inventory Counts in the status of Working for that inventory area during that date range, and find the correct result.
As long as you are a member of the hospital unit with inventory management privileges, you can complete any count started by another person in your unit.
How do I restart a count that is no longer valid?
If an Inventory Count was started but additional inventory transfers were performed against the Inventory Area since then, you can Reset the count and start over since many entries will have to be rechecked anyway.
How do I delete an inventory count that isn't necessary?
You can also delete a second count that was accidentally started for an area that already had an active count in process.
Select the Inventory Count you want to delete, and then click Delete Inventory Count.
The system will prompt you to confirm that you want to delete the count, and then remove it.
How do I complete an inventory count?
After you have updated all the rows on the Inventory Count, click on the Complete Count button to change the Inventory Count from Working status to Completed status.
If all the rows have updated values, the Inventory Count will transition and all the inventories will be updated automatically.
If rows were left blank, you will get a warning message that asks if you want to change the blank values to 0.
Once the status has changed to Completed, the Inventory Count can no longer be modified.