Pharmacy Tracking To Wards
DeliveryPoD Pharmacy Track is an off the shelf solution that can be configured to track the delivery of Prescriptions to Hospital Wards and theatres as well as to outlying GP Surgeries (click here for separate section).
The following are the key elements:
- Produce Tracking Barcode for Prescription
Select the Ward / Department
Enter and User Defined Data (such as Patient Name, Number)
Select the Service (e.g. Standard, Urgent)
Enter What is being tracked (we support lookup tables, so you can scan the product barcode and the description is entered for you)
All the above data is associated with the Tracking Barcode
You can now search on any field on the Website and find all matching items – e.g. “Lisiniprol Tom Spence Intensive” will show all prescriptions for “Lisiniprol” for “Tom Spence” in “Intensive” Care.
Ward and Theatre staff can also be given access to the website (with restrictive view – only Prescriptions for their Ward / Theatre) and search in the same manner.
- Optional – Track through Screening and Production Stages
If you wish we can set up Tracking Stages to track the Prescription through the production process. This normally uses fixed station barcode readers or low cost Android phones / tablets. The typical steps are:- Screening
- Into Production
- Into Quality Assurance
- Passed Quality Assurance
- Scan into Delivery Bag / Trolley
- Deliver to Ward (obtain name and signature)
- Ability to record failed delivery attempts
- Ability to record failed delivery attempts
- Full Audit Trail from Start to Finish (who, what, when, names, signatures, photographs)
- Web Access for Pharmacy / Delivery Staff
- Web Access for Wards / Theatres
- You can give user names and passwords to wards, so they can see items for them from the moment the tracking label is produced
- Rather than phone you, they can simply check themselves
- No Cost Per Person
- You can give user names and passwords to wards, so they can see items for them from the moment the tracking label is produced
- Automatic Email Alerts
- Prescription is in danger of being late (you set the timing)
- Prescription is late by X minutes
- Controlled Drug is X minutes late – potentially a crucial warning
- Failed Delivery Attempt
- Email to person who ordered, if somebody else signs for their item or it is delivered to a location
- Prescription is in danger of being late (you set the timing)
- Management Reporting
- KPI / Service Level Reporting
- Active Lateness Prevention Tools
Delivery Tracking to GP Surgeries
The system can be expanded to cater for tracking Prescriptions to GP Surgeries. In fact we have multiple customers that do this.
If using your own vehicles, this might be solely for Pharmacy Supplies or they could be Multi-Use trips where you perhaps deliver NHS Supplies and Pharmacy, then pick up Pathology Samples for the Pathology Lab (by carrying out multiple functions, the cost of sending a van to a GP Surgery can be spread over multiple contracts).
Typically the Driver:
- Loads the Van by selecting the Vehicle, then scanning all the Individual Prescriptions or Containers (roll cages or bags with multiple prescriptions in)
- When they arrive at a GP Surgery, they might typically scan a Location Barcode (which records the GP Surgery and Location in the building, then:
- Scan all the items being delivered
- Scan any items coming back
- Obtain a Name and Signature
- Scan all the items being delivered
If you are using a Third Party Courier, you can either issue them with the mobile computers or instead have a Tracking Stage that scans all items onto the Courier, obtain Name and Signature, so now the responsibility has passed to that third party and you have a full audit trail.
The GP Surgeries can be given access to the system, so that they can see all items for their practice (as soon as the tracking labels are produced).
Delivering to Patients at Home
The system can cater for the delivery of Prescriptions to patients at home. It is a similar process to delivering to GP Surgeries, but you are delivering to patients at home.
Mobile and Desk Tracking
DeliveryPoD allows you to track using Mobile Computers when you need mobility as well as a fixed station kit (USB Connected Barcode Scanner, Signature Pad and Web Cam) for use on PC’s / Laptops etc.
The mobile devices can send their data via Wireless LAN or 3G/4G but will store and data collected whilst out of coverage and send it automatically when the user comes back into coverage or connects it to a desk cradle.
Web Based Tracking
You can grant access to both Pharmacy Staff as well as Wards / Theatres, who use a Web Browser already on their PC, Laptop, Tablet or Phone to gain access.
Each User Name / Password issued can be set to allow:
- Access to all Items
For Pharmacy / Delivery Staff - Items for a Specific Person
- Items for a Specific Ward / Theatre
This allows you to grant access to Wards / Theatres so their staff can answer their own queries online, rather than phoning the Pharmacy Team.
THE TRACKING PROCESS
This varies a fair bit depending on customer and where you are delivering.
If you are using a Ward Bag (Envopak) or Roll Cage you may wish to scan the individual item barcodes onto a Master Barcode which is then used to scan all the associated items through a particular tracking stage.
This is typically used to scan Bags / Roll Cages through either all of the journey (in which case you deliver by scanning the Master Barcode) or part of the journey (perhaps load onto trolley or vehicle, scan into a builing), followed by the Bag / Roll Cage being opened and the individual item barcodes being used to track each item to its own specfic delivery point / person.
The tracking stages set up, vary customer by customer, but here are a few examples:
- Load Trolley
- Scan Trolley Barcode / Select Trolley
- Scan Items onto Trolley
- Deliver with Trolley
- Scan Trolley Barcode / Select Trolley – this downloads a manifest so the user has a list of Delivery Points (Wards) and Items on Trolley
- User Scans first item for Ward
- Mobile Computer shows other items for Ward and invites the user to scan them off. Once done, they obtain a name and signature.
- At any time they can see the remaining list of Wards and Items.
- Scan other items for this ward
- Obtain Name and Signature, which is applied to all items scanned
- Scan Trolley Barcode / Select Trolley – this downloads a manifest so the user has a list of Delivery Points (Wards) and Items on Trolley
- Deliver By Hand
- Scan Barcode
- Obtain Name and Signature
- Customer Collects
- Scan Barcodes
- Obtain Name and Signature
Consolidation Into Ward Bags
A question we often get asked is can I put all the individual prescriptions into a Sealed Bag for a Ward and then track that bag with a Single Barcode Scan?
Yes, we use a concept called the “Bag Barcode” which works as follows:
- Produce Individual Prescription Barcodes as you go along
- The Prescriptions can be placed into the bag
- When the bag is ready to be sealed, you scan all the Prescription Barcodes, then a Bag Barcode is printed and the bag can be sealed
- From that moment on:
- If you scan the Bag Barcode, all individual Prescriptions inside are deemed to have gone through that Tracking Stage (normally Scan Onto Trolley then Deliver to Ward)
- You can open the bag at any point and scan Individual Prescription Barcodes to track those Individual Prescriptions onwards. For example you could have a follow on tracking stage in a Ward / Theatre of “Allocated to Ward” or “Issued to Patient”
- If you scan the Bag Barcode, all individual Prescriptions inside are deemed to have gone through that Tracking Stage (normally Scan Onto Trolley then Deliver to Ward)
A couple of other points are worth mentioning:
- If you absolutely have to prove each Individual Prescription has been delivered, you need to scan each Individual Prescription Barcode when you deliver. The reason is that you need to prove nobody has taken a Prescription out of the Bag between the bag being loaded and delivered
- Using a Sealed Bag is one approach – where a seal is put onto the bag after the Individual Prescriptions have been scanned and the Bag Barcode has been produced.
Staff are then asked to check that the seal is in place when they are tracking. The mobile computers have a “Damage” button, which allows you to report “Seal Broken” and take a Photograph (optional). This records this against all Individual Prescriptions and appears on their Tracking Reports. We would also normally set up an Automatic Email Request so that a Supervisor is alerted as soon as possible to the potential tampering / missing prescription possibility.