I was wondering if anyone uses MediTech and are already started doing bed side scanning? We are starting this process and have ran into a few problems. What U.D. system do you use to pack items that are not already unit dosed? We use Milt/Medi dose and we seem to have a lot of items that will not scan into MediTech. Perhaps we need to use a different format. If you have a system that works --I would love to hear from you.
How do you handle items that do not have a bar-code on them? I seem to have a lot of items without a bar-code.
Any help I can get would be wonderful.

Name of Facility: WILSON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL

City, State: ACUTE CARE

Years as a Buyer: 20+

We have Meditech but haven't started bedside scanning yet. We are also moving in the next few months to packaging everything in house so that we can control the barcode... (We use the Auto-print II and Fluidose from Medical Packaging)

What we've found is that you can't have a different NDC than what's in Meditech because Meditech will only let you assign 1 NDC code to each item. So if that NDC is out, then you have to update Meditech before you package it so that the system will match up. It's going to be a nightmare for our IT guy, but atleast it will keep the NDC's current in Meditech. Right now most of ours are Mfr Dis. NDC's because it's been years since they updated anything.

City, State: Teaching hospital

Years as a Buyer: 2

We have been bedside scanning for years now and it really aides in getting the right patient/right medication equation correct.To make barcodes, we use an Intermec Barcode machine that prints out barcodes, for pills we unit dose them with the pill packaging machine from Medical Packaging Inc. I do try to buy medications that are on contract and have a clear readable barcode. Keep in mind that there are different styles of barcodes too. There is a straight across barcode and a stacked barcode and not all barcode reading systems read both. Usually it is one style or the other.

One of the biggest issues we face is if we change or have to buy a different brand for some reason and do not get the new bar code in the system. This creates issues when it reaches the floor because it will not scan.

Name of Facility: St. Francis health Center

City, State: Acute

Years as a Buyer: 4+ in Pharmacy 25 in retail hard goods

We are getting ready to impliment bedside scanning over the next few months. We have not started entering the NDC's yet, but there is a spot on page 4 of the Meditech pharmacy drug dictionary for alternate NDC's, shouldn't that take care of having multiple brands? cause otherwise you would have to make sure everything you have in house is the same NDC, which sounds like a pain and a waste of money and time for pharmacy.

Name of Facility: Emanuel Medical Center

Years as a Buyer: 2

There is a way to have several NDC codes in place with the Meditech system. I talked to the gentleman that takes care of our system here and he said that we can have 20 different tablets in the system for the same drug and it would work and we would be able to scan all of them. I had asked him this because sometimes I can't get in the product I normally carry because of a backorder, etc and would be forced to purchase a new NDC code product. Check with the person that programs your system for you and have them check into this. The system does allow for multiple NDCs for each drug.

Years as a Buyer: 16+ tech 33

Just trying to figure out the bar-coding system--but don't you think the medication ID generated by the in-house computer system would work?

Our facility has Meditech Magic as our hospital operating system. We went with Bedside Medication Verification system back in September 2005.
Prior to go-live I had to change my purchasing habits so to speak so that I was purchasing more bar-coded products even though they were a little pricy.
For products that were not available with a bar-code example suppositories and a lot of injections at that time including Zofran injection we purchased a program with MPI (Medical packaging INC.) and bought a Zebra printer which made bar-codes labels.
We also bought a new packager from MPI which packaged bulk into UD with bar-codes.
If for some reason we bought multiple brands for the same item we linked all the brands (different NDCs) to one entry.
Our bedside medication verification is working very well and have averted a lot of errors.

Name of Facility: DELNOR COMMUNITY HOSPITAL

Years as a Buyer: 4

How do you handle liquids that do not come in unit dose? Do you use a system or pull up into syringes and label?
I have noticed several systems out there--not sure what to consider.

Name of Facility: WILSON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL

City, State: ACUTE CARE

Years as a Buyer: 20+

We are manually drawing up all of our liquids. These labels are generated through Meditech, have patient names and also have bar-codes.

Name of Facility: DELNOR COMMUNITY HOSPITAL

Years as a Buyer: 4

We manually draw up into syringes or small bottles and label using a seperate label machine for barcodes. How do you use meditech to generate the barcode label on medication patient labels? Was not aware that you could do this through Meditech except for the IV labels.

Name of Facility: Grandview Medical Center

Years as a Buyer: 2

Our information systems are working on the patient labels (and IV labels) to have a bar-code when we send up a medication.
I asked her about it and she said that once she has it working she can give you the ins and of it all.

Name of Facility: WILSON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL

City, State: ACUTE CARE

Years as a Buyer: 20+

Thank You! That would be great. Just let me know when she gets it figured out and I will let my people know how to do it. That would work out so much better to have the barcode on the actual patient label too. Hey, I kinda like this forum thing. LOL

Name of Facility: Grandview Medical Center

Years as a Buyer: 2