Hospital pharmacies face a difficult trade-off when managing compounded medications. Outsourcing to 503B compounders offers convenience and longer shelf-life, but at up to three times the cost of in-house compounding. In-house compounding, on the other hand, is more economical, but it requires staff time and comes with tighter beyond-use-dates, driving waste rates of 11-17%. Even organizations that rely heavily on outsourced compounded drugs often find themselves doing last-minute compounding when inventory levels unexpectedly drop.
RFID tracking can help teams better assess their compounding needs by making it easier to plan what needs to be compounded, where to restock, and when to transfer inventory to avoid waste. Historically, however, RFID tracking has come with its own burden: manually applying RFID tags to every compounded item after labels are printed.
KitCheck Anywhere is eliminating that extra step entirely with its new printer integration. Now, within the existing compounding workflow, labels come out of the printer RFID-ready and automatically registered in KitCheck Anywhere, meaning compounded medications are ready to track the moment labels are applied.
Visibility Without the Extra Work
The printer integration works with RFID-capable printers to pre-encode RFID labels as they’re printed from an organization’s existing compounding software. Each unit’s NDC and batch data is automatically sent to the KitCheck Anywhere application and registered, without additional steps.
Bringing compounded inventory into KitCheck Anywhere means better visibility and control throughout the medication lifecycle. It also supports:
- Reducing waste: With real-time visibility into what compounded inventory exists, where it’s located, and when it expires, pharmacy teams can identify and use items before they expire
- Improving inventory planning: Tracking compounded medications alongside other RFID-managed inventory gives teams a more complete picture of what’s on hand as well as insight into usage patterns
- Shifting more compounding in-house: Predictable inventory means fewer emergency outside orders and more compounding done in-house at a fraction of the cost
Part of a Bigger Vision for Seamless Tracking
Over 60% of hospital pharmacies batch compound syringes and IV bags, and the cost of expired inventory adds up quickly. Hospitals using KitCheck Anywhere have cut waste from expired medications by 86-100%, thanks to real-time visibility into what’s on hand, where it’s located, and when it expires.
The printer integration makes that same visibility even easier to achieve by folding into the compounding workflow pharmacy teams already follow. Instead of choosing between the cost of 503B compounding and the waste from in-house batches, pharmacy teams can make in-house compounding more efficient, reduce waste, and free up capacity for the work that matters most.
Current KitCheck customers can contact their Bluesight Customer Success Manager or email help@bluesight.com to learn how to enable the printer integration.