UCSF Health operates a system of more than 1,200 beds, and California requires controlled substance reconciliation every quarter. Before ControlCheck, meeting that requirement meant reviewing controlled substance transactions by hand and matching vault activity against dispensing and administration records. The volume was heavy and the process was manual, so documentation audit time grew alongside caseload. Pharmacy staff spent 15.5 hours a week preparing records for review, hours that pulled them away from patient-facing work.
How the ControlCheck Pharmacy Module handles reconciliation
The Pharmacy Module reconciles vault activity against downstream records without a technician working line by line. It runs continuously rather than waiting for a quarterly push, which spreads the workload across the calendar instead of concentrating it. The same diversion monitoring software that flags suspicious activity also builds the audit trail UCSF needs for the state.
What the module does day to day:
- Matches controlled substance transactions from the vault against dispensing and administration data as they post
- Handles the routine work through auto-reconciling, so staff review exceptions rather than every record
- Keeps a defensible documentation trail ready for state and DEA review at any point in the quarter
- Surfaces discrepancies early, when they are easier to explain and resolve
What changed after implementation
ControlCheck now handles substance reconciliation for 95% of UCSF’s vault transactions, automatically. Documentation audit time dropped 74%, from 15.5 hours a week to 4. That recovered time went back to pharmacy staff, and the quarterly reconciliation stopped being a scramble against the deadline. The national diversion data shows how much manual review most systems still carry, which puts UCSF’s result in context.
Reducing manual work across the pharmacy
Pharmacy audit automation does more than save hours. It gives compliance teams a consistent record, reduces the chance of a missed discrepancy, and lets pharmacists apply their judgment where it counts. Health systems weighing the same shift can compare notes through the Diversion Collective, a peer community focused on controlled substance safety. Facilities that also track physical inventory through RFID medication management can close the loop between the shelf and the vault.
See how ControlCheck fits your controlled substance workflow. Download the full UCSF Health case study above, or request a demo to walk through the Pharmacy Module with our team.
