The receiving process for totes at pharmacies from wholesalers hasn’t changed much over the past 25 or more years.… Physical packages reconciled to a printed manifest/order. Quantities checked. Verification that nothing is damaged. Inspection to see if anything is already expired. Data entry into a pharmacy inventory system. Even if there are some issues, the medicines get put into stock. 

Starting this November with Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) enforcement, pharmacies will need à confirm that the serial number of the drug received matches the serial number that was sent electronically for the transaction. This means pharmacies must be equipped with a digital system to receive these files from wholesalers, plus an in-pharmacy tool to scan and verify. 

What if things don’t match? This creates a “misalignment exception”, which will need to be resolved before the drug can be put on the shelf for dispense. It is QUARANTINED—though perfectly good— because there is a data issue.  

Pharmacies had better be TESTING their misalignment exception response now, to minimize the length of time they might have drugs in a quarantine state due to data-related issues.   

Don’t wait. Systech’s UniTrace® DSCSA pour distributeurs has an optional module that will help automate the exception handling process with suppliers when they inevitably occur.