Pay attention to the "minor" details of computer inventory

This article discusses some of the problems one hospital encountered in going from an effective manual system of inventory control to a computerized system. Problems occurred because of a lack of attention to minor details. The hospital had difficulty standardizing abbreviations, selecting and assigning proper units of measure, assigning identification (catalog) numbers and selecting concise product descriptions to enter on the computers. Ridding the system of these frustrating, 'insignificant' items took a lot of work and about 18 months of corrective action. Although the system works fairly well now, working hours would have been more productive had more attention been paid to details. Anyone contemplating the move from a manual to a computerized system, or from one system to another, should read this article.