ABC-VED Analysis of Drugs Procured in the Drug Store of a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital

Drug inventory system is an essential component of a healthcare system as it assists in procurement of drugs in adequate amounts at the right time at minimal cost. The methods utilized are Always, Better and Control (ABC), Vital, Essential and Desirable (VED) and Matrix of ABC-VED.

Information on medications procured in the hospital during the financial year 2022-2023 was evaluated. The drugs were classified as VED depending on the National list of essential medicines (NLEM) and local hospital formulary. These drugs were analysed as per ABC, VED and ABC-VED matrix.

31,221,421 INR (Indian rupee) is the Average Drug Expenditures (ADE) for 225 drug items purchased. Categories A, B, and C comprised 12.89%, 23.12%, and 64% of the total drugs, constituting 63.55%, 23.55%, and 12.88% of the hospital's ADE, respectively. Items categorized as VED constituted 23.56%, 52.89%, and 23.56% of the total drugs, constituting 25.88%, 44.62%, and 25.88% of ADE, respectively. According to ABC-VED matrix analysis, the items in categories 1, 2, and 3 comprised 41.78%, 44.89%, and 13.34% of the total drugs constitute 79.29%, 17.55%, and 2.08% of ADE, respectively.

The ABC-VED matrix analysis seems to be the best approach to adequate inventory management.