Table 1 System requirements

Sourcing

Once the commodities from the national medical store arrive at the healthcare facility, record item details such as names, quantities, expiry dates, arrival times

Supply Chain Management (SCM)

Item coding

Assign unique codes to identify commodities so that users can easily pull-out records for each item for detailed analysis and audits

Dispatching

Capture quantities of products dispatched to wards such as the MCH unit and the lab. Record logs of dispensed commodities to capture consumption rates

Inventory management

Capture up-to-date sourcing and dispensing records. Aggregate logs to generate monthly transaction reports. Let warehouse managers manually override and adjust inventory levels and record it with reasons to keep transparency

Determination of order quantities

Suggest order quantity for each health product. Store managers can refer to the suggested order. Forecasted order quantities generated can be used directly as the order

Electronic Medical Record (EMR)

Patient record

Contains all information about the patient, such as admissions, prescriptions, diagnoses, lab results, antenatal records, and deliveries. Prescriptions are used to calculate consumption rates of health products

Ministry of Health (MOH) Monthly reports

Generate monthly reports in standardized formats as required by Uganda MOH

Demand Sensing Integration

Lab dispensing log

Besides EMR (patient data) and SCM (inventory data), record daily activities in the labs: number of tests and patients, number not performed due to lack of supplies, and quantity of supplies and reagents used

Integration

Triangulate consumption and sourcing data from labs, stores, and MCH units with patient data to forecast and generate purchase orders automatically