Every little bit counts!

Sometimes Public health is glamorous.  Other times you end up in a warehouse, with an Excel spreadsheet, counting toothbrushes to Adele.

 Does this sound familiar?  Inventory.

I have never done inventory in my life so naturally I decided to lead this project. My ambition is due perhaps to a few reasons. First, I love organization. Second, it really needed to be done.  Third, it gave me the opportunity to geek out and make a really cool spreadsheet.  (I am now secretly hoping no one reads this blog).

I didn't really think I was a researcher until I realized how much I liked data.  But it is actually not the data that is interesting - it is the story that it tells.  For example the inventory of medications and supplies for Floating Doctors currently tells us what we have in stock.  My new spreadsheet elaborates on this data and will tell a bit more.  Once all the data is entered, we can track how much medication is used every month, which will tell us about the types of diseases are being encountered.  The new inventory spreadsheet will have targets amounts of each medication so we can quickly see which medications we are running short on and order more.  This information will help prioritize our requests for donated medications.  Later, I envision that we can use the inventory spreadsheet  to help locate items in the warehouse.  Which will help speed up future inventory counts, locate medication that is kept in small supply and will help new volunteers locate medication quickly.

Inventory!