A product can sit on the shelf for months without being expired. That makes it easy to overlook: it is still counted as an asset, yet the cash used to buy it cannot pay this week's supplier bill.
A pharmacy dead-stock review should identify the next decision for each line, rather than produce a list nobody acts on. Use this 30-day plan to separate genuine slow movers from data errors and products deliberately held for a specific need.
Days 1–3: define the review rules
There is no universal number of days that turns every medicine into dead stock. Start with a documented review threshold suited to your range, then account for seasonality, product importance and planned demand.
Build a list with product, batch, usable quantity, unit cost, last movement date, recent demand, expiry and return deadline. “No recent sale” is a review signal, not an automatic instruction to stop stocking an important product.
Before analysing the list, correct duplicate products and unit conversions. Ten boxes entered as ten tablets can make a normally moving item appear understocked; the reverse can create a fictitious mountain of unsold stock.
Days 4–7: rank by money and time
Use quantity × unit cost to calculate cash tied up. A hypothetical line with 120 units at a cost of 15 holds 1,800 currency units of inventory. Review high-value lines first, particularly where a supplier return window closes soon.
Estimate stock cover only where recent demand is representative. If demand is two units weekly, 120 units represent approximately 60 weeks of cover. If the batch expires in 20 weeks, the mismatch needs attention. With zero demand, mark cover as “not meaningful” rather than divide by zero.
Do not label all the 1,800 as a realised loss. It is inventory cost at risk; a write-off, return credit or eventual sale changes the financial outcome.
Days 8–14: assign one action per line
Use an action table:
| Decision | Evidence needed | Owner | Next date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stop unnecessary reordering | Demand and incoming orders | Buyer | Weekly review |
| Request supplier return | Written terms, batch and invoice | Purchaser | Before deadline |
| Retain a justified reserve | Documented reason and review date | Responsible professional | Monthly |
| Correct the record | Count and movement evidence | Reviewer | This week |
A supplier may reject a return or issue partial credit. Do not book a request as recovered cash. Only consider any lawful commercial transfer with appropriate authorisation and traceability; this plan does not recommend informal movement of medicines between shops.
Avoid pushing unnecessary medicines simply to clear inventory. Clinical need, authorised supply and product condition come before stock reduction.
Days 15–30: verify the outcome
Record what actually happened: return accepted, credit note received, reorder stopped or stock retained with a reason. Count the affected lines again and reconcile the supplier account.
Track three figures separately: opening inventory cost under review, inventory cost removed from usable stock and credits actually received. They should not be merged into a single “money saved” number.
Schedule a follow-up review. If the same items return to the list, examine minimum-stock settings, purchasing incentives, duplicate brands and ordering habits. The permanent improvement is fewer unsuitable purchases, not repeated emergency clearance.
For developers, keep “last sale,” “last stock movement” and “last receipt” distinct. A recent adjustment does not establish customer demand. Show an explanation for why a line was flagged, with an override reason and expiry-aware batch detail.
RunMyPharmacy's inventory-management pages and expiry-tracking workflow can help you evaluate the records you need. This is a manual review plan, not a promise of automated dead-stock scoring.
Disclosure: written for the RunMyPharmacy team with AI drafting assistance and an editorial check of examples, links and product claims. We build the linked product. Examples are hypothetical; worksheets and illustrative software-design advice are not guarantees of product automation.
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