3.05. Creating and viewing items

Creating a new item

In this section of the tutorial, we are going to add two new items to our mSupply database. From the navigator's opening screen, click on Item, the 3rd large icon on the top of the screen.

The following screen appears:

Click on the New item icon (the large “+”). You are presented with a window with a number of fields to enter:

Below is a list of fields and the text to be entered into each field. You can use Tab to move from field to field or, using the mouse, click on the field you want to edit.

Type: The default entry normal is shown in the drop-down list and should not be changed.

Item code: Enter amo500c.

Item name: Enter Amoxycillin 500mg tab/cap.

If you make a mistake, you can click in a field and edit the value.

Units: The default entry is None. The options are: unit, ea (for each), gm and ml.

Price list: Click in the box so a check appears in it. This means that when we export a price list, the price for this item will be included.

Shelf location: Enter a3. Amoxycillin is stored on shelf 3, section a of our imaginary store. Note that “A” is interpreted differently from “a”, so it is important to be consistent and use all upper case or all lower case letters for shelf locations.

Preferred pack size: Enter 100. This means we want a 100-unit pack to be our standard for comparing prices of this item.

Category: If a list of categories has been defined, this field allows the item which is being added to be placed in its appropriate category.

Normal stock, Critical stock, Essential drug, ATC category, DDD value, DDD factor, Weight, Non stock item, Default customer: For this tutorial, ignore these fields and leave them blank.

Click the OK & Next button to add this item to mSupply. The window's fields will clear allowing you to add a further item.

If you have no more items to add, click the OK button. If you accidentally click OK & Next and then want to exit, just click the Cancel button. The Amoxycillin 500mg tab/cap would still be entered, as it was saved when you pressed the OK & Next button.

Proceed to add a further item with the following details:

Field	Enter….
Item code	amo125s
Item name	Amoxycillin 125mg/5ml syrup
Units	mL
Price list	check the check box.
Shelf location	a7
Preferred pack size	60

Click OK now that you have added the item, then click Cancel to exit the window.

Congratulations! You have now added 2 items to our example data file. Let's go and see how to find them.

Viewing item details

Click on Show items from the navigator's Item panel.

You will be presented with a window to find items:

Type a into the text entry area, then click the Find button. A list of all the items whose name or code starts with “a” is shown.

We will choose the Amoxycillin 250mg tabs/caps - an item that was already in the example data file. To choose the item, double-click anywhere on its line in the window. You will now see a window that displays a lot of information about “Amoxycillin 250mg tab/caps”. You can see stock on hand, view and edit supplier quotations, view usage for the last 24 months, view backorders, and read and edit notes.

At this stage, we only want to know how to view the information. For an explanation of all the information displayed see 4.01.01. Items - General tab. When you have finished viewing the information, click the OK button to return to the list of items.

If you want to view a different item, you can double-click its line. Otherwise, click the X button in the top right corner (on Windows) or the top left corner (on a Mac) to exit and return to the navigator screen.

Previous: 3.04. Navigator | | Next: 3.06. Customers and suppliers