VAMS Inventory Management

Clinic administrators and inventory managers can use inventory management features in VAMS to manage their clinic’s vaccine inventory. This quick reference sheet will provide guidance on how to place, track, log, reduce, and monitor vaccine inventory levels.

Place Inventory Requests

You can place, view, and manage your inventory requests on the Inventory tab in VAMS. To place an inventory request, you’ll need to know your desired product type, the number of doses you want to request, which type of dose you want to request, and the date by which you need to receive the requested inventory. The Inventory tab also shows you a list of all inventory requests you’ve submitted. This list includes a system-generated inventory request number, product type (vaccine type) requested, manufacturer, date requested and required by, number of doses requested, status, and  notes.

• Click the Inventory tab on your clinic’s home page.
• Click the Drop-Down Arrow in the Inventory Requests window.
• Click New Request.
• The Create Site Inventory Request pop-up window includes several required fields (noted by a red asterisk).
• Select the desired Vaccine Type from the drop-down menu.
  • After selecting the vaccine type, select the desired Manufacturer and Product from their respective drop-down menus.

• Enter the Number of Vaccine Doses you are requesting.
• Enter the Date of your inventory request.
• Enter the Date by which you want to receive the doses you are requesting.
• Your clinic’s name will auto-populate in the clinic field. If you wish to change the clinic selection, click the “X” in the field to select from a list of clinics to which you are assigned.
• If desired, you can add a note for the jurisdiction POC in the Clinic Notes field.
• Click Save to save your inventory request. VAMS will send your request to your jurisdiction POC.

Track Inventory Requests

After your inventory request is submitted, a record of that request appears on the Inventory tab in the Inventory Requests window. The inventory request record shows important details about the request. It also offers a way to monitor and communicate with the jurisdiction POC.

• Click the Inventory Request Number hyperlinked in the list to access the inventory request record.

From the inventory request record, you can:

• View Inventory Request Details. This section of the record has details about the inventory request.
• Communicate with the jurisdiction POC. Send the jurisdiction POC a message by typing in the Post box and clicking Share.
• Monitor or follow comments made to your posts. Like you would on a social media platform, click the Follow button to receive email notifications when the jurisdiction POC responds to a post you make in the inventory request record. You will not receive notifications for new posts.

Log Vaccine Inventory

• On the Inventory tab, click the Manually Log Inventory button.
• For SLV/VFC Clinics: select a Funding Source from the drop-down menu.
  • NOTE: The drop-down selections for the Manufacturer and Product fields will only display values that match the funding source selection.

• Select the Vaccine Type, Manufacturer, and Product from the drop-down menus. Enter the remaining required vaccine information.
  • NOTE: A warning message will appear on the Manually Log Inventory Review screen under the Expiration Date field if the inventory expiration date is in the past, but VAMS will not prevent you from logging the inventory.
• Click Next.
• Review and confirm the information you entered is correct, then click Next.
• Click Finish in the pop-up window.

Reduce Vaccine Inventory

• On the Inventory tab click the Manually Reduce Inventory 
• Select the Vaccine Type, Manufacturer, and Product from the drop-down menus. Enter the remaining vaccine information.
• The expiration date will auto-populate and cannot be changed.
• Select a Reason for reduction.
• Enter the Number of Doses Reduced, then click Next.
  • NOTE:VAMS will not allow you to reduce more inventory than you have on hand.
• Review and confirm the information you entered is correct, then click Next.
• Click Finish in the pop-up window.

Monitor Vaccine Inventory Levels

Clinic administrators and inventory managers can use the Inventory tab to monitor COVID-19, Mpox, and routine inventory levels and view snapshots of available and booked appointments. This page gives you a complete view of important information about your vaccine inventory level.

Select a Vaccine Type from the Vaccine Type drop down menu to view a snapshot of the following information for the chosen vaccine type:

• The number of appointments available at your clinic over the next 28 days (including the current day).
• The total number of appointments booked at your clinic.
• The total number of vaccine doses your clinic has in its on-hand vaccine inventory*.

*The total on-hand inventory data on this page comes from the inventory you log and reduce in VAMS as well as what your clinic healthcare professional logs during vaccine administration. The healthcare professional’s method of logging inventory and waste is similar to yours. They can either scan a 2D barcode or log the information manually.

NOTE: For a more detailed inventory report, see the Clinic Data Reports Quick Reference Sheet or one of the Clinic Administrator User Manuals for how to access the Inventory-Vaccine Level Report. Since inventory managers do not have access to the Clinic Data tab, they cannot view the Inventory-Vaccine Level Report.