Buyer guide · Pharmacy software in Kenya
Choosing pharmacy software in Kenya.
A pharmacy carries obligations a general shop does not: prescriptions, controlled medicines, expiry dates and insurance claims sit on top of ordinary selling. This guide covers what pharmacy software should record, where SHA, M-Pesa and KRA eTIMS fit, and the questions to ask before you trust a system with a dispensing counter.
Who it fits
Who this is for, and who it is not.
Pharmacy tools differ from a general till in what they must keep. Decide whether you need the dispensing side at all.
A good fit if
- You dispense against prescriptions and want patient and prescriber details kept with the sale.
- You stock medicines with batches and expiry dates and need to see what is close to expiring.
- You keep a controlled-medicines register and want each entry recorded consistently.
- You claim from SHA or private insurers and want member, cover and copay details captured at the counter.
Probably not if
- You run a general shop with a small over-the-counter shelf and no dispensing. A retail till may be enough.
- You expect the software to certify your regulatory compliance for you. Software records the work; the statutory duty stays with the pharmacy.
- You need a hospital-wide clinical system. Pharmacy POS software is a narrower tool.
The working day
Walk the day before you buy.
Pharmacy software should follow a medicine from delivery to the patient. Check each stage keeps the records a pharmacy is expected to hold.
- Receive
Book stock in by batch
Record supplier, quantity, buying price, batch number and expiry date as medicines arrive.
- Dispense
Prepare the prescription
Keep patient, prescriber, medicine, dosage and refill details together before payment.
- Register
Record controlled items
Capture the medicine, patient, batch, quantity, prescriber and dispenser for controlled entries.
- Claim
Handle insurance at the counter
Capture SHA or private cover, the claimed amount and the patient copay at the point of dispensing.
- Sell
Take payment and close the sale
Move prepared items into the pharmacy POS, take the payment method and complete the sale.
Local and connected
What runs on the device, what needs the line.
A pharmacy counter cannot stop when the line drops. Know which parts sit in the local record and which reach outside.
Works on the device
- Dispensing, prescriptions and patient records.
- Batch and expiry stock, and the controlled register.
- Ringing up and printing a pharmacy sale.
- Reading the day's sales, stock and registers.
Needs a connection
- An M-Pesa STK push at the counter.
- KRA eTIMS submission, retried when the connection returns.
- Online SHA or private insurance checks where the provider requires them.
Platform facts
The same platform facts, whatever you sell.
These hold for every Omnix product. The licence is a one-time purchase, and the optional update plan is a separate choice.
- Platform
- Windows desktop (Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit)
- Works offline
- Core sales, stock and records use the local database on the computer
- Install
- Protected download from the customer dashboard after purchase
- Activation
- Each device activates its own licence
- Licence
- KES 30,000 one-time, per device, perpetual
- Compliance updates
- Optional KES 12,000 per year, not required to keep the licence working
Before you switch
Questions about moving your data.
A pharmacy carries more than a product list. Ask these before any record moves.
- Which medicines, batches, expiry dates and buying prices must be in place on day one?
- Do your current records hold patient and prescriber detail, or only product and price?
- How will controlled-register history be treated: keyed in, archived or left in the old book?
- Who confirms opening stock and balances before the first live dispense?
Questions for any vendor
Ask these before you commit.
Ask any pharmacy vendor these before you commit a dispensing counter to their software.
- Does it keep patient and prescriber details with the dispensed sale?
- Can it track batches and warn on expiry before stock is a loss?
- Does the controlled register capture the fields your pharmacy is expected to keep?
- How does it handle SHA and private insurance claims at the counter?
- Does it keep dispensing and stock working when the internet is down?
Where Omnix fits
Omnix Pharmacy
When the checklist is clear, look at the product built for a Kenyan dispensary.
Omnix Pharmacy keeps dispensing, pharmacy POS, batch and expiry stock, prescriptions, patient records and the controlled register in one local working record, with M-Pesa, KRA eTIMS and SHA or private insurance handled as connected steps. It provides the recordkeeping tools; your pharmacy stays responsible for its own procedures and statutory obligations.