PIMS Writeback allows Inventory Ally to automatically send supported inventory updates back to your Practice Information Management System with the Inventory Ally Essentials tier. Currently available for: ezyVet, VetSpire and Digitail PIMS.
This article walks through the complete Writeback setup process, including enabling the feature, creating Writeback mapping rules, configuring synchronization options, and reviewing Writeback history.
Depending on the Writeback settings you enable, Inventory Ally can writeback:
Inventory counts or approved quantities
Uploaded order history,
Cost increases over 5%,
Lot and expiry information back to supported PIMS integrations
Before configuring individual inventory items, ensure your hospital has access to PIMS Writeback, which is available with the Essentials tier.
Important: Although they work together, PIMS Mapping and PIMS Writeback serve two different purposes.
PIMS Mapping maps posted PIMS transactions so Inventory Ally can identify which inventory items are being sold.
PIMS Writeback sends supported inventory updates from Inventory Ally back to ezyVet and updates the corresponding PIMS products.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Sign in to your Inventory Ally account.
2. Go to Integrations.
3. Choose your Hospital.
4. Select your PIMS integration.
5. Open your hospital's PIMS settings and configure the default Writeback behavior.
Note: Hospital-level Writeback settings determine the default behavior for all Writeback mapping rules. You can choose whether new mapping rules automatically enable Orders, Quantity, and Cost Writeback, or whether those options remain off by default so each inventory item can be configured individually. This gives you more control over which items write back to your PIMS.
6. Open PIMS mapping tool, select the Writeback mapping rules tab, and click Add (+) button to create a new Writeback mapping.
7. Map the Inventory Ally item to the corresponding PIMS product.
For each rule, confirm the following:
The Inventory Ally item is matched to the correct PIMS product.
The unit of measurement (UOM) matches how the item is tracked in the PIMS. For example, if the product is tracked by tablet, use tablet; if it is tracked by bag, use bag.
If the item is batch tracked or lot tracked, enable Lot and Expiry so Inventory Ally can capture this information during receiving and write it back where supported.
Note: Always verify unit of measurement and mappings before enabling Quantity Writeback. Incorrect mappings can cause inaccurate inventory adjustments.
8. Configure the PIMS Writeback settings for the mapping rule.
Available settings may include:
Quantity writeback writes inventory count changes back to PIMS as quantity adjustments when a count is entered or an estimated quantity is approved.
Orders writeback writes uploaded orders back to PIMS as inventory adjustments.
Cost writeback writes updated costs back to PIMS when the unit cost increases by more than 5%, helping maintain accurate pricing and protect hospital margins.
Important: Writeback can be turned off without deleting the mapping rule. When Writeback is disabled, the mapping remains in place, but Inventory Ally will not synchronize inventory updates for that item until Writeback is enabled again.
9. Click Add mapping rule.
Note: If the hospital-level default Writeback behavior is set to off, the rule can still be created, but Writeback will not run until the relevant Writeback options are selected for that item.
10. Go to the PIMS mapping rules tab. Select the required entry from the list, and click the History button.
11. Review the PIMS Writeback history to verify successful synchronization.
The history displays details such as the Product ID, Writeback Date, Status, Type, and Destination. For example, if a quantity of 34 is entered in Inventory Ally, the history can show that the quantity was written back to ezyVet as a quantity adjustment.
If a Writeback fails, the failure is recorded in the history so you can review the affected product, destination, and Writeback type while troubleshooting.
What writes back to my PIMS?
When enabled for a mapped item, Inventory Ally can write the following supported updates back to ezyVet:
Inventory counts entered in Inventory Ally
Approved estimated quantities
Uploaded orders
Quantity adjustments
Waste activity, where supported
Cost increases over the current threshold of 5%
Lot and expiry details for applicable batch-tracked or lot-tracked items
Final notes
After completing these steps, Inventory Ally will automatically synchronize supported inventory updates with PIMS like ezyVet, VetSpire and Digitail based on the Writeback options you've configured. Use the PIMS Writeback history to confirm successful synchronization and review any failed Writeback attempts if troubleshooting is required.