What’s the best way to store medication inventory data on a single computer?

Security is especially important here. If the data could identify patients or reveal their medication, don’t treat it like an ordinary project file. Check the organization’s policies and the applicable healthcare privacy rules, and consider access controls, encryption at rest, backups, and an audit trail. For a classroom prototype, use fictional data unless the nursing home has formally approved anything else.

SQLite is probably the best starting point. It’s a small database stored in a single local file, so you don’t need to set up a separate server. It supports structured tables, searching, updates, and relationships much better than manually managing text files. If the application later needs access from multiple computers, you can move to a server-based database without redesigning everything from scratch.

A CSV file could work for a very simple college demo, especially if you only need to save basic stock records. Just keep in mind that CSV doesn’t enforce data types or relationships, and it can become error-prone as the project grows. Also, any real patient-related information needs appropriate privacy protections rather than being left in a readable spreadsheet.

If the app is only a prototype and persistence isn’t actually required, you may only need a simple in-memory data structure during the demonstration. But if records must survive after the program closes, SQLite is a more reliable choice than inventing your own archive format. A hosted option such as a managed backend could support multiple devices, but it would introduce additional security, account, and network requirements.

Before choosing storage, clarify the requirements and design the data model. Think about medications, quantities, expiry dates, deliveries, usage, and possibly residents or prescriptions. A normalized SQLite schema would make those relationships easier to manage. Also confirm with the nursing home whether the system truly will be limited to one PC, because supporting multiple computers later can change the architecture.