Patients Visits

The Patients Visits module is where you record and manage actual patient consultations. This is different from appointments—visits are what happen when the patient is actually seen by medical staff.

Understanding Visits vs. Appointments

• An Appointment is a scheduled time slot for a future visit
• A Visit is the actual medical consultation that took place (or is taking place)

Think of it like this:

• Appointment: "John Smith is scheduled for 2 PM tomorrow"
• Visit: "John Smith was seen today at 2 PM, complained of headache, BP was 120/80"

The Visits Page

When you open the Patients Visits section, you'll see a list of all recorded patient consultations.

What You'll See:

1. Color Coding: Each visit row is colored based on its status:

   • Blue: Open visits (still in progress)
   • Green: Finalized visits (completed and documented)
   • Red: Cancelled visits

2. Visit Information:

   • Appointment # (if visit was from a scheduled appointment)
   • Patient Name
   • Doctor/Staff Member
   • Visit Date & Time
   • Current Status

3. Status Legend: At the top of the table, you'll see a color guide explaining what each status color means.

Finding a Visit

Quick Search Options:

• Patient Name: Type any part of the patient's name
• Phone Number: Search by patient's phone
• Doctor Name: Find all visits by a specific doctor
• Appointment #: Search by the original appointment number
• Date: Search by visit date

Global Search (From Any Page):

Using the search bar at the very top of the screen, you can:

1. Type a patient's name, phone number, or appointment number
2. See results like: "Visit #45 — John Smith"
3. Click to go directly to that visit record

Creating a New Visit Record

There are two ways to create a visit:

Option 1: Creating a visit from an existing appointment

SLOW DOWN

This option assumes that you have created an appointment already in the system.

1. Click New Visit
2. In the "Appointment" dropdown, start typing:
   • Appointment number OR
   • Patient name
3. Select the correct appointment
4. Magic happens! The system automatically fills in:
   • Patient details
   • Doctor/staff member
   • (You can still change these if needed)

Option 2: Manual Entry (Walk-ins or Unscheduled)

1. Click New Visit
2. Leave "Appointment" field empty
3. Manually select:
   • Patient (search by name, phone, or MRN number)
   • Doctor/Staff Member
   • Visit Date & Time

Filling Out the Visit Form

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Basic Information

• Visit Date & Time: When the patient was seen (defaults to current time)
• Status:
  • Open: Still being documented
  • Finalized: Complete and ready for billing
  • Cancelled: Visit didn't happen

2. Medical Details

• Chief Complaint:
  • The main reason for the visit
  • Use the formatting toolbar for clear documentation
  • Example: "Patient presents with severe headache for 3 days"

3. Triage & Observations

• Triage / Observations:
  • Click "Add Item" to record measurements
  • Example entries:
    • Observation: Blood Pressure → Value: 120/80
    • Observation: Temperature → Value: 98.6°F
    • Observation: Pulse → Value: 72 bpm
  • You can add as many as needed

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What Each Status Means

Status	When to Use	What Happens
Open	During the consultation	Visit is still being documented. Can be edited.
Finalized	After completing all documentation	Visit is complete. Ready for prescriptions and billing.
Cancelled	If patient didn't show or rescheduled	Visit record is kept but marked as cancelled.

PLEASE KNOW THIS

Important: Only "Finalized" visits can have prescriptions created!

Actions You Can Take

On each visit record, you'll see a "Select Action" button with these options:

View

• See all visit details
• Cannot make changes
• Perfect for reviewing past visits

Edit

• Modify visit information
• Change status, add notes, update triage
• Use this to complete an "Open" visit

Delete

• Remove the visit record
• Goes to trash (can be recovered)

🧪Create Prescription

• Only works for "Finalized" visits!
• Opens prescription form
• Automatically links to this visit
• Pre-fills patient and doctor information

Forward

• Send this visit record to another staff member
• Adds a notification in their dashboard
• Useful for referrals or second opinions

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Working with Multiple Visits

Bulk Actions:

1. Check the boxes next to visits you want to work with
2. Choose from:
   • Delete Selected: Move multiple visits to trash
   • Restore Selected: Bring back deleted visits
   • Force Delete: Permanently remove (use carefully!)

Filtering:

• Date Filter: Show visits from specific time periods
• Trashed Items: Toggle to show/hide deleted visits
• Status Filter: Coming soon to filter by Open/Finalized/Cancelled

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Best Practices for Staff

Do:

1. Use appointments when possible - it saves time and reduces errors
2. Update status promptly - change from Open → Finalized when done
3. Be detailed in Chief Complaint - this helps with future reference
4. Record all triage data - even if normal, document it
5. Use "Create Prescription" for all medication orders

Don't:

1. Don't finalize too early - wait until documentation is complete
2. Don't skip triage - even basic vitals are important
3. Don't create duplicate visits - check if visit already exists
4. Don't forget to link appointments - it helps with patient history tracking

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Common Tasks & How-to's

How to document a walk-in patient:

1. Click "New Visit"
2. Skip appointment field
3. Search for patient by name/phone
4. If new patient, create them first in Patients module
5. Fill in visit details
6. Save

How to complete a visit:

1. Open the visit (click Edit)
2. Add all medical notes
3. Enter triage measurements
4. Change status from "Open" to "Finalized"
5. Save
6. Click "Create Prescription" if medication is needed

How to find yesterday's visits:

1. Use the date filter
2. Set date range to yesterday
3. Apply filter
4. You can export or print if needed

How to handle a cancelled visit:

1. Edit the visit
2. Change status to "Cancelled"
3. Add a note in Chief Complaint: "Visit cancelled - patient rescheduled"
4. Save

Related Modules

Visits connect to other parts of the system:

• Appointments: Where scheduled visits come from
• Patients: Full patient history and information
• Prescriptions: Medications ordered during visits
• Billing: Finalized visits generate billing records

Need Help?

If you can't find a visit:

1. Check global search (top bar)
2. Verify date range isn't filtering it out
3. Look in trash if accidentally deleted

If "Create Prescription" is grayed out:

• Visit must be "Finalized" status
• Change status first, then try again

If patient isn't in the dropdown:

• Patient might not exist in system
• Create patient record first in Patients module
• Refresh the page

Quick Reference

What you want to do	Where to click	What to know
Document a visit	New Visit → Select Appointment	Auto-fills patient/doctor
Add prescriptions	Select Action → Create Prescription	Visit must be Finalized
Find old visits	Use date filter or search	Global search works too
Correct a mistake	Edit the visit	Can edit unless Finalized
Remove a visit	Select Action → Delete	Goes to trash first

Remember: Visits are permanent medical records. Be accurate, complete, and timely in your documentation!