DOHC NG Support

How to Add Patients to The Appointment Book

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In this Quick Reference Guide we will learn the following:

  • How to access the Appointment Book.
  • How to select a schedule using the Change Resource button.
  • Three methods for adding patients to the Appointment Book.

How to Access the Appointment Book

To schedule patient appointments, you must first open the Appointment Book. Click the ApptBook icon on the second menu bar.

Change Resource Button

A Resource is defined as a person, place, or thing. When accessing the Appointment Book, a default Resource will already be selected. To change the schedule to a different Resource:

  1. Click the Change Resource icon.
  2. Double-click the name of the Resource from the drop down menu.

The name of the Resource, along with the day and date will appear at the top of the Appointment Book.

Methods for Adding Patients to Appointment Book

There are three different Methods that could be used to add a patient to the Appointment Book:

  • The Add Appointment button
  • The Right-Click Method.
  • The Double-Click Method.

The Add Appointment Button

The Add Appointment button is a Blue plus sign located on the Appointment toolbar. To add an appointment using this button:

  1. Select the available slot next to the desired appointment time.
  2. Click the Blue Add Appointment icon.

The Right-Click Method

Patients can also be added to the Appointment Book by:

  1. Selecting the available time slot.
  2. Click the Right mouse button.
  3. Select New from the menu.

The Double-Click Method

Last but not least, users can also add patients to the Appointment Book, by Double-Clicking the available time slot.

Regardless of the Method, the Add Appointment book will open showing the selected Date and Time.

In the Add Appointment window:

  1. Click the Norton button.
  2. Select the Lookup option.

Patient Lookup

There are various search criteria available to search for a patient. However, for this illustration we will use the preferred criteria. To search for your patient:

  1. Type a partial description of the patient's Last and First name.
  2. Enter the patient's Birth Date in the Secure Lookup field.
  3. Click Find or select the Enter key on the keyboard.

The Secure Lookup fields are identified by the blue unlocked lock icon. The Secure Lookup field allows the user to search all practices within the network.

From the Matching Records results:

  1. Select the desired patient's record.
  2. Click the Open button.

NextGen Alerts

If the NextGen Alerts window opens:

  1. Review any Chart or System Alerts.
  2. Click the "x" to close the window.

Demographics

In the Update Patient Information window:

  1. Review the basic Demographic information with the patient:
    - Current Address
    - Current Methods of Contact (i.e. Phone#'s, and Email Address)
  2. Click OK

Adding Appointment Details

In order to add the Appointment Details:

  1. Select the type of visit, by clicking the Event/Event Chain drop down arrow. (i.e. office visit, follow-up, etc.)
  2. Select the location in which the patient is being encountered, by clicking the Service Location drop down arrow.
  3. Type the Reason for the visit in the Details field.
  4. Click OK

Conclusion

Scheduling Conflicts could occur based on one or all of the conditions below:

  • Double-Booking of appointments
  • Scheduling certain types of appointments during the wrong time periods. (based on scheduling template)
  • Patient has a negative Status (i.e. collections, Bad Debt, etc.)
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