Setting Up Patients - Patient Settings

There are a number of other settings that can be changed within the Patient module.

To access them

• Click on the in the top left
• Select Maintain>Patients>Settings

Reference Numbers and STD

You can assign a reference number to the patients on your database. By default this function is not enabled, you will need turn it on for the field to be available.

• Use Reference Numbers: Tick this checkbox to enable the use of Patient Reference Numbers.

• Automatic Reference Numbers: Tick this checkbox to enable the automated creation of Patient Reference Numbers. The Patient Reference Number will be added, in ascending order, automatically when the record is saved.

Turning on Automatic reference numbers will only effect new patients, it will not add a reference number to existing patients.

• Precede AutoReference Number with: You can enter a prefix that you would like to add to the reference numbers. This could be used, for example, to add a practice reference to number if you have more than one practice.

• Use Default STD Code: You can set the system to automatically enter a patient’s STD code in the Home phone number field. So, for example, if your practice is based in York and the majority of you patient’s live in York, you would enter 01904.

• Use Country Settings: You can set the system to use a different telephone Country Code to send SMS messages. This option should only be selected by users outside of the UK (+44) dialling code.

Other Settings

• Show Last Seen Date: This option displays the last seen date when searching for patients. Will appear blank if Appointments is not installed

• Enable OptomNotes Integration: Enables the link between Optisoft and OptomNotes, see OptomNotes Integration for more information.

• Do Not Save Standard Printed Forms: Select this option to prevent Optisoft Enterprise from saving copies of anything printed as a Standard Form for a patient, i.e. GOS Forms. This option can be used on slower systems that may experience printing problems or simply to save space on the server's hard drive.

• Recall Date Format: Select the default date format for the Start Date field. This will affect only the Start Date field, none of the other date fields, DOB etc, will be effected.

• Do Not Auto Supress Recall: This option will only be in effect where the Appointments module has been enabled. If you do not wish for a patient's recall to be automatically supressed when their appointment is booked then you would select this option.

• Next Visit Band One Only: This setting limits the Next Visit date field on the Patient tab to only use the first band of the patient’s Recall category when calculating the projected next visit. For more information see Last Seen and Next Visit Dates.

• GP Display Option: This option sets whether the GP or the practice that the GP is associated with is displayed on the Patient tab.

Active Patients Settings

Auto Clear

As you use the software throughout the day your Active Patient list will start to fill up. Over time, if not regularly cleared, this list of patients’ names can cause the software to slow down.

You can set the Active Patient list to clear itself on regular intervals.

• Click in the checkbox next to Auto Clear

• Enter an interval, in days, in the text box next to this

• Click on the button to save the changes

Sorting the Active Patient List

By default the Active Patient list is sorted in ascending order on the patient’s surname, e.g. Aaron Aaronson to Zelda Zdroko.

You can change this from within the Patients Settings Screen.

You can choose to sort on either Surname, First Name or Date Added in ascending or descending order.

• Select the type of sort you want to use from the Sort Order dropdown box

• Select the sort order by selecting the appropriate radio button

• Click on the button to save the changes