copyright 2005,  Welford Medical Computing, Inc.  All rights reserved

Window Locking (User's Manual, pg. 879)

Your Writer Auto-Open windows let you customize how a patient's chart looks when you open it. Each user can select which windows to open, how big they are, and where they are located on the screen.

Once you set the windows the way you like them, you generally don't want to change them around for awhile. However, it is fairly easy to inadvertently hit one of the windows with your mouse and drag it slightly to a different position.

In order to prevent the windows from moving once you have set them the way you like them, simply check System\Global Options\Window Locking. Once checked, the windows will not move even if you try to move them with your mouse. (This also applies to the In-Bar, which lists the Appointment, In-Box, and Writer tabs). If at some later date you decide you want to change the windows around, simply uncheck Window Locking, move the windows where you want them, then recheck Window Locking to keep them in place.

Version 4.7 also includes some handy new Writer Auto-Open Windows that you might wish to use. The Images Auto-Open window was discussed in last month's newsletter. Two other new windows are the Referrals and Timer windows.

Referrals Auto-Open Window (User's Manual, pgs. 877-878)

Let's activate the Referrals Auto-Open window:

1. Press System\Writer Options. Press the Auto-Open Options button. Check the Referrals choice. This activates the window.

2. You now need to decide which way you want the window to behave. There are two options: All and Pending Only.

3. If you want to see every person this patient has been referred to in the window, select All. This is handy if you are seeing patients and they ask you questions like "who was that dermatologist you sent me to 5 years ago?". Simply look in the Referrals Window, or double-click on it to open the full Referrals list; it will list every referral you have recorded. (You can also answer a question like this without using the Writer Auto-Open Referral Window by pressing View\Referrals\Redisplay, then specifying a Start Date 5 years before, entering the Patient name, pressing Ok, and viewing the Referred to list).

4. If instead you track referrals (as described in the March, 2005 Newsletter), you may wish to select Pending Only. In this case, the Referral Auto-Open window will only show the referrals with an Outcome of referral that is not Completed, Different Consultant, Resolved, Moved, Refused, or Died, and in whom there is no date in the Response box. These represent cases where you referred the patient to someone but have not recorded that you have heard back from the consultant, so presumably the patient has not followed through with the consultation (or the consultant has not reported back to you) and you need to follow up on this situation to make sure the referral doesn't fall through the cracks. If you choose Pending Only mode, then you need to set the After box to the first date when you started using Referrals to record the Outcome and Response fields. Otherwise, you will be needlessly reminded about patients who had their consultations long ago, before you ever used the program to store this information. Using the Referral window in this mode can definitely help you avoid having Referrals not taking place by reminding you of this fact at the time of the visit.

5. If you want to read the detailed information about the patient's Referrals, simply click inside the Referrals Auto-Open Window. This opens the main Referrals window. From there, you can double-click on any specific Referral to see the full information about it or to edit it further.

Timer Auto-Open Window (User's Manual, pg.880)

If you want to keep track of how long you are spending with a patient during a visit, check System\Writer Options\Auto-Open Options\Timer. Also, check System\Writer Options\Timer Options\Timer Auto-Start. The Timer Auto-Open window will measure time using the Interval you choose in Timer Options. You can place the Timer Auto-Open Window anywhere you like on the screen, and can decide whether you want to minimize it to just see the caption bar showing the elapsed time, or whether you want to make the window taller, displaying Begin, Pause, and Resume buttons, so you can pause the Timer if you leave the room and then resume the Timer when you return, without having to press Tools\Timer\Interrupt or Resume instead. (Just use your mouse on the edges of the Timer window to resize it to your liking).

Version 4.8 will have a Grid Mode for the Appointment Scheduler which lets you see an entire week's color-coded appointments and openings in a single screen.