Caps in Data Entry

Here is a companion post to a previous post regarding Data Entry Questions. Some of you have reported that you are requested by your boss/supervisor/office manager to type in all capital letters when entering patient information. Of course, always follow such instructions!

However, for those of you who are not required to do this, there are advantages to following regular capitalization.

Take a look at these two addresses, and see which you like reading better:

JOHN Q. SOMEBODY
1357 PARALLEL UNIVERSE LANE
HARRISTOWNVILLE, NY 13367

John Q. Somebody
1357 Parallel Universe Lane
Harristownville, NY 13367

Most people find that the second address is more enjoyable to read. The difference seems pretty minor until you come across a longer entry in the patient information which is in all caps, for example:

PATIENT REQUIRES A TRANSLATOR FOR ITALIAN. REQUESTS CATHOLIC PRIEST TO BE PRESENT BEFORE UNDERGOING ANY MAJOR PROCEDURE.

Patient requires a translator for Italian. Requests Catholic Priest to be present before undergoing any major procedure.

Again, most people would prefer to read the second entry. This makes reports, printouts, and patient data more pleasant to read. It can also help in data entry fields allowing variable fonts, as shown in a previous blog post, Data Entry Questions.

Print Ref. Provider Labels

Do you have any questions about the Label processing procedures in GUI? To understand the way GUI typically handles labels, here is a demonstration of the Referring Provider labels. There are two main ways available to help you manage Referring Provider labels.

For the first method, navigate to Settings > People & Places > Referring Providers. Here, search/select the Referring Provider, and click on the Labels/Forms button:

(Click any image to enlarge.)

The Labels/Forms screen appears. Now you have the option to select which type of label you want to print and how many labels you want of that type. If you want labels for only one referring provider, click Print Now. Otherwise, continue to add each referring provider by using the Save and Print Later button. (The more Referring Providers you need to add, the more helpful the Save Defaults buttonbecomes.) When you have added the last one, click Save and Open Label Manager:

(Note: An alternative to the Save and Open Label Manager option is to click Save and Print Later again, and when you are ready, open Daily Activity > Label Manager at a later time. The Referring Provider Labels you have selected for printing will be stored here. It is also important to note that the Label Manager is shared between everyone in your practice. As a general rule, only select and print the labels you added to the Label Manager.)

A more comprehensive method available to you is found in Reports > Practice Management > Ref Prov/Patient/Charge report.  Simply set the parameters to print labels for the criteria you select. For example, to print address labels for every referring provider active this year, change the Service Dates From field to the beginning of the year, (01/01/2010,) choose a report type and select the desired template in the Template 1 field:

A report will print, according to the options you selected. Following the report, the labels will open, and a printer selection screen will appear. Print out the labels to your printer and you are done.