Home Forums How to make a flowsheet or facesheet for AC

As you know, there is a summary sheet in AC which summarizes a lot of the patient data. It doesn't truly represent a problem list as such, so below is another way to do it. For most users it won't be helpful, but it's an alternative and can have other uses as well.

You make an Excel spreadsheet on your desktop. On it you make a Problem list and lab sheet, etc. Anything you want on your "face sheet." You can put a flow sheet, acute and chronic problem list, whatever. Save this somewhere your receptionist or whoever puts in the new patients can readily find. Make SURE you keep an extra copy on a CD or something.

Using Excel to make a flow sheet allows you a lot of flexibility. Every patient is different so you could use different sheets, but I would recommend using the sheet/tab feature at the bottom. So the template could have a tab for diabetics and their lab flowsheets. You could have a tab for your coumadin patients, etc. The tabs can be renamed and made different colors, etc. We use page one for the problem list, etc., since AC doesn't truly have a PROBLEM list but a running list of diagnoses. You can add meds or anything you like on the first sheet. We put consultant visits, etc. You can put links to files and/or links to websites. You could place a link to his or her email if you want to send results or reminders. You could link to a certain Word template to write a letter.

If you really want to utilize it as well as possible, I would recommend hiring an Excel expert to help set it up. Excel is a VERY powerful spreadsheet and database program. So, you could allow it to add and average your HbA1Cs or do the same with your INRs, etc. You can do all these things yourself, but I found having an expert set it up made it look extremely clean and much more helpful.

Oh, and of course, you can delete sheets and add sheets on the fly. So by importing this into a patient's chart, simply clicking on the ImportedItems tab will bring up your flowsheet.

Then, when a new patient comes in (John Smith, DOB: 8/8/78), you enter him into those spots on the flow sheet. Have your receptionist import this into the patient's chart.

I label it the following way for maximum exposure. You can do it anyway you like:

Under Item Type: I write Face Sheet
Under Item Subject: I put in a "." This makes for the smallest icon area. You can put in the name or whatever, but I like a period. I click sign off and leave the comment section blank.

When the nurse opens the chart, she opens the imported item Excel sheet and minimizes the chart. When I walk in the room, with the screen closed, there is all the info I need. The cool thing is I can open it as an Excel, save it, and send it to consultants.

Bert, I was just referred to this thread by the kind efforts of BCMD who is helping me clarify what it is that I want or need from my "magic Buttons" thread. I LOVE Excell and am intrigued by what you offer here. When I tried to import the .xls file it didn't work. I could save as a PDF which is fine, but then I need a separate file for the working sheet for future additions? I didn't explore the links, (ignorant, but with a little effort I think I can figure it out,) I assume the same holds for a link. The spread sheet must be stored, backed up and encrypted or protected somewhere else on our intranet? Looking forward to Branson.

Doc,

Thanks for the message. I hope you find it helpful. I am a bit confused what your problem is, because I have never had a problem. I just tried it again to make sure.

Open an Excel file and add anything to it. Save it to your desktop. Obviously down the road, you may save it somewhere else, but for your receptionist, having it right on her desktop makes the most sense. Open any chart. Click on imported items. You can import it the browing way, but I find it easiest to simply drag and drop it into the left window pane. That's it. From then on, you can open it and edit it all your want. The neat thing is you don't even have to click directly on it to open it. You can left-click anywhere in the left window, and it will open.

Please feel free to PM me or email me if you have any other questions.

Doc,
I use the Excel spreadsheet in a similar manner that Bert is suggesting. However I use them for Diabetes flowsheets, narcotic refill flowsheets, med administration flowsheets (B-12, testosterone), etc.

I will send the user's favorite bottle of wine (within $30.00 plus shipping) to the first user who designs an Excel spreadsheet to use in AC. Must send me a copy to review.

Can I play?

Only if you send an Excel sheet which is used in your practice and is really cool!

OKAY! I don't know exactly what I was during wrong the first time, but this is really easy and a potentially VERY powerful tool. ( I think I was lost between "My Desktop" and some strange things that were happening with "Roaming Profiles" that we just started to use.)
I will be waiting to see who gets the wine, and what they come up with. In the meantime I am picturing a few tabs, one for "maintenance" to make PAPs, Colonoscopy and the like easy to follow. "Protime" for the coumadin. "Diabetic" flow sheet will track the numbers AND the dates of screenings to ease the audit process. (to the extent that I cooperate with any P4P) And of course "Lipids". I might also make a "Family Tree" tab, I have a few families that get me confused, and I miss the tree I traced out in the margins of the paper chart.

You don't have to explain what went wrong. If you were using Roaming Profiles (SBS, I am guessing), then strange things are the norm. Great idea, but in reality it doesn't quite seem to work as smoothly as Microsoft says.

I remember once when I was using it (I have since tried again -- and I have a good website on how to do it better using folder redirection), but all of a sudden my 20 desktop icons turned into 40 and then 100. That's when I had to stop.

Send me your spreadsheet, and I will put you in the running. Maybe I will make it a contest.

I like the THEORY of roaming profiles, but in practice it takes WAY too long to log in.

I'm confused. Generally, it took two to three days to log in with folder redirection for My Documents, but it takes only seconds to log in using Roaming Profiles. Must be the Vista.

Bert,
I tried importing an excel sheet like you suggested but I am unable to name item type anything except one of the choices from the drop down list. Am I doing something wrong. I would love it if I were not limited to those choices.

Bill,

I'm sorry. Can you be more specific as to the naming problem. I am trying to reproduce what you are saying.

Sorry Bert,

In your post re: importing an excel file with your face sheet on it you said "Under Item Type: I write Face Sheet
Under Item Subject: I put in a "." "

When I try to duplicate this I am unable to type anything under item type and can only choose from the drop down menu so I am limited to only the categories created by AC.

Thanks

Hi Bill,

I just tried it, and I had no problem. Let me describe step by step what I did. First, and I don't think it makes a difference, but I like to drag and drop the file in. So, I just dragged my Excel template named "Face sheet" into the left hand pane. It immediately becomes named 000000001.xls with its date. The folder it comes from is named UNSPECIFIED.

When I right click on the Excel file, I choose edit item. At that point, the word UNSPECIFIED is in the Item Type field and is blue. I simply type Face Sheet there, and it renames it Face Sheet. I am not sure why you cannot do that. It may be helpful if you do have to use the drop down window, to scroll to the bottom where it says, "Add Your Own Text." I have no idea if that makes a difference. I do know it worked both ways for me. I then add the words Face Sheet in the Item Subject field and save it. Then I have a file named Face Sheet under a folder named UNSPECIFIED.

If it continues to happen, I can use GoToMeeting to go to your PC and take a look, but if you can't do it, I don't know how I could do it.

Thanks Bert
I was gone for a couple of weeks.
That worked. I still can't scroll down to something that says "Add your own text" but right clicking and editing the item type will work fine. Problem solved.

Bill

Good!

This is such a wonderful idea. Before this we were keeping flowsheets on the server. Thanks

Wow, I am glad somebody likes it. No, it sounds like more and more people are trying it out. I almost think it would be cool if we could have the default window open to Excel. An actual problem list would be good. I know this is in PMH, but I have actually asked parents if they thought their children had characteristics of ASD or Asperger's only to look down and see they did. That would be something I would put in red in Excel.

As I was saying before in this thread or another, if you put say 15 HbA1C data points in AC, you can highlight them and choose graph, and the most beautiful grab appears, and you can show your patient and/or print it out, and it makes a much larger impact. Vicky that's a great icon or whatever they call them.

Bert,
I brought this problem up to Jon, the programmer. Hopefully he will correct this soon so that one may select their own name for a heading for an imported item. I have been doing it the way you suggest....I simply stumbled upon it by accident.

Leslie

Bert,
I just tried importing an Excel file which I did as you stated above. I saved it to the desktop and then dropped it into the left-hand window of the imported items window. However, when I try to open it I get a message saying "a document with the name 00000002.xls is already open. You cannot open two documents with the same name, even if the documents are in different folders. To open the second document, either close the open document or rename one of the documents." What am I doing wrong?

Leslie

Somehow, you have two open, check your task bar at the bottom and make sure the original isn't still open.

Better yet, use the edit feature to change the name.

If that doesn't work do the following:

Make the Excel file you want. Save it to your desktop. Call it ACExcel_original.xls or something like like. Make a new folder called Excel Original and put it in there. Move that folder somewhere you won't forget and will be backed up EVERY DAY. Now copy and paste that file from that folder to your desktop and renamed it Face Sheet. CUT and paste that into your left pane. There are a hundred ways to do it. Let me know, and I can GoToMeeting to your PC and set it up.

Can't you create an Excel template like you do in Word, so that when you double-click on the desktop shortcut, it opens a new file with a different name from the original?

Yes, but you don't need to make a template like you do in Word. All you have to do is have an Excel spreadsheet named whatever like Original. I would have an extra just in case. Then, I would have the receptionist or whoever open it, fill it out right there, then click SAVE AS and give it a patient name. Now you will have the blank original on your desktop and a new one filled out. You drag the new one into AC and you're done.

NO NEED TO GO TO THE TROUBLE OF TRYING TO MAKE A TEMPLATE.

OK, got it! I am embarrassed to tell you why I was having the trouble...in fact, so embarrassed I will suffice it to say it is now working.

Leslie

AAhh.. but it will help others.

Here I come to save the daaaayyyy!!!!

OH ALRIGHT! I was double clicking on the excel file instead of single clicking...that made it look like I was opening the file twice.

Leslie

Aahh, so you have your computer set to single click. I uesd to do that, but my programmer got mad. That's not an embarrassing mistake at all.

I am not aware that I intentionally set it to anything...I am afraid I am not that smart. All of the other files open with 2 clicks. The Excel ones are the only ones that I have to single click. But, let me add that I echo Martin's words...Excel is a very powerful tool in AC and I am glad I finally got my flow sheets loaded. All in preparation for making the "BIG LEAP" ( just waiting on my IT guy to wire another station and check over my back-ups). Bert, you are so helpful. I had no idea I could change the name or color of the "Sheet" tabs. I did and they look "mahvolous".

Don't forget there are 16,000,000 colors available. Well, actually, 16,581,375. As I ask my toddlers, how many colors do you know?

Oh, and open My Computer or Windows Explorer, then

Tools --> Folder options --> Click items as follows

I am trying to create a problem list using the method above. Instead of excel, however, I am using Open Office. It all works well but when I try to update the problem list after it imported into AC, it tells me it is "read only". I have looked into the original file properties and it does not appear to be read only. I hope I am just being dumb. Can anyone using Open office help me with this?

Thanks

Well, I don't use Open Office much, in fact I downloaded it just to play around and try to reproduce the issue.

If you open a new Calc (Spreadsheet), it is read/write. To change it to read, you would have to go to Tools --> Options --> Security and then change it to read only. From what I see, this cannot be changed back.

Of course, the next document should open as read/write and, therefore, you could upload that one.

The ONLY thing I can think of if you are getting every one to open as read only would be if you had made one read only and then saved it as an .stc file or template.

I imported it into AC and that is the only time it happens. Try it if you have time. Put in the spread sheet and then try to alter it within the AC screen. Thanks

What version are you using. I cannot get to be read only. It is always read/write. One thing that is different is that I cannot open it in the AC screen. That is if you mean by that the screen on the right. The HTMLs do and some other files do but not these.

When I click on the file or anywhere in the white field for that matter, it brings up a box which allows me to either open it or save it. I don't even have to right click and say open in default application. It just always does. And, I can always add something.

Weird. I have the most recent version. I must have something set in Open office because it happens with all spread sheets I import but not with Excel.

The tracked data in AC does not have enough room or flexibility for my practice's needs

I have not had any luck with this approach. Using excel in the import section has caused a lot of crashes of AC and associated lost notes. I have to admit, I haven't tried it since V4, maybe some of that is smoothed out now. Maybe some day I can afford to hardwire all my laptops, that would help to,.

I am using a separate registry, which is not efficient.

Vicki
PS Did I mention I have trouble staying logged in? (not really Bert-just teasing)

I do like the Excel flowsheet which Bert taught me but it is very slow to load. I too find the Tracked Data in Ac to be too cumbersome.

Leslie

We also use Excel for our diabetes registry and I'm playing around creating a master list that can be edited by our data manager and then autolinked to the individual patient's file. Anyone else doing this? We need to aggregate the population data so only entering it on an individuals sheet doesn't do the job.

Vicki,

You had me going there for awhile, but luckily I wasn't following this thread.