Patient Referral Tool

The referral tool allows practitioners to create referrals for their patients directly within the application. These referrals are designed to connect patients with another healthcare provider for consultation or further investigation of a concern. By managing referrals inside the app, practitioners can streamline communication, maintain proper documentation, and ensure that referrals are stored alongside other patient records.

Accessing the Referral Tool

Opening the Editor

• Open a Patient Workspace. You can get to a Patient Workspace by searching for a patient in the top search bar, and then click on the “Patient Workspace” button for that patient.
• In the toolbar at the top of the Patient Workspace, click the referral icon (practitioner with an arrow).
• Clicking the icon opens the Referral Editor in a popup window.
• The editor provides fields for patient details, contact information, and the referral letter itself.

Completing a Referral (Practitioners)

Auto-Filled Details

• Date: Set automatically to today, but you can edit it.
• Patient: Pre-filled based on the Patient Workspace you were in when starting the referral (can be changed if necessary).

Selecting a Contact

• Choose from the contact dropdown.
• This uses the same address book as the fax system, so any contact you have entered into OutSmart will be available to you here as well.
• Add new contacts as needed for future referrals.

Using AI Assistance

• An orange AI panel allows optional AI support.
• Enter guidance text (e.g., “Patient experiences frequent headaches, request neurologist input”).
• The AI combines your guidance with the patient’s medical records to draft a referral letter.
• You may edit or polish the draft as needed.
• AI use is optional — you can skip it and write your letter manually.

Writing and Signing the Letter

• Compose the referral letter in the editor or refine the AI draft. If you decide to compose the letter from scratch, you can just start typing the letter in the text editor at the bottom (not the Ai Guidance field). If you choose to enter some Ai Guidance and generate the letter automatically, then a formatted letter will appear in the letter editor. You can then refine it as needed.
• Add a signature:
  • If you already have a signature in your account, it will automatically apply it here, but you can change it if needed, or
  • Upload an image or sign directly with a stylus.

Saving, Previewing, and Finalizing

1. Save Draft – stores the referral for later editing. You will be able to find your referral in the documents tab of the Patient Workspace.
2. Preview – view the referral as it will appear in letter format.
3. Finalize – generates a PDF referral letter with:
   • Clinic header and logo
   • Date, patient information, recipient details
   • Letter content and practitioner signature

Referrals that are finalized are converted to PDF and stored in the patient’s documents list.

Admin Access to Referrals

Draft Referrals

• Admins cannot create referrals, they can only preview draft referrals and view completed referrals.
• In the Patient Workspace → Documents tab, admins can:
  • See draft referrals created by practitioners
  • Click Preview to view them
  • Cannot edit or finalize

Finalized Referrals

• Once finalized by a practitioner, the referral appears as a PDF in the patient’s documents.
• Admins can view, fax, or email these PDFs as needed.

Managing Referrals

Practitioner Draft Management

• Draft referrals appear in the Documents tab of the Patient Workspace.
• Options:
  • Edit – reopen and complete the referral
  • Delete – remove unnecessary drafts
• Once finalized, referrals move from the Draft list to the Patient’s documents.

How to Finalize a Referral

• Click on the Edit button for the draft referral
• Review the referral and ensure it is ready, and then click on the Finalize button at the top right of the referral editor.

Finalized Referrals are PDF Documents

• Finalized referrals are treated like other patient documents.
• They can be shared, faxed, or emailed according to clinic needs.

Key Benefits

• Streamlined workflow: Create, edit, and finalize referrals within the app.
• Optional AI support: Automatically generate draft letters from patient records.
• Integrated records: Finalized referrals are stored alongside other patient documents.
• Admin support: Admins can preview drafts and manage finalized documents for distribution.