Reminder: Changes only take effect after IDEAS is restarted on a workstation.

Access from Menu bar;

System>Options>General tab

1 Regional options
2 User interface
3 Key Values

Regional options

Language

Select the language that you wish to be used by IDEAS to display form field labels and other verbiage presented to the user by IDEAS.

Selected language has effect on form layout and some settings;

Postal code/zip code format
Phone number formats
Register agency for reporting data
Correct export agency

Date format

This defines the sequence of entry for each of the day (dd), month (mm) and year (yy or yyyy) parts of a date.

Note: if the format selected is "yy/mm/dd", then the full year, including the century, needs to be typed in.

Hour format

This is the format to be used for the display of time values as they will appear in forms, reports, letters, etc.

Note: The entry of time values is always done using the "24 Hours" format.

Female & male sex / title

Specify, from the dropdown, the correct option to indicate each sex. The choices presented in the dropdown's list come from File > system configuration>List> sex - this list is editable.

Similarly for the title (form of address) to be used for each sex.

User interface

Confirm data entry in fields with TAB or ENTER

When this option is checked;

the TAB key, ENTER key or the mouse pointer/click are used to move the cursor from field-to-field. There will be a beep sounded for every character entered by the user that is beyond the permissible length of the field

this option is preferable for most users

When this option is blank (unchecked);

the entry cursor will move immediately to the next entry field (without a beep sound) as soon as the user has typed characters that meet the permissible length for the field.

Patient name display

Here the user can choose the option how the patient name is displayed through IDEAS.

Key Values

You should consider your choices for the 4 options very carefully and refrain from changing them once you have begun to use IDEAS with a specific choice.

Automatically generate patient registration number

This option is available specifically for those clinics that have a need to maintain compatibility of patient identification numbers between IDEAS and other administrative systems.

While IDEAS has other fields in the "New patient" entry form that could be used to retain compatibility with other clinic systems (for example "Other number" or "Healthcard number") it is recommended that the "Registration number" field be used for this purpose because it appears consistently in other IDEAS form displays. The other numbers are only really useful for the purpose of extracting files or reports using the Query Designer.

When unchecked;

Registration number will be manually entered by clinic staff when prompted after clicking on the "Register" button on the "New patient" entry form. The number entered may be any combination of alphabetic and/or numeric characters up to 10 positions in total length, but must be unique.

When checked;

IDEAS will generate the patient "Registration number" from its internal control numbers tables when the "Register" button is clicked.

The "Register" button is only visible for use when a patient has not yet been registered into IDEAS.

Automatically generate treatment cycle number

Each cycle for every patient needs to be uniquely identified. This option can be used to ensure that this is always done, without the need to reference external lists and perform manual entry to do so.

When this option is checked;

IDEAS will automatically generate the next cycle number for the patient. This is enforced by disabling the entry field labelled "Cycle ID" on the “Treatment cycles” form.

The cycle number generated will be a sequential number across the system (i.e. not on a patient basis), and will always be incremental with no repetition.

There can be 'gaps' in the numbering that would be caused by Undoing or Deleting a "Treatment cycle" record after initiating its creation.

When this option is unchecked;

Users enter a cycle number into the "Cycle ID" field in Treatment cycles when adding a new treatment cycle record to the patient's IDEAS file.

Once entered on the form and saved, the "Cycle ID" field is read-only and can no longer be changed for that treatment.

Automatically generate semen sample number

When this option is checked;

Numbers will be generated automatically, on a system-wide basis, without the possibility of repeats, but with the possibility gaps.

When this option is unchecked;

clinic staff may enter the number into the "Specimen no.:" field on the "Semen analysis" entry form.

This folder can be used to view an existing patient file or when creating a new patient file.

Automatically generate blood test sample IDs

When a new blood test is made and send to lab, the test can automatically be assigned a Test ID

MM Online Help

System Options - General Tab