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Send a Referral (Refer-Out)

Aishwarya Nair
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The term 'Refer Out' refers to the process of directing patients to another general practitioner, specialist, or both for care that extends beyond the scope of the current practice. Moreover, CareStack provides a feature to mark treatments as 'Referred Out' that helps the practice track treatments referred to other practice or specialists.

Let's explore the Refer Out process through a compact slide-out, outlining four concise stages. The information has been structured in layers to simplify tasks like attaching documents or generating a summary. 

Watch this video for a complete understanding.

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Refer Out a Patient

  • Select the patient using the Global Search Bar > click Menu > Refer Out. 

Or

  • Search for the patient using the Global Search Bar.
  • Hover over Clinical > select Referrals.
  • Click Refer Out.

Enter the required Basic Details:

  • From: The clinician that is referring out.
  • Location: The location of the clinician that is referring out.
  • Select whether it is an External Referral or an Internal Referral.
  • Send To: 'Referred to' address.
    • Selecting the Send To address will auto-populate the following details of the referred-to clinician:
      • Email
      • Business Name
      • Referral Clinician
      • Speciality
      • Additional Info
  • You can add other referring information such as Referral Date, Reason for Referral, Expected Return Date, and Internal Notes.
  • Click Next.

Note: If you choose Internal Referral, the fields under Referral Details will differ from those for an External Referral. Make sure to select the Recipient Location and Treatment Clinician. You can use Quick Send Referral to instantly send the referral to the in-house clinician.

Tip: When searching for a referral clinician, you can also search using speciality-related keywords, for example, 'Endodontics,' to view all clinicians in that speciality.
  • Select Referral Letter from the drop-down menu. These are created in the Office Wizard. Click here to learn more.
  • This is an optional step. To skip and continue, click Skip Adding Referral Letter.
  • Click Previous to move to the previous section. Or,
    • Use the pencil icon on the left-hand side to edit the previous section.
  • Click Save as Draft to save the refer-out as a draft.
  • If a form has been attached, fill out the mandatory information on the form, such as the patient's critical information, name of the guardian, etc.
  • Click Add Signature in the mandatory fields.
  • Enter the signature.
  • Click Add.

Once the details are filled,

  • Click the Preview to view the preview of the referral letter.
  • Click Previous to move to the previous section.
  • Click Save as Draft to save the refer-out as a draft.
  • Click Next to move to the Additional Attachments section.
  • Select and upload Additional Attachments as needed.
  • If you use one of our integrated cloud-based imaging partners (AEKA, SOTA, TigerView, or Apteryx), you can select the images you wish to send with this referral using the Add Clinical Images button.
  • Click Add Clinical Images to proceed.
  • Select the required Images.
  • Click Upload.
  • Click on the required Additional Documents to add them. They include:
    • Clinical Information: Past Treatments and prescribed medications of the patient.
    • Medical History: Any of the patient’s previously completed Medical History Forms.
    • Patient information: More detailed information about the patient, including their Overview, Responsible Party Information, and Allergies and Conditions.
    • Patient Documents: Includes any patient documents.
  • After adding additional documents
    • Click Save as Draft to save the refer-out as a draft.
    • Click Save and Next or Next to move to the Summary section.

In the Summary section, you can review all information automatically attached to the referral.

  • Click the pencil icon to edit any previous sections.
  • Click View Referral Document to view the referral.
  • Click Send Via Email.
  • A toast notification will appear on the top right stating, 'Refer out send successfully.'

Additionally, you can take advantage of to review the summary of the sent referral.

  • Search for the patient using the Global Search Bar.
  • Hover over Clinical > Referrals.
  • Referrals that are saved as draft will appear with a Draft status.
  • Click Edit to edit any details.
  • Select a sent referral to view its summary.

Configure Referral Email Trigger

Let's check out how to set up an email trigger for referral emails.

  • Navigate to the System Menu > select Practice Settings > Referrals > Referral Settings.

Configure the following settings by clicking the relevant toggle buttons to enable or disable them:

  • Send referral portal link to clinicians when a referral clinician is created: When this option is enabled, the newly added referral clinician will receive a referral portal link upon being added to the system.
  • Notify clinicians when a refer out is created: Switch the toggle on to enable this option and send an email notification to the referral clinician when a referral is created.

Send Signup Email Manually

If the above referral settings are disabled, but you need to send a signup email for the referral clinician, perform the steps below.

  • Navigate to the System Menu > select Referral Clinicians.
  • Click View for the intended referral clinician from the Referral Clinicians grid.
  • Click Edit.
  • Click Resend Signup Email.
  • A toast notification will appear on the top right stating, 'Signup email resend successfully'.

Manage Permissions 

To enable Permissions for Refer Out,

  • Navigate to the System Menu > select Practice Settings > Administration > Profiles.
  • Click Manage Permissions for the intended profile.
  • Select Referrals.
  • Under Refer Out, select the View Refer-Outs and Create/Edit Refer-Outs permissions, as needed.
  • Click Save.

  • On the Confirm Action modal that appears, click Yes to proceed.

  • A toast notification appears on the top right stating, 'Profile updated successfully'.

Note: Ensure to enable the View Treatments Permission via System Menu → Practice Settings → Administration → Profiles → Manage Permissions → Treatment → View Treatments.
Enabling the View Treatments permission

Practices can use this comprehensive guide to learn all about the easy-to-use four-stage referral process.

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