What you'll need... 

If you are planning to create a new form, you will need to ensure you have a digital copy of the form for use. This can be a PDF or image downloaded from the Internet, converted from an existing document (e.g. Microsoft Word) or scanned from a physical copy. Please note that scanning a form may result in a low-quality image to be used. Genie recommends downloading an electronic copy if available, or creating your own form digitally for best results.  

Instructions 

To create a new Custom Form, please see the instructions below. 

1. Select the Merged Letters icon , then select the 'Custom Form' button. This will open a blank form window. 
2. Select the background image icon. This will prompt you to select an image; you can either select an image from the list, or select the 'Add' button to import an image or PDF. If you select 'Add', you will be prompted to browse your computer to locate the required image. 
3. After importing an image, you can place the required fields and expressions on your form to automatically populate information. Fields and Expressions can be located to the left of your form input window and can be dragged from the fields list to the required/corresponding location on your form.  
4. After all required fields have been placed on your form, ensure you enter a title at the top of the window and save the template using the floppy disc icon  in the top left . If you're happy with the placement of these fields, you can further print a copy of the form to ensure it appears correctly on paper.  

Categories can be a useful way of organising your forms for ease of access. A category can be added by selecting the  Merged Letter icon, then selecting the 'Add Category' button. You may then drag existing custom forms (and letters) into your newly added category. Alternatively, you may assign a category at the time of creating or editing your form; this can be done above the actual form input by selecting an option from the 'Category' dropdown menu. Categories may also be created here by typing the new category name in this field, then selecting the 'Add to Menu' option from the dropdown menu. 

Things to note about categories 

• A category can be deleted by highlighting the category in the Merged Letters window, then select 'Delete Item' 
• Deleting a category will not delete the letters assigned to this category; these letters will be placed at the top of the Merged Letters window in a blank category 
• Categories cannot be renamed. You will be required to create a new category, move the letters from the existing category to the new category, then delete the existing category. 

To make changes to a form that already exists in your database, please see the instructions below. Any changes made to the form will affect all future forms generated, however forms previously saved to a patient's Clinical Window will remain the same. 

1. Select the Merged Letters icon, then locate the required form. This will have a green page icon to the left, whereas Merged Letters have a yellow page icon.
2. Double click on the form from the Merged Letters window to open. 
3. Make any necessary changes to your form, such as changing or realigning fields or adding an updated background image. 
4. Once your changes are complete, select the floppy disc icon in the top left of this window to save the form. You will be prompted that saving these changes will affect all future forms; you may proceed through this prompt if this is correct. 

When placing fields and expressions on your forms, you can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to make small adjustments in the placement. The use of the arrow keys will allow greater accuracy then the use of your mouse may. You can also highlight a selection of fields and move these simultaneously using either your mouse or the arrow keys.   

If you are creating form and cannot find specific fields to complete various areas, you may wish to create a checklist which can then be loaded into the form as a type of 'custom field'. After creating a checklist, you may add fields from the [CheckList] table, ensuring you select the appropriate checklist and checklist fields for your form. In order for your form to load this information, you should note that you will be required to complete the checklist for each patient before creating the corresponding form. 

In the top left of the form window are a series of icons; the middle row shows the Convert to Text icon , Hide/Show/Add/Remove Background icon , Show References icon and the Delete icon .  

• The Convert to Text icon will allow you to convert all fields on your form to text. This means that they will no longer automatically populate information based on the patient selected. 

• The Hide/Show/Add/Remove Background icon will allow you to temporarily hide the background of your form and show the background again.  

• If you select this icon while holding the alt/opt key on your keyboard, the background image will be removed completely.  
• If you select this icon while holding the ctrl/cmd key on your keyboard, you can add an additional background image. 

• The View References icon allows you to view the fields that have been placed on your form. 
• The Delete icon allows you to remove fields and other items that have been placed on your form. 

In the top left, there is also an option for 'Print Background'. This option indicates whether the background placed on the form will print or not and may be unticked if you are printing to pre-printed paper. If you are using pre-printed paper, you will not need to worry about the quality of the image used when creating your form – this is only going to be used for aligning the fields to the form. This may be beneficial when you are required to print onto existing paperwork. 

After selecting the Merged Letters icon, there is an option on the right for Duplicate. Selecting this while another form is highlighted will allow you to make a copy of an existing form; this may be useful if the form you are creating is particularly similar to an existing form in your database and may only require minor adjustments. 

After your form has been created, it can be accessed anywhere that the Merged Letters icon can be located such as the Appointment Book, the Clinical Window, the Patient List and the Address Book.  

To use your Custom Form, please select a patient from the Appointment Book, or a group of records in the Patient List or Address Book, then select the Merged Letters icon. If you are creating a letter for a single patient we recommend selecting the icon from the Appointment Book or within the Clinical Window. If you require a form for a number of patients you should select the icon from the Patient List.  

Note:  If you creating a form from the Patient List or Address Book, Genie will create a form for all records on display. As such, you may wish to highlight only the required records by holding ctrl/cmd and clicking on each records, then selecting Records > Use Selected. This will remove any records that were not selected from display. 

After selecting the Merged Letters icon, highlight your Custom Form from the list, then select the Print button to the right to print a copy. If you require a copy to be saved in the Clinical Window, please double click on the Custom Form required and select the 'Copy to Patient Record Button'.

If you have a form which requires the use of crosses, ticks or circled answers, this can be achieved by selecting the required icon from the selection  . You may then click on your form to place these marks in the required locations. Selecting the 'A' icon will allow you to place a text box on the form; a text box may be used to enter information that cannot be generated through the use of fields and expressions. If you place ticks, crosses, circles or text boxes on your form, you may not wish to select the large floppy disc icon; this will save these additions to your form permanently and will appear on all future forms. Instead, you should select the 'Copy to Patient Record' button. When you have added all ticks, crosses or circles, you should select the rectangle icon to stop placing these on your form. 

While Genie is able to populate the form with most fields and expressions, there are some tables that may require you to 'load' information for the fields to work. An example of this is the Appts table – if a form is opened directly from the appointment book, any fields selected from the [Appt] table will contain information for that specific appointment. If you require information regarding a different appointment, or if you open the form from the Patient List, you will need to select the 'Load Appointment' Expression. This will allow you to chose the appointment information to be loaded into your form. If you use fields that require information to be loaded, this will need to be done every time you create a form as this information will differ between patients. 

After you have created your Custom Form, you may wish to upload it to the Genie Custom Forms Server. This will allow other Genie Users to download and use your form should they wish to – something your fellow Genie users will no doubt appreciate! 

To upload your completed Custom Form, please select the Merged Letters (Golden Pages) icon and locate your form in this window. If you right click on your form, you will receive the option for 'Upload to Genie Solutions'; by selecting this, your form will be uploaded to the Genie Custom Forms Server for all Genie Users to access.  

If you no longer wish to have your form available please contact Genie Support with the name of the form you wish to remove and they can action this.