Importing cases
Use this to bring past cases into the app from a spreadsheet, so your case history starts with more than today. Imported cases record the date, procedure, case number and staff. They don't record items used, so they don't change your stock.
Who can: Owner, Admin, Member You need both. Imports can create procedures and staff as well as cases.
Where: Settings › Import cases
Your file
- Accepted: .csv, .xlsx and .xls. If an Excel file has more than one sheet, you pick which one to import.
- Row 1 must hold the column names.
- Up to 5,000 rows at a time.
- Your file is read in your browser. Only the columns you map are sent to the server. Columns you ignore, such as patient names or notes, never leave your device.
The four steps
1. File
Drop the file on the page, or click to choose it.
2. Map columns
The app guesses what each column is from its heading, such as Date, Procedure, Case number, Physician, Nurse or Tech. Fix anything it got wrong, or set a column to Ignore.
| Choice | What it is |
|---|---|
| Date | The date of the case. Marked required in the list |
| Procedure / Case type | The procedure name. Marked required in the list |
| Procedure category | Used when a procedure is new |
| Case number | Whole number, 1 or more. Anything else is left blank |
| Personnel — physician, Personnel — nurse, Personnel — tech | Staff names, with the role you picked. Several names in one cell are split at commas, semicolons, slashes and "&" |
| Personnel — team (unspecified) | Staff names where the file doesn't say who is a physician, nurse or tech |
Continue stays off until Date and Procedure / Case type are both mapped.
Dates can be written like 2024-08-12, 2024/08/12, Aug 12 2024, 12 August 2024, or with slashes. For a date like 3/4/2024 where either number could be the month, the app reads it as month first. If one number is above 12, it knows which is the day.
3. Review
Each row shows as New, Possible duplicate or Skipped. A row is skipped, with the reason shown, if its date can't be read or it has no procedure.
A row is a possible duplicate of an existing case if it has the same case number, or the same date, procedure and at least one of the same staff. For each duplicate choose:
- Ignore: skip the row. This is the default.
- Import anyway: create a new case as well.
- Update existing: fill gaps on the matching case. It adds the case number if the case has none, and adds staff who aren't on it yet. It never changes anything else. If several cases match, pick which one.
Two panels at the side list what will be created:
- New procedures: any procedure name not already on your list. Give each a category. Commit import stays off until you do.
- New personnel: any name not already on your staff list. Choose their role. This matters most for a Personnel — team (unspecified) column, where the file doesn't say if someone is a physician, nurse or tech. They default to physician.
Names are matched without regard to capital letters. A procedure is matched on its name only. A person is matched on name and role.
4. Done
Press Commit import. You see how many cases were created and updated, how many procedures and staff were added, and any rows that failed with the reason. Imported cases are dated on the day in your file.
Good to know
- Rows set to ignore or skip don't create procedures or staff.
- If an Excel file shows "Unparseable date" on every row, save it as a CSV and import that.
- A file row that names an inactive procedure still shows it under New procedures. The import uses the existing procedure and doesn't add a second one.
Back to Cases or Procedures.