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About/Credits
The "ApotheSoft-Rx" © is a full featured, MultiUser pharmacy software. It was
designed by a pharmacist. The Apothesoft program is easy to learn, has many
features, including special functions for the compounding pharmacist. The
Apothesoft program is priced reasonably, and is affordable by even the
pharmacist opening a new store on a tight budject. The program is being
distributed through the 'Trial-ware' concept. You can download a FREE copy to
try out, then if you like it, purchase the registered version. Just visit the
Web site listed above.
Program Designed by: Pharmacists & Programmers at ApotheSoft, LLC
BackUp & Restore
To backup files:
1) Ensure all other users (workstations have exited the program)
2) Click on the Files Drop Down menu
3) Select the Back up option
The program will make a
ZIP backup
file of
all ApotheSoft Files
and place it in the C:\$Backup directory. You can optionally
have a copy of this file copied to a
USB Flash Drive
just enter the drive letter of the USB drive. This provides you a way to keep
an "off site" copy of your backup files. It is highly recommended that you
keep a secure offsite copy of your backups.
We highly recommend that you do daily backups. Then at least once a
week copy a back up to a removable media or to an internet based secure storage
site such as rSync.com Also, rename that backup to include the date in the
name it will make easier to identify the backup should you ever have need to
restore your database from a backup. You might want to consider using a USB
thumb drive as your removable backup media. USB drives are relatively
inexpensive and easy to use.
Normally, (default settings) the program will prompt the user whether the to
make a backup. We recommend that you do daily backups. They only take a
couple of minutes to complete. There is an optional automatic, offsite backup
method., which allows you to create a "windows scheduler" routine that will
launch the backup program automatically for you at night after store hours.
This backup can be setup to place one copy of the backup on your local computer
and put a copy of this backup in a secure internet storage website rSync.com
. The cost for this additional service is $150.00 per year.
No matter what method you choose to do backups, it is ultimately
your responsability to ensure that you have reliable backups. Some pharmacist,
keep a backup computer at another location that they periodically restore a
backup to ensure the backups are not corrupted.
Compounding Screen
.. To create or edit a compound formulation, you must first find the drug
record that you want the formulation to be tied to. First, go to the
Drug Screen - F5
then find the drug record you want. If the drug record does not exists then
you will need to create a new drug record. When creating a drug record for a
compound be sure to use
"00990"
for the first five digits of the drug record, and enter the other six digits
how ever you like. Just remember the primary NDC# field must be unique for
each drug record.
.. Once you found the drug record, then click on the
Compounmd Formula Tab
to get the formulation screen. If a formulation already exists for this drug
then it will be displayed. If the formulation does not exist the a blank
formulation screen will be displayed.
.. Now that the formulation screen is displayed, you may enter information on
to the screen and thereby create or edit your formulation for this drug. Note
that the formulation area of the screen is broken into sections. There is the
Ingredient Name, Type, NDC, Quantity, Qty Type (mg, gm, mls), Ingredient Cost
and Basis Of Cost (Bof C). You can set the
Amount To Make:
to what ever quantity you want and the program will recalculate the amounts
based on the amounts entered in the formula. The
Directions
on how to prepare the compound can be placed in the Direction field.
.. You can print the formula by clicking on the
"Print Cmpd"
button. Clicking on the
"Delete Cmpd"
button will delete this formula. Clicking on the
"Save Cmpd"
will
save
the compound formula record.
Configuration Table
To edit the Configuaration Info, first go to the Configuration Screen by
selecting
Configuartion Tab
from the
TABLES Tab
. This info should only be change by the pharmacy manager and only when
directed to do so by Apothesoft Software Support.
Warning:
Unauthorized changing of either the pharmacy name or registration information
could cause the program to go into demo mode.
Deleting Old Records
Deleting old records routines have not been implimented
Doctor Screen
.. To create or edit a Doctor record. First go to the
Doctor Screen F4
is off of the
Screens
pull down. You can also press
F4
the get to this screen from most other locations.
.. Create a new Doctor
record by putting an
asterisk (*)
in the Doctor Search field. The fill in the information required by each field
and press
ENTER
to get to the next field. Pressing ESC key will abort the process. Click on
the "Save/Update" button to save the new record (or the changes to the record).
.. To change information on a record first find the record you want and click
on the field you want to edit. Go to any other fields make any changes you need
to do then click on the "Save/Update" button to save the edited change or
press Esc to abort the change.
.. To find a record, put the cursor in the "Doctor Search" field then enter
the name you want to find. Enter the name as "LAST, FIRST". Then press Enter.
It is best just to enter part of the last name, press Enter. Then press the Up
or Down arrow keys to locate the exact record that you want. You can also
double click on the record displayed in the
Doctor File Search List
to move to that record.
..
Note:
you should
not
delete a record unless your are sure that the record is not tied to any
prescription records. This is important... because once deleted this record
number and space will be reused by the next new record and any prescriptions
that pointed to the deleted record will now point to the new record. Could
cause you some real problems, so consider yourself warned.
Down Loading Updates
.. From time to time, program updates for the ApotheSoft-Rx program will be
made available on the Apothesoft web site. It is your responsibility to check
for and download these updates when they become available. This can be done by
going to the web site and selecting the "Get Updates" option.
Drug Screen
.. To create or edit a Doctor record. First go to the
Drug Screen F4
is off of the
Screens
pull down. You can also press
F4
the get to this screen from most other locations.
.. Create a new Drug record by putting an
asterisk (*)
in the Drug Search field. The fill in the information required by each field
and press
ENTER
to get to the next field. Pressing
ESC
key will abort the process. Click on the
"Save/Update"
button to save the new record (or the changes to the record).
.. To change
information on a record first find the record you want and click on the field
you want to edit. Go to any other fields make any changes you need to do then
click on the
"Save/Update"
button to save the edited change or press Esc to abort the change.
.. To find a record, put the cursor in the
"Drug Search"
field then enter the name you want to find. Enter the name as "LAST, FIRST".
Then press Enter. It is best just to enter part of the last name, press Enter.
Then press the Up or Down arrow keys to locate the exact record that you want.
You can also double click on the record displayed in the
Drug File Search List
to move to that record.
..
Note:
you should
not
delete a record unless your are
sure
that the record is not tied to any prescription records. This is important...
because once deleted this record number and space will be reused by the next
new record and any prescriptions that pointed to the deleted record will now
point to the new record. Could cause yourself some real problems, so consider
yourself warned.
Drug-Drug Interactions
Previous versions of Apothesoft offerred a "Pharmacist Mantained" Drug-Drug
interaction method. This legacy feature is still included in the ApotheSoft
program.
However, we DO NOT recommend pharmacist attempt to maintain their own
drug-drug interaction checking module.
A new internet based drug-drug interaction method supplied by and supported
by
Lexi-Comp
is our only recommended method of getting automated drug-drug interaction
checking. Should you choose to use the legacy method be aware that
you, the pharmacist, hold full responcibility
to ensure that the method is working correctly and that you, the pharmacist,
are keeping the files updated and current. The Lexi-Comp drug-drug interaction
module can be order from Lexi-Comp directly or through Apothesoft, LLC.
Lexi-Comp Online module comes with drug information and patient information
leaflets. You can contact Lexi-Comp by going to their web site at:
http://www.lexi.com The cost is $450.00 per year for the service.
LEGACY INSTRUCTIONS:
.. To create or edit a Drug-Drug Interaction record. First go to the
Drug-Drug Interaction
screen is off of the
TABLES
pull down. You should print out the list of the Interaction record that are
already in the program before attempting to add any new codes. Note that the
interaction index is composed of two codes, the first 3 digits is the code for
drug A and the second three digits is the code for drug B. These
codes
are to be entered on the drug record on line 17 of the drug screen. The drug
interaction checking will not find the interaction if the drug interaction code
are not entered on the drug record. The program is shipped with what was
considered at the time to be the most important intereactions.
.. It is the pharmacists responsiblity to ensure the interaction codes are
added to the drug records and that new codes are added as may be nescessary as
new drugs come to market. Attention Pharmacist: The Board of Pharmacy has asked
me to send you a letter of information and instructions. During their
inspections of pharmacies, they have found that several pharmacists using the
PPS Pharmacy Program, do not fully understand how the Allergy & Medical
Conditions and the Drug-Drug Interaction features are designed and how to
properly use and maintain them.
.. First, let me discuss the "Allergy and Medical Conditions" (AMC) feature.
This feature will display the AMC to the pharmacist during the filling process
of a new prescription and at other times with the pharmacist desires to see the
patients AMC. The software does not evaluate the AMC against the drug. The
pharmacist using his/her professional judgment should look at the AMC and make
a determination whether a problem exists with the drug being prescribed. It is
important to enter the patients' AMC information onto the patients profile.
Some pharmacists are not entering this information correctly or are routinely
using NKA. It is sometimes difficult to get the patients to tell you their
medical conditions but oftentimes it is apparent from the medications being
prescribed what AMC info is appropriate. If in your professional judgment it is
reasonable to assume that they have a particular medical condition because of
the medications they are taking, then you may want to enter that AMC. To enter
the AMC information, go to Line 13 on the Patient Screen (F1), there will
appear a list of "medical conditions and allergies" and their associated short
codes. The associated letter code for medical conditions is a lower case letter
and the allergy code is an Upper Case Letter. Let me give you a couple of
examples. When using the short codes you must preface them with an *
(asterisk). So for the first example let's say the patients' AMC's are Asthma,
Hypertension and is allergic to Cephalosporins and Penicillins. So on Line 13
you would enter *emEV. Now when you fill a new prescription for that patient a
message box will open and display a list of their AMCs. You as the pharmacist
must use your professional judgment to determine if there is any problem with
the drug being prescribed. Now let's say the patient has a AMC that's not on
the list. You can enter the AMC as a word and place the asterisk * after the
word. For example, the patient is allergic to warfarin then on Line13 enter
warfarin*. Note: the placement of the asterisk will affect how the program will
interpret what you have entered. Third example let's say the patient's allergic
to warfarin and codeine and has arthritis and gout. On line 13 enter
warfarin*Gdk. Note the AMC codes are case sensitive, lower case letter codes
are for Medical Conditions and upper case letter codes are for Allergies.
.. Now that you have your AMC codes entered on Line 13 there is a way to test
to see if the AMC is beginning to display the way you want. From the F1 Patient
Screen and with the cursor in the Line # field press Alt-A, the AMC message box
will open and display the AMC for the current (active) patient. Also, you can
go to the F4 Rx Filling Screen and begin filling a prescription for a patient
and after you enter the drug the AMC message box will be displayed, provided
you have entered AMCs for that patient. You can also display the AMC message
box for the current patient when the cursor is at the top of the Rx Filling
Screen. Also, if you have use ALT-P from the Rx Filling Screen to display the
current patients drug list, you can also display the patients AMCs by pressing
ALT-A while viewing the viewing the patients' drug list. This makes it easier
to screen the patients drug list for potential conflicts.
.. Some AMC's will be screened with the DDI feature. For example, if the
patient profile is marked with the AMC code indicating they have Asthma and say
the are also allergic to aspirin. The PPS program will test using the DDI
screening feature that medical condition against the new drug being dispensed
and also tests to see if the patients allergy code matches with the drug
dispensed. For this to work properly, remember you must ensure that you have
marked the patients file with the appropriate AMC's and have the marked the
drug record with the appropriate DDI code.
.. If you have further questions
about how the AMC feature works give me a call and I will help you with it. I
highly recommend you become familiar with using this feature. The BOP requires
the pharmacist to utilize AMC's. Second, let me discuss the Drug-Drug
Interaction feature of the PPS Software Program. First thing you must
understand, is that the DDI feature is pharmacist (user) maintained. That means
it is your responsibility to ensure the proper DDI codes are entered onto the
Drug record. This program does not use Medispan or First Data DDI updates. It
is financially unfeasible for me to incorporate their technology into the PPS
Program. So, you need to be aware of how this DDI feature works and what you
need to do to maintain it.
.. A large number of DDI codes and their related messages have already been
created. I highly recommend you print the DDI code listing and create a
notebook for your DDI Codes. To print out a listing of the DDI codes from the
beginning screen select "Tables", "Drug-Drug Interactions" then from the DDI
Screen press "Alt-P" to print the DDI listing. You will notice that the listing
has two columns of drugs and a three-digit code associated with each drug. It
is this three-digit code that should be entered on the Drug record on Line #17
DDI#. For example, Ace Inhibitors have a DDI code of A36 and Lithium has a DDI
code of L07. Therefore, all Ace Inhibitors should have A36 entered on Line 17
of the Drug record. And all Lithium products should have L07 entered on Line 17
of drug record. Fortunately, most of these codes have already had their DDI
codes entered on their record. However, when you add a new drug to your Drug
File you will need to refer to the DDI listing you have printed out to find the
correct DDI for that drug. The DDI listing contains only DDI for Level 1 and 2
drug interactions as described by Hansen's Drug Interaction Reference Book. So
not all drugs have a DDI code, only those drugs that have level 1 or 2 drug
interactions have a code. However, if you feel that there is a drug interaction
you want the program to screen for that's not already in the DDI table, you can
then create a DDI entry for that interaction. I will explain how to do that
later.
.. There are two places where you can add a DDI code. You can add it to the
Drug record from the Drug Screen on Line 17 and also from the F4 Filling Screen
on Line 9. If you add the DDI while filling a prescription, it would be a good
idea to do a re-check for Drug Interactions. You can do this from the Filling
Screen by pressing Alt-I when the cursor is in the line number field. Also,
changing a DDI code is now password protected. A few pharmacist have reported
that they or their tech had inadvertently made changes to that field. If the
wrong DDI is entered on a drug record then of coarse the DDI screening function
will not function properly for that drug. Remember it is your responsibility to
maintain your drug file and ensure the drugs have the proper DDI assigned to
them. I can only assist you with this effort.
.. I will share with you the DDI file that I use in my pharmacy. There is a way
to install and post that information to your Drug File. However, you must
understand that drugs in my Drug File may not be the same as in your Drug File.
So some of your drugs may not get their DDIs updated, and for those drugs you
will need to add the DDI manually yourself. Remember this DDI feature is
designed to be user maintained. The problem will be most apparent with generics
because my generics will likely be different than the generics you carry. So
pay close attention to your generics. Now let's take another look at the DDI
Screen. You know how to print the DDI listing. You can scroll through the DDI
listing by pressing the up or down arrow keys or by pressing the page-up or
page-down keys. You will notice that some DDI descriptions show a complete
message and some just have a code in the Message Field such as DDI001. That
DDI001 code refers to a larger message. If you want to view what the DDI
message box would look like for a particular message you can do that by
pressing Alt-V. When you view the message this way be careful not to change the
message (unless you really wanted to make a change) because you are in edit
mode when viewing the message this way.
.. Now let's say you get a new drug in and there is a new Drug Drug Interaction
that you want to create for this drug. First, check your DDI list to see if a
DDI code has been created already for the drug or drug class. If not, you can
create a new DDI. User created DDI should begin with a * (asterisk) and two
other characters, example: *X2A. Note: drug codes need to be unique for every
drug or drug class. You will enter this DDI code onto the Drug Record and then
create a DDI record from the DDI Table Screen. Press Alt-N for new then enter
Drug "X" and its DDI code and then Drug X and its DDI code and then the
description of what you want the DDI message to display. The first time you
need to do this I would recommend you contact me and have me walk you through
the process. One thing to remember is that the letter O may look like the
number 0 zero. So when entering DDI codes be careful not to mix up the letter O
and the number 0. Note that most of the DDI codes that I have created start
with a letter followed by two numbers, such as: A03 F10 M21 If you want to test
to see if your interaction is showing properly on screen first find a patient
that already has one of the drugs on their profile. For example, find someone
using Albuterol. Now try and fill a prescription for Propranolol for that
patient. The program should find DDI and display a warning message. If it
doesn't find and interaction then check to make sure that both drugs have the
correct DDI codes on their records. Another example would be to find a patient
the is taking Theophylline and try and fill an Erythromycin prescription.
.. Finally, you need to be aware that the PPS program does not screen for
duplicate therapy. You as the pharmacist will need to visually review the
patient's profile to screen for duplicate therapy. Fortunately, since the
majority of prescriptions now are processed by third parties, their computers
do a pretty good job of telling you about duplicate therapy. You need to use
your professional judgment in determining how you will handle this problem.
Questions & Answers:
1)
I have many patients were medical conditions have not been entered, how can I
efficiently bring my records up to date?
Print out a listing of all prescriptions filled for a particular drug (one
that would indicate a disease state) then use that list and find the patients
records that you want to update the medical condition. To print this type of
list go to Reports, Drug Reports, Print Rx Records By Drug By Date.
2)
What Drug Interaction references should I keep on hand?
That is up to you, but I like "Fact's Drug Interaction Book". You can purchase
these books from the University of Wa Bookstore or via the internet. I would
also encourage you to attend a CE on Drug Interactions at least once a year.
Hansen puts these CE on once or twice a year. That will help keep abreast of
the important new DDIs some of which you may want to add to your DDI codes.
3)
Can I use Medispan to update my DDI codes or can Francom's Software, Ltd. Keep
my DDI codes updated for me?
No. Medispans charges more money than I can afford to get the interface
software required to utilize their DDIs. There is a Lexi-Comp Drug interaction
modual that is available.
FAX Refill Requests
.. You can create a FAX refill request by going to the Filling Screen and
being up the Rx as though you were going to refill it. Then click the
"Doc Refill Fax Rpt"
button that is located in the Doctor section of the Rx Filling Screen. This
will create a report that will be printed on your printer. You then take this
report and fax it to the physicians office.
Filling First Prescription
..When you run it you are prompted for your intials as a user
ID
and a
Password.
On the DEMO version anything not blank works.
.. Once the
RX screen
is loaded you can look at RX records with the UP/DOWN arrows or click the
little Up/Down buttons beside the RX number. The fills for an individual RX are
shown on the bottom and you can scroll them with the mouse.
.. Once you select an RX press
TAB
and you are in the REFILL mode. Tab through the fields to change the data and
click the SAVE button to complete the REFILL.
.. If the Patient on that RX has insurance you will flip to the insurance tab
to process that. There is a button in the lower right to process the insurance.
A popup screen appears and, since you cannot do real processing, there are two
buttons to "simulate" a payment via the Internet. The "real" program does SSL
encryption for insurance processing.
.. To start a
NEW RX
put an
asterisk (*)
in the RX field on the main screen. From that point you will be prompted for a
patient. Put in part of a
last name
and press
ENTER
and you will flip to the
PATIENT Screen.
Use the arrows and pick the right patient (or set one up) then click the
BACK TO RX SCREEN BUTTON
or pressing
ENTER
after selecting a
PATIENT
will also return. The same process happens with
DOCTORS
and
DRUGS.
.. The search fields for
PATIENTS / DOCS / DRUGS
are free form. If you enter something
ALPHA
it assumes a name, if it looks like a
Phone Number
(or partial) it tries that, if it looks like a
DOC DEA
(license) number it tries that, etc.
Across the top of the screen are
Tabs
for
PATIENTS / DOCTORS / DRUGS
and lots of other stuff.
Pressing
F1 key
in a field will bring up a
value list
(Y/N, numbers, etc) if that applies to the field. Pressing
Shift-F1
will bring up a
help box
for a field.
Filling/Refilling Prescriptions
.. Once the
RX screen
is loaded you can look at RX records with the
UP/DOWN
arrows or click the little Up/Down buttons beside the RX number. The fills for
an individual RX are shown on the bottom and you can scroll them with the
mouse.
.. Once you select an RX press
TAB
and you are in the REFILL mode. Tab through the fields to change the data and
click the SAVE button to complete the REFILL.
If the Patient on that RX has insurance you will flip to the insurance tab to
process that. There is a button in the lower right to process the insurance. A
popup screen appears and, since you cannot do real processing, there are two
buttons to "simulate" a payment via the Internet. The "real" program does SSL
encryption for insurance processing.
.. To start a
NEW RX
put an
asterisk (*)
in the RX field on the main screen. From that point you will be prompted for a
patient. Put in part of a last name and press ENTER and you will flip to the
PATIENT screen. Use the arrows and pick the right patient (or set one up) then
click the
BACK TO RX SCREEN BUTTON
or pressing
ENTER
after selecting a
PATIENT
will also return. The same process happens with
DOCTORS
and
DRUGS.
.. The search fields for
PATIENTS / DOCS / DRUGS
are free form. If you enter something
ALPHA
it assumes a name, if it looks like a
Phone Number
(or partial) it tries that, if it looks like a
DOC DEA
(license) number it tries that, etc.
.. Across the top of the screen are
Tabs
for
PATIENTS / DOCTORS / DRUGS
and lots of other stuff. Pressing
F1 key
in a field will bring up a
value list
(Y/N, numbers, etc) if that applies to the field. Pressing
Shift-F1
will bring up a
help box
for a field.
Generic Toggle
.. To create or edit a Generic/Brand Toggle that will allow you to switch
between generic drug and brand name drug is accomplished by putting the
Generics NDC
number in Generic/Brand NDC field: on the brand name's drug record and then
put the band names NDC number on the generic drug's record in Generic/Brand NDC
field.
.. Once this is accomplished, you will be able to switch back and forth between
the generic and brand by pressing the
Cntl-G
key combination. You can use this feature when you are at the Drug Screen or
at the Rx Screen.
Installation Of Program
.. It is highly recommended that you allow the program to install into its
default directories. If the directory structure is changed you may run into
programs when opporation the program.
.. To install the program, you simply run the WRXSETUP.EXE program that you
either downloaded or received on a CD.
.. To upgrade from the Demo version to the Registered version: Copy the
registration file you received into the C:\ApotheRx directory. Then start
the ApotheSoft program and go to the Configuration Tab and click on the "Load
New License" button. After loading the new license you can change you address
and phone number settings.
Insurance Claim Processing
..You will have to transmit claims through
NET-RX
via the Internet, so you will need your computer hooked up to the internet. A
DLS or Cable Internet connection will work great. You should have that install
on your computer before installing the new Apothesoft-Rx program. You also need
to contact Net-Rx to get setup with them so that you will be able to process
claims with the Apothesoft program. The contact person at Net-Rx is:
Chad Hammerstrom or Jeff Malone
Net-Rx
360-567-0469 ... cell 360-907-7904 or... (866) 336-3879
chad.hammerstrom@net-rx.com
.. To process claims you need to start the XmitSSL program that is located on
the menu bar at the top of the program. XmitSSL should only be started one
time when you initially start the ApotheSoft program. You can
HIDE
the XmitSSL program.
Insurance Plans & Tables
.. There is a directory called C:\$InsPlans that contains alot of
information about various insurance plans. you can use Windows Explorer to
browse through this information.
.. To create or edit an Insurance Plan Table first go to the Insurance Screen
by selecting
Insurance Table
from the
TABLES
tab then select the
Insurance Tab.
Find the
Plan
number you want to edit. Then edit the fields as needed for insurance you are
trying to set up.
.. Note: Plan #0 must not be changed, it is the plan used for CASH Sales. Many
insurance plans have already been setup for you. You should print the list of
plans to see what has already been setup for you.
.. Before you can transmit electronic claims you need to first establish an
account with a switch such as Net-Rx or Envoy. You also need to establish
accounts with the insurance companies for which you want to process claims.
.. To enter new insurance plans go to the
"Tables (F7)"
tab and create the insurance plan. You will need to know the Plans
BIN
number and the Processor Control number (
PCN
). Some plans require a Software Certification number. If this plan always
uses the same Group number then you can enter that number here and it will be
the default group number when you set up the patients insurance info.
.. You will have to transmit claims through NET-RX via the Internet, so you
will need your computer hooked up to the internet. A DLS or Cable Internet
connection will work great. You should have that install on your computer
before installing the new Apothesoft-Rx program. You also need to contact
Net-Rx to get setup with them so that you will be able to process claims with
the Apothesoft program.
The contact person at Net-Rx is:
(866) 336-3879
Label Warning Messages
.. These are messages that are associated with the drug record and get
printed out the patients consultation receipt. You can edit and create these
messages from the Drug Screen.
Label Styles
.. The Apothesoft-Rx program requires the use of LazerJet printers. There
are several label types that are available. I recommend you use one of the
standard label types. But if you need a specially designed label that might be
possible, but there would be an additional fee to create a special label.
.. The Label type is selected in the Configuration screen. In the field
"Default Rx Label Format"
Modems
.. I highly recommend that you use an
External US-Robotics modem.
If you chose a different type of modem, please check with Francom's Software,
Ltd. to ensure that your modem will be supported. If you choose to use a
nonsupported modem then you are on you own.
.. All networks ENVOY, NDC, MEDI-AMERICA, PCS require that Error Correction
(EC) be turned off. Turning off error corection is diferent for diferent modems
manufactures. The following table shows which 'AT' command should be used for
most popular modems. Also, an optional command can be used that may improve
performance by giving the pharmacy modem a "head start" U.S. Robotics (USR)
modems are the most commonly using modems in pharmacies.
Modem Initialization strings:
.
Hayes & Zoom:
ATZ \N0 S9=3
MaxTech:
AT&F0/N0 S9=3
Motorola:
AT&F \N0 S9=3
Practical Periferals:
AT&F0 &Q6 S9=3
Rockwell Chip: AT&F0 \N0 S9=3
US Robotics:
AT&M0&K0
.. If you are transmitting to either Envoy or PCS directly, you will need to
ensure that Data Compression and Error Correction is turned off. The above
initialization strings will accomplish that for the above modems.
Moving Rx's From One Patient to Another
.. You can change the patient assigned to a drug record by bringing the
record up on screen and double clicking a
fill
in the
fill display box
at the bottom of the screen. This put's you in the
"Edit Rx"
mode and then you go to the
Patient Screen
and select the Patient you want assigned to this prescription then click on
the
"Back To Rx"
button that will move you back to the Rx Screen place the select patient in
the Patient field of the Rx Screen. You must then click the
"Save Rx"
button to save the change.
Patient Profiles
.. You can display the patients profile by going to the
Patients Screen
and clicking on the
Profile Tab.
The listing can be be viewed as either as summary or detail by clicking the
Rx Detail button. To refill a prescription on the profile, just double click
on it or highlight it and click on the "Refill Selected Rx" button.
.. You can print the Patient Profile by clicking on the
"Print Profile"
button. You will be asked for a Date Range. The printed profile list all
prescription fills for that patient for the date range selected.
.. You can also check the patients profile for
Drug-Drug, Drug-Allergy and Drug-Med/Cond Interactions
on this screen by clicking on the "DDI Check" button.
Patient Screen
.. To create or edit a Patient record. First go to the
Patient Screen F3
is off of the
Screens
pull down. You can also press
F3
the get to this screen from most other locations.
.. Create a new Patient record by putting an
asterisk (*)
in the Patient Search field. The fill in the information required by each
field and press
ENTER
to get to the next field. Pressing
ESC
key will abort the process. Click on the "Save/Update" button to save the new
record (or the changes to the record).
.. To change information on a record first find the record you want and click
on the field you want to edit. Go to any other fields make any changes you need
to do then click on the
"Save/Update"
button to save the edited change or press Esc to abort the change.
.. To find a record, put the cursor in the "Patient Search" field then enter
the name you want to find. Enter the name as
"LAST, FIRST"
. Then press Enter. It is best just to enter part of the last name, press
Enter. Then press the Up or Down arrow keys to locate the exact record that you
want. You can also double click on the record displayed in the Patient File
Search List to move to that record.
.. Entering Allergy-Medical Condition Information: Click on the
"Med Cond"
button then enter the the Allergy and/or Medical Conditions. When the cursor
is in an Allergy or Medical Condition field you can press
F1
to get a list from which to select an item.
.. Note you should not delete a record unless your are
sure
that the record is not tied to any prescription records. This is important...
because once deleted this record number and space will be reused by the next
new record and any prescriptions that pointed to the deleted record will now
point to the new record. Could cause you some real problems, so consider
yourself warned.
Price Quotes
.. You can do price quotes by going to the
Drug Screen
, look up the drug for which you want the price quote. Then enter the
appropriate info in the price quote are of the screen. To leave the price quote
routine you need to press
"ESC"
key or click the
ESC button
.
Pricing Tables
.. To create or edit a Pricing Table first go to the Insurance Screen by
selecting
Tables F7
then select
Pricing Formulas.
Find the
Table
number you want to edit by pressing Up or Down arrow key until you get the
plan number you want to edit. Then edit the fields as needed for insurance you
are trying to set up.
..
Note:
The table can be assigned to a drug and will then be used as that drugs
default pricing table. To assign a pricing table to a drug, go to the drug
screen, find the drug you want then enter the pricing table number in the
"Price Table"
field of the Drug Screen.
.. You can also change the pricing table being use to price a prescription by
entering the Pricing Table number in
"Price Table"
field of the
Rx Filling Screen.
You can test you pricing formula on this screen or by going to the Drug Screen
and do a price quote using this pricing table.
Printer Setup Info
.. The PPS32 program will work with almost any printer for which Windows has
a Driver. Dotmatrix printers can be used but printing is usually slower and of
poorer quality as compared to a LaserJet or BubbleJet printers. If use use a
DotMatrix printer it must be "Epson Compatable".
.. In the Configuration Table file is were you will setup the type for printer
you will be using. Enter the printer information on line 13 & 14. You can use a
different printer for labels (L-Prntr:) and reports (R-Prntr:) or you can use
the same printer for both labels & reports. You can identify the printer to use
by using the identifiers as follows:
by LPTx
... x specifies the port that the printer is attached to (the printer port does
not need to be "captured"), ie: LPT1 or LPT3, etc. Typically used with local
printers. A colon should not follow the port number.
by UNC
... The Universal Naming Convention (UNC) indicating where a specific printer
is located within the current network, ie,
\\SERVER\LASERJET
or
\\ACCOUNTS\INKJET1
, etc. UNC names must be free of embedded spaces to operate correctly, and must
begin with a double back-slash. Typically used with network printers.
by PRINTER NAME
... Name of the printer to use. For Example,
"LaserJet"
would match with
"HP PCL LaserJet 5L"
. May be used with both local and network printers.
Re-Indexing Files
.. Occasionally you may need to re-index the files. To do this all other
users need to exit the program. Then click on the
"Maintenance"
menu drop down that is on the menu bar at the top of the program. Then select
the "Re-Index option.
Rx Filling Screen
.. Filling a New Rx: To fill a new Rx go to the
Rx Screen.
When the curser is in the Rx Number field. To begin the process of filling a
new prescription, enter
* astricks
then press the Enter Key. That will move the cursor to the Patient name field
(2). If the patient that appears in that field is not the one you want, just
type in that field the name of the patient you want. Must be in the form;
LastName, FirstName. It is best just to type part of the last name and a couple
of spaces. Then press Enter. You will be moved to the
Patient Screen
locate the patient you want using the up or down arrow keys then Click on the
"Back To Rx Screen" button to return to the filling process. If the patient you
were looking for is not in the file then create a new record for the patient.
Do the same to find the Doctor and Drug for the prescription you are filling.
Enter the appropreate information into the fields as you proceed with the
filling process. Be sure to press Enter key after entering information into
each field.
.. After entering all the information, at this point review the information on
the screen and correct the information in any field that may need correcting.
Once satified with the prescription. You click on
"Save/Process"
to finish filling the prescription, recording the information to the data
files and printing the label. If this prescription is to be transmitted, you
will be taken to the Claim Transmission Screen. Ensure the information is
correct then click on
"Send Ins Claim"
to transmit the the claim.
.. To Refill a Prescription: Just type in the prescription number that you
want to fill and press
Enter.
The Prescription Screen will be loaded with that prescriptions information.
Just review the information to ensure that it is correct then press
F12
to complete the filling process.
.. You can click on
"Rx Numberl"
field to abort the filling process.
.. To Print an Extra Rx label: Just Bring the prescription up on the Rx Screen
as though you were doing a refill then select the Labels drop down then select
"RePrint"
.
Re-Transmitting Claim
.. To retransmit a claim you first must bring the prescription up on the Rx
Filling screen (as if you where going to refill it) then click on the
"Claim Processing"
Tab to move to the claim proceesing screen. Then click the "Load Current Rx"
button to load the prescrtion information. Then slect the insurance plan you
want to reprocess and click the
"Send Claim"
button.
Reports
.. If the report is run automatically then the type of report cannot be
selected.
If it us run manually you can select the report.
Based on the type
of report selected various input options will appear to allow
selecting the
desired output (date ranges, controlled substance types, etc).
Each of these
are specific for each report.
These reports are available:
Statistics Report
Daily Sales Detail Report
Controlled Substance Report
Re-fill Authorization Report
Patient Profile Report
Doctor Profile Report
Doctor Accounting Report
Insurance RX Report
Price File Listing
Insurance Plan Listing
Compound Claim Form
SIG File Listing
Drug File Listing with OPTIONS
Drug History Report
See each section (below) for the input options available
and how it will
change the report output.
Statistics Report
.. Summary of all prescriptions for a date range by type. No detail is
listed.
Note that RX's are totaled into the Welfare group if the name of the
insurance plan contains the letters WW.
Daily Sales Detail Report
.. Detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range.
Controlled Substance Report
.. Detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range that were filled for a
specific types of
Controlled Substances (CII, CIII, CIV, CV).
Checkboxes
allow the selection of specific types.
.. An addition option is available for states that require the submission of a
file containing
the prescriptions filled for certain controlled substances.
Select the specific state and
the file fill be generated and transmitted
according to the specifications for that state.
Messages will appear to
confirm the status of the transmission after the report is complete.
A
checkbox will allow the creation of a floppy disk (drive A) to be created if
desired in place of
transmitting the file.
.. The pharmacist is repsonsible for generating and sending the data on the
schedule required for each state.
Re-fill Authorization Report
.. This will create a report for specific prescriptions that can be FAXed to
the prescriber to obtain a refill
authorization. The selection is done in the
main Apothesoft program from the Patient Profile screen.
Patient Profile Report
.. This report is a detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range for
specific patient or a group of patients.
..
Options
.. 1) A check box option can print or suppress cost information. The default
is to not print any cost information.
.. 2) A check box option can print or suppress sales price information. The
default is to print sales price information.
.. 3) A check box option can print all patients with a specified TAG. The TAG
value can be set on the patient
maintenance screen in the main Apothesoft program. Tags can be used to
group family members or other
groups of patients.
..
NOTE -- Tag values ARE case sensitive so a tag value of "aa" does NOT match
"AA".
To use the TAG option launch the Patient Profile report from the menu.
The current active patient on the
screen will show as the selection.
Check the box to use TAGS then key in the desired tag value (1-2 characters).
If the TAG option is selected the TAG value will default to the current
patient from the RX screen but may be
changed if desired before running
the report.
Doctor Profile Report
..This report is a detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range for a
specific doctor.
A check box option can print or suppress cost information.
The default is to not print any cost information.
Doctor Accounting Report
.. This report is a detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range for a
specific doctor.
It is suitable for sharing with a doctor because it only has
the total amount paid and an optional Actual
Acquisition Cost column.
Insurance RX Report
.. This report is a detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range for a
specific insurance plan.
A check box option can print or suppress cost
information. The default is to not print any cost information.
..
Note
that it is possible to select a group of insurance plans based on a tag word
in the plan description. Enter TAG=xxx where xxx is the tag in the plan
description to select. Note the tag is case sensitive.
Example: TAG=CASH (note that TAG=cash is NOT the same as TAG=CASH or TAG=Cash)
.. A special feature exists that can save the ending date in the Insurance Plan
so the next time the report
is run it will begin with that date plus one day.
Check the box below the ENDING date to save the
date in the insurance plan
record. If you want to clear this date go to the insurance table in the
main
ApotheSoft program and blank out the date and save the record.
Price File Listing
.. This report lists all Price File tables on file.
Insurance Plan Listing
.. This report lists all Insurance Plans on file.
Compound Claim Form
.. This will print out an insurance claim form for the currently selected
prescription in the main
Apothesoft RX screen. It can be supplied to an
insurance company as a manual claim for re-imbursement.
SIG File Listing
.. This report lists all SIG codes and descriptions on file in Language 1.
The
number of additional languages for each SIG is indicated on the report.
Drug File Listing
.. This report lists all Drug Records on file.
If no selection criteria is
input then all drugs are listed in alphabetical order.
If no Controlled
Substance check boxes are checked all drug types are selected.
If only NON
controlled is checked then only NON controlled drugs are included.
If any of
the Controlled Substance checkboxes are selected then only those drug types are
selected.
.. Selection buttons can select ALL, COMPOUND, or REGULAR drugs.
If a "word"
is entered in the SELECTION field then it is matched to the description and
only those
drugs that contain that "word" anywhere in the description.
.. Simple example:
LIPITOR
This will select all drugs with
the word LIPITOR in the description.
.. A special option exists to use a special expression to select drugs by
multiple keywords
in a description.
If the SELECTION field starts with
SPECIAL: then a special expression is assumed.
.. Special Examples:
....
SPECIAL:(ACETAMINOPHEN)|(IBUPROFEN)
Selects either Acetaminophen or Ibupropfen
Drug with either of these words
will appear in the listing
....
SPECIAL:(LIPITOR).*(10MG)
Must have BOTH strings in the SAME drug description.
Using this will handle
the fact that "LIPITOR" and "10MG" could
be separated by many spaces or
even other words.
..
Rules:
Surround each "word" with parenthesis ( )
| = "or" (vertical bar)
.* =
"and" (period asterisk)
These may seem odd but they are based on something called Regular
Expressions.
Many other more powerful options exist. Contact support if you
would need a more complex
selection method than these examples.
Drug History Report
.. This report will list all prescriptions for a specific drug for a specified
date range.
A check box option can print or suppress cost information. The
default is to not print any cost information.
Doctor Accounting Report
.. This report is a detail listing of all prescriptions for a date range for a
specific doctor.
A check box option can print or suppress cost information.
The default is to not print any cost information.
Note that this is very
similar to the Doctor Profile Report but only prints limited price data that
can be shared
with the doctor without revealing any insurance payment data.
SIG Screen
.. To create or edit Sigs go to the "Tables" tab and select the
"Sig"
tab then click the
"Start New Sig"
button to enter an new Sig. Each sig code can have upto 4 different
language translations. Language 1 is normally English.
.. To
edit
a sig, first find the sig and then make your changes and then resave the the
SIG. Note: any changes to a SIG will affect all prescriptions linked to
that SIG. So be sure you know what you are doing.
Transmitting Rx Claim
.. Normally all you need to do to transmit a claim is to have the npatients
record set up with the correct insurance information then fill the Rx and when
you press The
Fill Rx
button the program will update the record and move to the Claim Processing
screen. There you will press
"Send Claim"
.
Viewing Previous Claim Response
