For Reception:

To begin with you will still need to get record cards out until patients start having their second eye exams on the computer.

I would suggest that you could print off the “Px Details” from the patient details screen. This will give the Optom a sheet that they can then re-feed into the PC at the end of the test to print out advise that they have given to the patient eg. DV plus NV or DV Transitions MAR etc along with any vouchers that the patient receives. (The print button for that is on the “Final” page of the Exam next to Dispense advice)

The bottom half of this sheet can then be used for hand written notes when dispensing and then disposed of at the end of the day.

For Optoms:

ALWAYS start a new exam by clicking on NEW Record (Top left of exam screen)

• The Bottom left of exam screen is a button for “Extra Visits“. This is used for those times when you do not wish to fill out a full eye exam screen. eg. Repeat fields or problem with new specs etc, when you don’t need to put a full exam through.
• A button on any of the exam screens that says “As Before” will copy data from the previous eye exam.
• If you go out of the exam screen during a test and go back into it, you will need to unlock it by going to one of the exam pages eg Prelims and untick the “Lock” box to the right of the “Final” button.
• At the end of an eye examination just go back to the Main Menu. Do not leave the exam screen open as it isn’t finalised until you go out of it.
• There is a button at the top right of the Exam screen called “Temp Notes“. This is for recording notes during an examination to remind you to do something later. eg. You may not usually test colour vision, but during history and symptoms you are alerted to something that makes you want to test colour vision. Writing a Temporary note can help you remember. (This is the same on the CL exam screen)
• All the drop down lists and defaults for Ocular Health etc can be set in the right hand column under Lists.
• Some of the boxes have a * next to the label eg. Rx comments* – that indicates that you can double click in the box to auto fill with default values or bring up a new window for easier data entry.

Prelims screen.

• You can double click in the following boxes for easier data entry:
• History and Symptoms, General Health, Ocular Health and Medication.
• Double clicking in the cover test boxes will copy a previous cover test or insert Ortho if there are no previous exams for that patient.
• Click on “Default/As Before” just above “Pupils” to copy the previous PD, and pupil reactions. If there is no previous exam for this patient then it will put default values in for the Pupils.
• Double click in the motility box to copy the previous motility and NPC. If there is no previous exam for this patient then it will put default values in for the motility and NPC.

Refraction screen

• To input previous spectacle prescriptions into the “wearing” boxes at the top of the refraction screen, you can click on the “Focimetered and Previous specs” button at the bottom of the screen and then click on “Transfer to top of refraction screen” button.
• To view Rxs from previous eye exams you can click on the “Previous Rxs” button (top right)
• Subjective Rx can be entered by clicking the button that says “last Rx” or the button that says “above” (this gives you the choice to use the “wearing Rx” or the “Ret Rx”) and then you can tweak it for today.
• There are 2 boxes on bottom right with drop down lists above them. The dropdown is set in the Lists, “List for FIT”. The top dropdown is set as number 1 and the bottom as number 2. 3 and 4 are on the FIT page of the Exam. EG. I have Binocular VA with New Rx in the dropdown set as number1. Others use it for Amp of Accom. etc.

Ocular Health screen

• Double clicking in any of the main boxes opens new windows for easier data entry.
• “R+L” button will mark everything as healthy. “R=L” copies the right side to the left.
• The “A/C” button puts in default values for the anterior chamber.
• Click on the “2nd” button next to “Tonometry” to enter a second set of readings.
• The default for Type of Tonometer is by going to Lists and Tonometers and then put a space in front of the one that you use as that is then first alphabetically and will be the default on the Ocular Health screen.

Final Screen

• You can click on the button to input mono PDs (top left). These then show up on the Patient Details screen in top right corner and transfer to dispenses.
• There is a button next to the dispensing advice to print the Dispensing Advice etc to pass on to the dispenser.
• There is a drop down list of template GOS 18 wording which can be set up in Lists, Referral List (Bottom of right hand column).
• Double clicking in the GOS 18 box will copy the history and symptoms into the GOS 18 box.

The “Complete Clinical” button in Lists is so that you can set up Opticabase so that you cannot leave the Exam screen unless certain parts have been completed. Generally only used for practices that employ locums and want to make sure that their Optoms don’t forget to fill certain parts in.

Locked Exam Screen:

If you click on “Exam” from the patient details screen and get “Exam screen is open on …. computer”, so you can not get into the exam screen, you need to do as follows.

After checking that the exam screen is definitely NOT open on another computer, double click on the word “ID” just to the left of  that patient’s ID number on their Patient’s details screen. You will then get a message saying “exam unlocked”.

This happens if Opticabase crashed during an eye examination or the exam page was not closed properly and is to stop 2 computers having the exam screen open at the same time and causing conflict issues.