Create a patient episode manually
How to create an i-consult patient episode manually: enter patient name, mobile, appointment date, consultation type and timing, and i-consult schedules the questionnaire SMS.
Most episodes are created automatically from your EMR. When you need to add one by hand (say an appointment didn't sync, or you want to send a questionnaire for an off-system booking), you can create a patient episode from the dashboard. You enter the patient and appointment details, and i-consult schedules the questionnaire SMS for you.
Before you start, have these to hand:
- The patient's mobile number (required; this is where the questionnaire link is sent).
- The appointment date and time.
- How many days before the appointment you want the patient to receive the link (your default applies unless you change it).
Create the episode
Open the i-consult Dashboard.
Click Create Patient Episode.
Enter the Patient Name (for example, "John Smith").
Set the Date of Birth using the date picker (DD/MM/YYYY). The patient enters this same date to verify their identity, so it must match.
(Optional) Enter the patient's Email.
Enter the Mobile Phone. This field is required (for example, 0412 345 678). An appointment reminder SMS is automatically scheduled to this number.
Set the Appointment Date (date and time).
Choose the Consultation Type: New or Follow-up.
Set the Consultation Time (minutes), between 5 and 180 (30 is typical). This helps i-consult judge how much depth the questionnaire should go into.
Set Days Before Appointment, between 0 and 30 (default 3). This determines when the patient receives the questionnaire link.
(Optional) Add a Reason for Visit. Leave it blank if the reason will be collected from the patient during their chat session.
Click Create Patient Episode. The button shows "Creating...", then "Created!" when the episode is saved.
What you'll see
As you set Days Before Appointment, an SMS Reminder Scheduled alert previews the send: "An appointment reminder will be sent from {date}", with a badge showing "{n} day(s) from now" or "Sending today" if it falls today.
Once you click Create Patient Episode, the new episode appears in your dashboard list with a Pending status. From there i-consult takes over. It sends the SMS at the scheduled time, guides the patient through the questionnaire, and generates the structured history, which then flows into your i-scribe transcript box as usual.
Double-check the Mobile Phone and Date of Birth before you submit. The link is sent to that mobile number, and the patient must enter that exact date of birth to access the questionnaire. A typo means the patient can't get in.
If it doesn't work
- The patient didn't receive the SMS → see My patient didn't get the SMS. Check the mobile number on the episode and the send timing first.
- The SMS date or time looks wrong → see The SMS date/time looks wrong for how send timing and timezone work.
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