By default, your Patients List displays only your active clients. Making a client inactive in TherapyNotes removes them from your list of active clients, allowing you to easily view and access the records of the clients you are currently working with.
Inactive clients are not deleted from your account. Your practice will still have access to the client's records, including their past appointments and notes, contact and billing information, and previously uploaded files.
By keeping these records available, you may easily recall a client's chart when needed. Perhaps a client returns to treatment after a break, or you need to provide information related to a claim dispute or court case. This further allows you to maintain records in compliance with documentation standards without having cabinets overflowing with old charts or a cluttered list of clients in your TherapyNotes account.
Once a client has been made inactive, reactivating the client is as easy as scheduling their next appointment.
Making a Client Inactive
New patients who do not have appointments become inactive after one month. Patients who have appointments have a longer window before becoming inactive. Clients are automatically made inactive once four months have passed since their last appointment, but they may also be made inactive by completing a Termination Note.
Deactivate, Terminate, or Discharge a Client
Note: Only Clinical Administrators, Clinicians and Interns assigned to the client, or Supervisors for the assigned Clinicians can complete these steps.
- Verify that the client has no upcoming appointments.
- Click Patients > Patient name > Documents tab
- Click the Create Note button and select Psychotherapy Termination Note or Psychiatry Termination Note from the list that appears.
- Complete, sign, and save the note.
Once you sign and save a Termination Note for a client, the client will be moved to your list of inactive clients.
To view your inactive clients, click Patients, select Inactive from the Filter dropdown, and click the Search button.
Deleting a Client
TherapyNotes allows you to store as many clients in your account as you need for no additional charge, so deleting clients often isn't necessary. Rather, the most common reason for deleting a client chart is if the chart is a duplicate and was created accidentally.
If you have determined that a client's chart is no longer needed, be aware that deleting a client completely and permanently removes the client from the system.
Before Deleting a Client
- Click Patients > Patient name > Documents tab
- Verify that the client has no notes or files in their record.
- If there are any documents in the client's chart, download the documents to a secure location on your computer. Click the Download icon for the note or file you want to download, or click the Download Multiple link below the list of files to select multiple files.
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After all documents have been download, delete the documents from the client's record:
- To delete an uploaded file, click the Edit icon for the file you want to delete. Click the Delete Document button.
- To delete an existing note, click the Edit icon for the note you want to delete. Click the Delete Note link in the bottom right corner of the note. For additional instruction, read View, Edit, and Delete Existing Notes.
If you are removing a duplicate chart, you can upload these files directly from your computer to the correct chart. For more information, read Upload Client Documents.
Permanently Remove a Client from TherapyNotes
- Click Patients > Patient Name > Info tab
- Click anywhere on the Patient Information box to edit.
- Click the Delete Patient link in the bottom right corner of the page.
- A warning dialog will appear to alert you that all of the client's records will be permanently removed from TherapyNotes. Click the Delete Patient button.