Scanning documents

You can scan new documents directly from the main toolbar or from within a Clinical Record.

Scanner settings can be found on the File > System Parameters, Devices tab.

You can also view existing scanned documents by double-clicking on a document record either in the Browse Documents window or the Clinical Record. In this case the Scan New Document button is not enabled.

Remember:
Important considerations when scanning documents:
  • Scanned paper records are more difficult to read than original paper records.
  • Scans are rarely needed if proper summaries are maintained. Proper summaries including past health problems are a requirement for RACGP accreditation.
  • Scanning of old paper records is not an RACGP standards requirement.
  • The size of your Communicare database will be inflated by many times, making backups and maintenance more difficult and time consuming.
  • The effect of inflating the database by scanning a large unspecified volume of documents over a relatively short period of time is unknown. It has not been tested.
  • The maximum size for a single scanned document in Communicare is defined in System Parameters. If you must scan a document that is larger than this, consider scanning it as two documents.
To scan a document relevant to a patient:
  1. In the patient's clinical record, click Scan.
    The Place Mode, Patient and Provider details are filled in automatically.
  2. To select a scanner to use, click Select Scanner.
    For more information on scanner choice for use with Communicare see Important Non-Communicare Maintenance.
  3. From the Topic list, select a topic.
  4. In the Comment field, enter a comment.
  5. Click Scan New Document at the top left.
    • If the document that you're scanning is several pages long, set Multipage to store several pages in a single document.
    • The total pages field shows the total number of pages scanned in this session
    • Each page can be viewed using the left and right arrow buttons
    • Navigate to a particular page by entering the page in the current page field
  6. Refine the scan as required.
    Changes to size, colour or orientation are temporary and are there to assist with viewing documents within Communicare. Changes are not saved and aren't applied when the document is printed.
    • From the Scale list, view the documents at a variety of sizes. The default is PageWidth.
    • Click Rotate Image 90deg to change the orientation of the document from landscape to portrait and back.
    • Click Invert Colours iconInvert Colours to improve the readability of documents in some circumstances.
    • Click Print Document to print to the Communicare Default printer set in Printer Assignments.
  7. Click Save.
The document is saved to Communicare.
You can also scan documents into Communicare from the following locations:
  • Select File > Documents > Scan New Document
  • Select File > Documents > Browse Documents
  • Click Documents and Results and on the Scanned and Attached Documents tab, click Scan New Document.