Tracking referral status
Monitor a referral from sent through accepted, scheduled, completed, or declined.
Overview
Referrals progress through statuses: SENT → ACCEPTED → SCHEDULED → COMPLETED. Or they can be DECLINED or CANCELLED. The Referrals page shows where each one stands.
Prerequisites
- Clinical role
- A referral exists
Steps
Open Referrals. Top nav → Referrals.
Filter by status. Tabs: All, Sent, Accepted, Scheduled, Completed, Declined, Cancelled.
Inspect a referral. Click a row. Panel shows status timeline, who updated each, and any specialist comments.
Specialist accepts (auto-tracked). When the specialist clicks Accept in their portal, status flips to ACCEPTED. You see it in your Referrals list.
Specialist schedules an appointment. They record the date/time in their portal; status flips to SCHEDULED. The patient and you both get notified.
Specialist completes the visit. Specialist uploads their report; status flips to COMPLETED. The referring dentist sees the report.
Specialist declines. Reason required. You decide whether to refer to another specialist or proceed differently.
Cancel from your end. If the patient changes their mind. Cancel → reason; specialist notified.
Expected outcome
- The Referrals list reflects current state for every referral
- Specialist actions feed back automatically
- Full timeline visible per referral
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Specialist's status update missing | They haven't actioned in their portal | Manually nudge by phone/email |
| Status went backward | Specialist clicked the wrong button | Their action wins; correct on your end via Edit if needed |
| Want to re-open a cancelled referral | Cannot; create a new one referencing the original | Use the new referral form, mention the original ID in notes |
| Specialist portal lost the email | Old link, expired | Re-send from the referral detail |
| Patient went to specialist outside the system | No automated tracking | Manually mark complete with note describing the visit |