13.4. HQ’s Visit Summary & Post Op Template

*THE BIG WHAT
Every appointment should receive an emailed or printed visit summary detailing the services rendered and any client communication notes. HQ recommends a custom template instead of the built-in Spay/Neuter Certificate because the custom template is an all-in-one, offers better client communication options, and can be used regardless of whether the surgery was successful.

Download HQ Recommended Templates (follow link and open HQ Templates.) AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH & SPANISH

HQ's Recommneded Template for Visit Summary & Post Op

A good take-home template acts as an all-in-one and has five main parts:

1. Animal/Owner information such as owner’s address and an animal description.

2. Services received.

3. Rabies certificate – lot information — this will only populate if a rabies vaccine was administered and the certificate generated.

4. Notes about the visit.
- Client Communication. This merge field will populate triggered notes based on exam, services, or other pre-written Medical Notes.
- Test Results
- Declined surgery reasons
- Other Merge Fields — based on your clinic’s preference, include the merge fields for the notes you want to be included in the take-home template. Options include Exam, Surgery Summary, prescriptions, drugs used.

5. Aftercare instructions. — Provide the post-operative instructions for the spay/neuter surgery. This should include:
- how to care for the animal – limit activity, feed regular diet, keep indoors, keep warm and dry, prevent licking, keep away from other animals.
- things that are abnormal in recovery/concerns to monitor for
- what to do if there is a concern with the recovery: who the client should call for post-op concerns or to schedule a recheck.
(Edit the language of the HQ post-operative instructions or copy/paste your instructions into the Word template before uploading to HQ.)

Use Item Triggered Notes for Aftercare instructions

The merge field for Client Communication will produce pre-written notes from Medical Notes.
In Settings > Medical Notes create Item Triggered Notes that will provide aftercare instructions for other services performed during the spay/neuter visit.
For example, if the animal received a dental cleaning, use the dental cleaning line item to provide a note about any additional monitoring needed or the potential for gum bleeding.
This pre-written message will only appear on the visit summary if the animal has a dental on their services.

Assign the Template as a Take Home Template.

Assigning the discharge visit summary as a “Take HomeTemplate” when uploading to Settings > Templates.

The discharge paperwork is referred to as a “Take Home Template.” Assigning the discharge paperwork as a take-home document will allow you to email clients their records automatically with Patient Flow Automations.
Public clients can request copies of their discharge paperwork through the online Medical Record Request link.
Volume Clients can access the visit summary paperwork from their Portal based on settings HERE.