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Patient Diary Entries

What are Diary Entries and how do I set these up? 

Clinicians often need to keep track of follow-up actions for individual patients that fall outside the standard population-wide recall rules. Patient Diary Entries provide a clear and consistent way to record these patient-specific needs directly within Abtrace.
 

Diary entries record future patient monitoring requirements rather than acting as a reminder. These needs can then be managed through existing recalls or by creating new, diary-driven recalls. Now you can keep on top of more bespoke patient tasks within Abtrace.

A Patient Diary Entry records a patient-specific clinical need that should occur in the future. A diary entry is:
  • Linked to a single patient (not population-wide)
  • Dated, but not booked as an appointment
  • Action-based, allowing the task to be picked up via automated recalls (e.g. overdue tests)
  • Created from the tasks you’re already using in Abtrace - such as blood tests - so they fit seamlessly into your existing workflow
Diary entries remove the need for manual tracking systems while ensuring important follow-ups aren’t missed.
 
Examples:
  • Follow-up ECG in 6 months 🫀
  • Annual DEXA scan 🩻
  • 3-monthly PSA blood test 🩸
  • One-off renal profile 💉

How to set up your first Patient Diary Entry?

 
 
From the Patient View, users can create a new diary entry by:
  1. Selecting Add Patient Diary
  2. Adding an entry name
  3. Selecting a task from the list (e.g., blood tests, biometrics, imaging, procedures, questionnaires)
  4. Choosing whether the action is:
    • a One-off, or
    • Recurring
  5. Adding optional notes (visible after creation)
  6. Confirming responsibility via the declaration checkbox

Diary entries appear immediately in Patient View, however, the patient’s status (e.g. overdue or opportunistic) will update within 24-48 hours as per regular data refresh.

    How to view and edit Patient Diary Entries
    In Patient View, diary entries appear within an expandable section when you click on a task.
     
    Each entry displays as:
     
     
    • Reason (Indication): displayed as Patient Diary
    • A View/Edit button next to each diary task
      • Clicking this opens the detailed view, showing all fields
      • You'll be able to edit or delete the patient diary
    Diary Entry Audit Trail
    Each diary entry includes a full audit trail showing:
    • Who created or last updated the entry
    • When changes were made
    When a diary entry is created, Abtrace automatically writes a note to the patient’s EHR as free text. This ensures the diary information is visible within the clinical record.
     
    How to Automatically Stay on Top of Individual Patient Needs
    To view diary entries across all patients:
    • Go to Population View
    • Filter by Indication → Diary Entry
    Diary-driven needs also appear in:
    • Classic searches (e.g. patients due a renal profile)
    • Automated recalls, when the task matches recall criteria

    Example: If a recall targets patients due any blood test and a patient has a diary entry for a once-off renal profile, they will be included in the recall at the time when that once-off test is required. 

    Can I create more than one diary entry for the same task and patient?
    You can! For example:
    • PSA blood test every 3 months for year one
    • PSA blood test every 6 months for the following year
    Multiple diary entries allow flexible, time-based care plans tailored to the individual patient.