Starting a New Visit
Create a patient visit with type, priority, chief complaint, and consultation fee
Overview
Starting a visit in SehaFile creates the clinical encounter record that captures everything from vitals to prescriptions. Each visit is linked to a patient, assigned to a doctor, and categorized by type (first_visit, follow_up, or emergency). The visit record also holds the consultation fee and priority level, enabling proper billing and queue management.
New visit form showing patient selector, visit type dropdown, priority radio buttons, and chief complaint text area
Steps to Create a Visit
- Navigate to Visits > New Visit — Click Visits in the sidebar, then click the + New Visit button in the top-right corner, or navigate directly to /visits/new.
- Select the patient — Use the patient search field to find the patient by name, phone number, or national ID. The autocomplete dropdown shows matching results with file number.
- Choose the visit type — Select from the dropdown:
- First Visit (كشف أول) — Patient's first encounter with this doctor
- Follow-up (متابعة) — Return visit for an existing condition
- Emergency (طوارئ) — Urgent unscheduled visit
- Set the priority — Choose Normal, Urgent, or Emergency. This affects the patient's position in the waiting queue.
- Enter the chief complaint — Type the patient's main presenting complaint in the free-text field. This is shown on the waiting list and visit card.
- Set the consultation fee — The fee auto-populates based on visit type and doctor settings. Override manually if needed. Discounts can be applied in the discount_amount field.
- Click “Create Visit” — The system generates a unique visit_number (e.g., V-2026-001234), sets status to “waiting”, and records started_at timestamp.
Visit Status Flow
After creation, a visit progresses through these statuses:
- waiting — Patient is in the queue
- in_progress — Doctor has started the consultation
- completed — Visit is finalized
FAQ
Can I create a visit without selecting a patient first?
No. Every visit must be linked to a registered patient. If the patient is new, register them first via Patients > Add Patient or ask reception to do so.
What happens if I choose the wrong visit type?
You can update the visit type while the visit is still in “waiting” or “in_progress” status by editing the visit details. Once completed, changes require admin approval.
How is the visit number generated?
The system generates a unique visit_number per clinic using the format V-YYYY-NNNNNN, ensuring no duplicates across branches.
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