Create orders

What creating an order does

Creating an order starts the clinical workflow. The order connects a patient to requested tests, sample requirements, pricing, branch, referral, visit type, and later result delivery. Once created, the order becomes the record that reception, cashier, collectors, technicians, reviewers, and managers all work from.

The create screen uses one compact workspace for patient details, the test catalog, requirements, order details, pricing, and review. The workspace is continuous on desktop and stacks its sections vertically on smaller screens.

Use compact order entry

Start with Client Name (Primary Account) and open its searchable selector. Type a client name or mobile number, then choose the matching result. The Patient selector then shows that client and their linked family members. Choose Client / Patient (Self) when the primary client is the person receiving the tests, or choose a family member. If the patient is missing, choose the create-new result and complete the patient details and relation; Kashef creates and links that member when the order is submitted. Date of birth and age always belong to the selected Patient, not the primary client.

Type a doctor name and choose a match, or keep the unmatched name to create that doctor on submission. Search or filter the catalog, use Add on a row, and remove an item from the selected-tests area. The Available Tests ledger loads the next catalog batch automatically as you scroll; keep scrolling until the loading row disappears. Use the top actions to Save Draft, Resume Draft, Discard Draft when a resumed intake should not continue, or Create Order after reviewing validation messages and the calculated total.

The catalog loads in small batches as you scroll, so a large catalog remains responsive. Kashef recalculates visible prices when the contract or scheduled date changes; review the pricing breakdown before choosing Create Order.

Patient and referring doctor

Select the primary Client first. Then open the searchable Patient Name selector and search by patient name or mobile number to see that client's family patients, including the client as Self. Selecting a patient fills the patient's own mobile, date of birth, age, and relation. If the patient is new, choose the create-new result, then complete the patient's name, mobile, date of birth or age, gender, and relation to the Client. Kashef creates and links that patient profile when you select Create Order. For the referring doctor, open the searchable doctor selector and search by name, phone, email, or clinic; choose a result, or choose the create-new result to create a doctor on submission. Leave it empty for self referral.

The Last Visit column is based on the most recent committed order for this lab company, not on profile creation or demographic editing. A new profile correctly shows No visits yet until its first order is created.

Check the patient name, phone number, gender, and date of birth. Select Male or Female when the patient is new or the existing profile has no supported gender; the order cannot continue without it. These values affect patient communication, report identity, and reference range evaluation. A wrong date of birth or gender can affect automated interpretation for tests that use age or sex-specific ranges.

One phone number can belong to several linked patient profiles, such as children using a parent phone. When the selector shows multiple profiles sharing a mobile number, use name, gender, date of birth, and family relation to choose the correct person. Create a new profile for a different person using the same phone; do not overwrite another family member's record.

If you create a patient from the order screen and the name or phone already exists, Kashef highlights the existing patient details. If the new person belongs to that family, enable the family option and choose the relation. Family members stay as separate patients: the order, samples, results, and finance records belong to the selected member, not automatically to the Family Master.

When the phone number already belongs to another patient, a yellow notice appears under the phone field. If you continue without selecting the family option, Kashef asks for confirmation before creating a separate profile with the same phone or name. Choose Cancel if you meant to add the person as a family member, then return to the possible family match section and choose the relation.

Searching for a Family Master also shows their members. Searching for a member also shows the Family Master and the other members in that family. Use the Family Relation column to avoid selecting a parent when the order is for a child, or selecting a child when the order is for a parent.

When an order is created, Kashef links the selected patient to the current lab company if they were not already attached. This helps every branch in the lab find the patient again.

Select tests

The test selector pulls active tests from the catalog. Each selected item carries its code, an English display name, the retained Arabic catalog name, package source when applicable, pricing source, and clinical metadata. Test names remain English in the selector and summary even when the interface is Arabic, so reception can confirm the order consistently before moving forward.

Use the catalog names exactly as configured. Do not use order notes to request a test that is missing from the catalog. If a test is not available, add or activate it in the catalog first, then return to the order.

If packages are used, the order keeps package information in the item snapshot so the lab can later explain why several tests were added together.

Add and Remove show a spinner until the catalog update finishes. A test already included by a selected profile or package shows Added instead of Add and cannot be added separately. If an older or resumed draft already contains a duplicate, both affected selected items appear on a yellow background with a warning icon and an explanation underneath. Remove the separate test or edit the profile or package to exclude the duplicated test.

Use the edit control on a selected profile or package to uncheck tests that should be excluded from this order or add per-test comments. The package or profile price does not change when a test is excluded. The editor shows No changes to save and keeps Save disabled until the selection or a comment actually changes, so repeated clicks do not create ambiguous background work.

In Local Kashef, selecting a profile expands its configured component tests and selecting a package adds its configured package tests. If either item reports that no tests are available, run Sync Now in Kashef Desktop before continuing; technical details are recorded in Operations & logs.

Order information

The order details section controls visit and billing context:

Field	How to use it
Visit Type	Choose in-person visit for branch collection or home collection for dispatch work.
Priority	Use normal, urgent, or critical based on lab policy. Priority helps sample and result teams focus work.
Date and Time Slot	Set the scheduled collection or visit time. Pricing and dispatch can depend on this.
Contract Type	Filter available contract choices, such as insurance, hospital, corporate, or special pricing.
Contract Name	Select the active contract that should drive pricing. Leave empty for cash or base pricing.

Payment is not collected in this step. Kashef creates the order with payment pending and sends money handling to the cashier workflow. That separation keeps reception order creation fast and keeps finance records cleaner.

Patient history

Review the saved medical conditions and notes for the selected patient. Changes are saved to the patient profile for future orders while the current order keeps its own clinical snapshot.

Confirm requirements

When test requirements are enabled, the requirements section shows the patient readiness checks required by the selected tests. Examples include fasting, sample timing, medication notes, required consent, or special collection instructions.

The same step shows Collection Guidance from the test catalog: sample and container, collection quantity and unit, temperature and stability, structured preparation, fasting duration, and the patient and collector instructions in the current language. Read the patient instructions aloud or provide them in the patient's preferred language, and do not substitute free-text order notes for missing catalog rules.

Mark each requirement as met, unmet, or overridden. If you override a requirement, write a real reason. Kashef requires a reason because this is a clinical and operational exception, not a cosmetic field. A good reason names what was checked and why the lab accepted the order anyway.

Do not skip requirement review for home visits. The collector will rely on the order setup and may not have time to resolve missing preparation details at the patient's home.

Clinical context

Use Reason for Tests for the symptoms, screening purpose, follow-up, or clinical question. Use Order Notes for operational instructions that staff need later.

Pricing and validation

Before the order is saved, Kashef reprices the selected tests using the tenant branch, scheduled date, and contract. The pricing breakdown stays visible as information and explains the base subtotal, automatic discount, applied total, pricing context, and applied rule.

Order checks does not appear while you are entering or changing valid data. It appears only after Create Order fails and contains actual validation errors only. The affected section is outlined and repeats its error inline so you know exactly where to correct it. After a valid patient, doctor, or test selection resolves an error, the stale error is cleared. For duplicate-test errors, edit the package or profile to exclude the duplicate, or remove the other selection.

Kashef also validates outsourced destinations for selected tests. If the selected catalog setup points to an outsource destination that is not valid, the order should be corrected before it reaches samples.

Review and confirm

Before selecting Create Order, compare the patient, tests, requirements, visit type, contract, and notes. Read the workspace as if you are handing the order to another staff member. If the next person could not safely collect samples or explain the price from the order, correct the affected section first.

After create, Kashef stores a requested tests snapshot, creates order item records, records requirement confirmations when enabled, and can create sample records from the selected tests. The order then appears in the Operations Workbench and Orders list.

Common mistakes to avoid

Do not create a second profile for the same person because the spelling is slightly different. Shared phone numbers are allowed for different people, but identity details and family relation must be checked before selection.

Do not leave a requirement overridden without a meaningful reason.

Do not put billing exceptions only in notes. Use the contract and cashier flows so reports and finance remain consistent.

Do not create a home collection order without enough address and scheduling information for dispatch.

Do not change clinical tests after samples or results have already moved unless the lab manager confirms the correction path.