Recording Contacts (Administrator guide)
Contents
Recording Contacts
Recording contacts is the heart of the Charitylog system. When users record contacts, two things are happening;
- Users get a way to log a "case history" and assign work to themselves or others, now or at a later date
- These contacts, and associated information, are recorded for producing reports.
This double-sided approach is key to the implementation of your Charitylog system, and is the reason that Charitylog is intended to be used by everyone in the office, every day - including volunteers, handypeople, and so on! The more people there are making use of the office functionality, the more information is going in for reporting. It is very difficult to have good reporting if there is no benefit in it for the end users. If you were to ask a whole organisation to start logging everything they do, they would rightly complain that it would be far too much work! Charitylog allows the process of logging data to be entirely linked with the process of day-to-day work, so the users of the system benefit by using it.
Recording Contacts is done using the "Record A Contact" screen, shown here. This shows a relatively normal Record a Contact screen, as there are various different options which can be turned on or off, depending on the needs of the organisation and/or the Project. In the detailed explanations later in this guide, the Record a Contact screen will be shown with every possible option switched on.
How to use the Record a Contact screen is dealt with in the Recording Contacts section of the user manual.
Section 1: What has been done
This section is for the user to enter what has been done. Once saved, this information will be stored in the system, and can be viewed from the History, Summary and Project tabs of the Client Details screen. It will also be saved for reporting.
Date and time
Here the user can enter the date and time that the action was done. The Charitylog system does not prevent you inputting a date in the past or the future, so it is perfectly possible to "write up" a series of visits from a week, for example. However, it is always best if users fill in the actions at the time they are done, or immediately afterwards - this generally results in better data and less wasted paper.
Dates and times are entered in Standard Charitylog date and time formats.
Referred by
Here the user can enter a Referrer. They need to pick from a list of Referrers which is already on the system, set up by the administrators. When you have a brand new Charitylog system, this list will have been set up for you according to your Pre-Implementation Spreadsheets. If you want to change or add to this list, see this section: Referrers - administrator guide.
There are two ways of entering data in this field; start typing, and after three letters the system will give a drop-down list of matching Referrers; or click the button to the right of the field (shown as a group of yellow people). This will show a pop-up window with all Referrers in, which the user can pick from. The user can also add to this list using a link which will be shown in the pop-up window. Generally, we try and discourage users from adding entries to the list of referrers without checking with administrators first.
Represented By
This text box allows the user to enter data if the client in question is being represented by someone else. A common occurrence is that an elderly person may be represented by a family member. Using this text box allows the user to record details of the actual client in question and also the fact that they were represented by someone else. This box is a plain text box and has no associated preset list, but the option to use it is switched on and off in Operational Rules.
Contact Method
Here the user can record the contact method used. This list is driven by a drop-down list that you can edit if you need to add more entries or re-order the list: Communication Methods.
Contact Type
Here the user can add a contact type, if you are using them. Contact types are an extra way to categorise activity. The list is driven by a drop-down lists that you can edit or add to: Contact Types. You will also need to turn on the ability to enter Contact Types for the projects you want them to be available to: Contact Types (project setting).
Where Did Client Hear About Us?
Here the user can record where the client first heard about the services that the organisation provides. This is driven by a list which you can set up and add to: Setting up referral sources, and the ability to enter these reasons needs to be turned on for each project you want to use them with: Referral Sources.
Details of contact
This text box is for the user to record what has actually happened. This is a plain text box so it cannot be reported on/counted, which is why other aspects of the contact like the contact method and the source of the referral are recorded separately. The user can use this text box to record general information, which will form part of the "case history" for the client which is stored on the Charitylog system. The entry in this text box will also be shown to whoever does the next action, if there is one, so it is good to bear this in mind when filling the box in.
Done By
Here the user can select who the action was done by. Most of the time, this will be the user that is using this page, so the drop-down list defaults to that person. This drop-down list is driven by the list of users on your system.
Project Subcategory
Here the user can enter a subcategory for this referral. Project subcategories are used to classify activity across an organisation, and also across Projects. For more information, see this page: Project Subcategories. The ability to enter project subcategories is set on the "System Access" tab of the User Details screen: click here for more details. This setting is left as "No" by default, so if you want to make use of Project Subcategories you will need to change it to "Yes" for all the relevant users.
Referral Reasons
Here the user can enter a Referral Reason - another way to categorise activity. To see how to manage the list click here; to see how to turn it on for a particular Project click here.
Section 2: What needs to be done
This section is for recording what needs to be done as a result of the action/activity that has happened. Whether the user enters anything in this section will decide whether an outstanding action is created for themselves or another user, to appear on their Action List, or not. If nothing is entered in section 2, the system assumes that there is no more action to be done on this referral, and will close it accordingly.
Further Action Needed
Here the user can enter details of the action which needs to be done. This is a text box so cannot be counted/reported on, but it will be shown to the person carrying out the outstanding action. This might be the person logging the current action, or it might be someone else, but either way some description will be necessary. The text entered in this box will also be stored on the Client Details screen and will form part of the "case history" of the client.
Priority Rating
If the user wants the outstanding action to be flagged as high priority, this can be set here. If your organisation is going to use priority ratings, it will be useful to decide beforehand what constitutes "high priority".
Response Method
Here the user can set what the response method needs to be. The list of available response methods is set up here.
When By?
Here the user can specify when the outstanding action needs to be done by - date and time. Date entry is compulsory but time entry is optional. The time and date are entered using Standard Charitylog date and time formats.
Who By?
The person the outstanding action is to be done by. This list is the list of users on your Charitylog system.
Classification Codes button
Here the user can add classification codes, if you are using them. In some circumstances the codes button will look slightly different - for example if you are an AgeUK organisation, you are likely to be using the preset AgeUK codes. You can also set up your own classification codes system, if required:
- For details of how to set up codes, click here.
- To allow code entry for a project, and to force code entry if required, click here.
Templates
As well as simply recording contacts using the "Record a Contact" screen, Charitylog allows you to use templates to fill in information on the "Record a Contact" screen automatically, so users don't have to spend so long doing data entry. You can also take templates a step further and use multi-status templates, which allow your users to pick a progress stage from a drop-down list; the selected status then brings in entries to text boxes, date fields etc.
Setting up a single-stage referral template
Open the Administration menu, then the Projects and Referral Entries submenu, and click the "Referral templates" link.
This will show you the existing templates which are set up on your system, if there are any. Click the "Enter New Templates" button to create a new one.
From this screen you can enter data for the template;
- Name
- Description (shown on the list of templates)
- Project
- Project subcategory
- Whether or not you want the template to be available on the "Record a Contact" screen
- Whether to always force a Status to be entered. For simple templates, leave this set to "no". (more on Statuses later)
- Whether the template is active.
The bottom half of the page then allows you to enter the information that will carry over to the "Record a Contact" screen. Have a look at the image below;
This template will now carry the following information into the "Record a Contact" screen when used:
- The client came into the office for information
- The contact was a self referral
- The contact method was an office visit
- The client needs calling back within 7 days by whoever used the template to enter the information
Saving the template with the name "Office enquiry" for the Information and Advice project will mean that the template is displayed on the project selection page when recording a contact.
The resulting "Record a Contact" screen would look like this:
Note that the information the template enters on the "Record a Contact" screen is still fully editable - the text is just filled in to make data entry easier, so there is nothing wrong with setting up a template with "best guesses" in. Single stage templates like this are ideal for front desk staff, who will have a lot of contacts with clients, and don't want to fill in the "Record a Contact" screen from scratch every time. You might want to set up a series of templates for the desk staff, with the most common scenarios - for example;
- Client came in for information, information was given, no further action needed.
- Client telephoned for information, information was given, no further action needed.
- Anonymous client came in and took away a leaflet
...and so on.
Remember that these templates are contacts like any other, and as such they must be logged against a Project, so the templates must be set up under the relevant Projects; you cannot move a referral from one project to another once it has begun. Consider the previous scenario where the front desk staff are using templates to speed up data entry. If they are just giving out information, it would be reasonable to log the activity in the Information and Advice Project. However, perhaps the front desk staff also make appointments for other projects to have meetings with clients - befriending, benefits advice, and so on. In that case, one template will be needed in each Project for the front desk staff to use.
Multi-Status Templates
It may be that you want to set up several statuses within a template. This would be used to mirror a chain of actions which are always broadly similar. The two most common scenario is an eligibility process for clients before they access a service. Let's look at a befriending service, and set up a template to make the recording of the initial contacts quicker.
The process that clients go through might go something like this:
To set up the statuses within a template you may like to consider who usually does the work and how long there should be between each action. Here's the flow chart again with these added;
With this information you can now set up the template. Click the "Referral Templates" menu item again (in Administration > Projects and Referral Entries).
Click the "Enter New Templates" button to create a new template. This time, you will need to give the template a name, but leave the bottom half of this screen blank; the text to be added to the "Record a Contact" screen will be added by individual statuses. Note that the "Always force a Status to be entered" option is now set to "Yes".
Once you have entered the name of your template and the Project, click the "Save and Edit Progress Statuses" button.
You have the option here to copy in a set of Statuses from another template, but for a new set of Statuses click the "Enter New Progress Status" button.
You can now enter details of the Status.
- The top section is for the Status name (we suggest numbering your Statuses), a description of the Status, display order, and whether this status is active.
- The middle section will be carried into "what has been done" on the Record a Contact screen.
- The lower section will be carried into "what needs to be done" on the Record a Contact screen.
You can see that the outstanding action is set up to be carried out by Kiersten Denmann, the Befriending Service Manager.
The next two Statuses will be set up in the same way; Status 2 for after the callback has been completed, and Status 3 for after the first befriending appointment has been done.
Status 3 does not need outstanding actions, as the next action to be taken will vary according to the needs of the client. For example, the user might set up a reminder to call the client and befriender again in three months to check how things are going. Alternatively, an outstanding action may not be needed at all.
Once both these Statuses are saved, you will be returned to the Statuses page with your completed Statuses, as shown.
The "everything else" Status
Because you have set the "Always force a Status to be entered" preference to "Yes" - which is a good idea for reporting integrity - there will probably be a point where users have used all of these Statuses and simply want to carry on recording contacts for the referral in the usual way. If you leave the Template as shown, users will find that they still need to keep using the existing Statuses and then deleting the information, which will be irritating and will mean that the reports are confusing. Therefore you should finish by creating an "ongoing work" Status which can cater for everything that happens after the usual chain of actions is done.
Using Multi-Status Templates
Now you can see what these Statuses look like when used for recording contacts.
When recording a contact with a client, Colin (front desk staff) can use the template when picking the Project;
This will display the Record a Contact screen as shown, but with an extra box where the user can pick a Status.
(If the user tries to continue without selecting a Status, an error message will be displayed as shown.)
Once the user picks a Status, the Record a Contact screen will carry in the information from the Status, as shown.
The user will still need to fill in a Referrer for this referral on first contact. Alternatively, you can set a Referrer to be carried in every time the Template is used, but be careful; sometimes this will be OK, but sometimes it is not appropriate...
- For a receptionist using a template to record contacts with people who come into the office, these will almost always be self referrals, so this is safe to be set on the Template.
- For referrals to a project that might come from several different places (doctor, social services, family member etc), it would not be a good idea to set the Referrer as part of the template; doing so will probably lead to misreporting, because users will forget to change the drop-down box for Referrer.
The action created by using this Status will now appear on Kiersten Denmann (the Befriending Service Manager)'s Action List...
...and by using the "Record Contact" button when she has completed the work, she will be taken to the Record a Contact screen where she can select the next Status which will bring in the appropriate entries.
Remember that the entries brought in by the Status are still editable. Users can change or add to them as needed.
Also remember that using Templates and Statuses does not override other Charitylog functionality. You can still use volunteer assignments, information links and so on, as well as the information brought in by the Status. In the above example, Kiersten may well assign a volunteer as well as using Status 2.
If this happens, the system will automatically insert some text into the box for "Details of Contact", which is why you do not need to place text for this in the Status itself.
Progress Interval Reports
Using Statuses has an extra benefit over the normal use of Record a Contact. There is a special report you can run to see how quickly people moved from one Status to the next. This is very useful for assessing whether your services are meeting targets (for example, you could have a target of responding to all befriending enquiries within three days, and use the Progress Interval Report to show whether this is happening. You can also run this report by staff member, so you can see if particular members of staff are completing stages more quickly than others!
For more information, please see "Progress Interval Reports" in the Administrator Manual.
