Observation Workflow

Observations are the core of Ward—documenting that staff checked on a patient at a specific time.

1:1 patients use a different workflow. When a patient is on observation level 1:1, the Observe tab is replaced with a continuous-observation screen designed for frequent quick check-ins. See 1:1 Continuous Observation. The rest of this page covers interval-based observations (Q5, Q15, Q30, Q60, Elopement).

Starting an Observation

1. Select a patient — on wider screens (landscape tablet, desktop), the patient sidebar is always visible from any screen; on mobile, navigate to the Patients tab
2. Tap a patient to open their detail screen
3. Tap the Observe tab

Proximity Verification

Before you can submit an observation, Ward verifies you're physically present with the patient.

Automatic Verification

When your handheld detects the patient's BLE wristband:

1. A green checkmark appears showing "Proximity Verified"
2. The distance in feet displays
3. You can proceed to document the observation

The app continuously scans for nearby wristbands and calculates distance from signal strength.

Manual Override (sensors unavailable)

If the patient has no wristband or it can't be detected:

1. Tap Manual Override
2. Select a reason:
   • No wristband assigned
   • Wristband malfunction
   • Patient moved
   • Other (with notes)
3. Proceed to document

Manual overrides are logged for audit purposes.

Quick Templates

Quick templates let you document common observations with a single tap:

Template	Status	Location
Awake, calm, in bed	Awake, calm	In bed
Awake, calm, common area	Awake, calm	Common area
Awake, calm, chair	Awake, calm	In chair
Sleeping, in bed	Sleeping	In bed

Tap a template to pre-fill the observation form. You can still modify before submitting. During night mode, the "Sleeping, in bed" template is prioritized and shown first.

Manual Entry

If no template fits, select manually:

Patient Status

Status	Description
Sleeping	Patient appears asleep
Awake, calm	Patient awake and settled
Awake, agitated	Patient showing signs of agitation
Awake, distressed	Patient in distress
Off unit	Patient not on the unit
Other	Use with notes

Location

Location	Description
In bed	In their assigned bed
In chair	Sitting in a chair
Bathroom	In the bathroom
Common area	In shared spaces
Off unit	Away from the unit
Other	Use with notes

Adding Notes

Optional notes can document:

• Specific behaviors observed
• Conversations with the patient
• Environmental conditions
• Concerns for the next shift

Notes are visible in the patient's observation history.

Submitting

Tap Submit Observation to record.

After submission:

• The observation appears in the patient's history
• The next observation due time is calculated
• The dashboard updates immediately
• The form is cleared so you can continue with the same patient or navigate away

Observation History

View a patient's observation history:

1. Open patient details
2. Tap History tab
3. See all observations with:
   • Timestamp
   • Staff who documented
   • Status and location
   • Whether on-time
   • Notes

Night Mode Observations

During night mode hours (configured per unit):

• Quick templates prioritize sleep-related options
• Night mode displays on the observation screen
• Doorway and passive modes may be available depending on unit settings