Users
Users are the staff that will be using PTS in any capacity, from pharmacists and system administrators to ward staff. Their use of the system is defined by system administrators giving them permission to access the various components and features of PTS.
As of PTS v5.0.5.0 you can now configure PTS to use Active Directory to manage your PTS user list and allow for automatic login. That being said it is still very important for administrators to familiarise yourself with the setup page.
Accessing the setup page
Like many of the different PTS utilities, setup is found in the left-hand side bar.
Hover over the sidebar with the mouse cursor and the side bar will expand. Select Setup to reveal a drop-down list of the various setup pages you have permission to access.
To choose a setup page click on its name in the list to be taken to the setup page.
PTS 5 is the most user configurable version of our Prescription Tracking System to date. As a result parts of this Wiki assumes that the reader has permission to access the elements of the system in question. If you don't see specific items and utilities where they are supposed to be you may not have permission to access them.
Adding new users
To add a new user, access the actions menu by clicking on the actions menu icon at the top right of the page, then from the actions menu click the New User button.
Users can have individual access given or denied to almost any part of PTS, but as many types of users will share common use cases, and to speed up the creation process, PTS will prompt you to select a template known as a Role. Each role will have a pre-defined set of permissions and attributes that can be quickly applied to new users. Once the role is selected you will be prompted to add a password for the user, and either their default ward or default dispensary, depending on the parameters of the selected role.
Roles can be customised via the Roles Setup page.
Click OK when you're done. The process then continues in the user popup.
Editing existing users
To edit an existing user, select the user you wish to amend by clicking on their entry in the list to load the user popup (note clicking the tickbox has another dedicated function).
User popup
The user popup appears after adding a new user, or clicking on a user in the list to edit it.
Enter the following information and click the Save button to finish creating or editing the user. Some fields may be optional.
User details tab
- Username
This is the unique identifier for the user that is also ultimately used as the basis for their barcode. The system suggests the next available username, but this can be amended if you wish. - Name
This is the user’s full name. - Role
This is typically the job title or role of the user. This is chosen from a drop-down list. This is linked to the roles setup page. - Prof. Reg. No.
If the user is a pharmacist their registration number should be entered here. - Email
The user’s e-mail address is entered here. This can be used for sending messages and notes to the user from within PTS 5. This is also used if the user has forgotten their logon details. - Phone Number
This is the user’s mobile number. This can be used to receive text messages from PTS 5. - Receive text/email alerts
Enables the user to receive text or email alerts from PTS 5 assuming their e-mail and mobile phone details have been added. - Can be locked out?
Determines if this user can be locked out if they have tried more than 5 times to access the system using an incorrect password. If you are using generic accounts such as for ward access, then you might want to ensure those users can’t be locked out. - Lockout end-date/time
If a user is locked out PTS 5 will display when the current lockout period will end. This can be amended to any date in the future, or cleared to reactivate the user. You can make users inactive semi-permanently by entering a long lockout duration, e.g. 01/01/2050.
Windows logins tab
It is possible to access PTS 5 by associating Windows/Active Desktop credentials with a user record in PTS, which you do by simply adding their Windows username to this tab.
You can assign multiple Windows/AD logins to a PTS user. This can be useful if you want to allow named Nurses or Ward Staff to access the system using the generic PTS Ward User without having to create an individual user for each of them.
If you have Active Directory integration enabled, this section will be completed automatically.
Login audit tab
PTS logs each time a user attempts to log in to the system. An audit of their login attempts is listed here.
Booking in defaults tab
To speed up the prescription booking in process it is possible to set default settings that will be used when this user is booking in prescriptions. The printer to be used can be pre-determined as can the default prescription type, ward, and if linked to e-prescribing, the e-prescribing ID.
Dispensaries tab
If the user does not have the DISPENSARYUSER permission enabled, the dispensaries tab will not be available here, instead the option would refer to Wards (see next section).
Each user needs to be allocated to at least one dispensary. The first dispensary is added automatically. To add another dispensary, click on the plus icon. Once selected you have the option to make this the default dispensary. This will affect home page views that are configured to show prescriptions based on the user's default dispensary. The Show Stats option adds statistical charts relating to this dispensary onto the user’s home page.
Wards tab
If the user has the DISPENSARYUSER permission enabled, the wards tab would not be available here, instead the option would refer to dispensaries (see previous section).
Each ward user needs to be allocated to at least one Ward. The first ward is added automatically. To add another ward, click on the plus icon. Once selected you have the option to make this the default ward. This will affect home page views that are configured to show prescriptions based on the user's default ward.
User views tab
You can add or remove user views from individual user accounts here.
User views are created and configured by system administrators in the user views setup page.
Permissions tab
This section defines what the user can do within PTS 5. Default permissions are imported based on the selected role template but can be customised here on a per-user basis.
Delete user
You cannot delete a user that has data recorded against them and the option to delete will not be available. If the option is available, click on the delete user button and confirm that you want to proceed.
Reset passwords
To reset a users password click on the Reset PTS Password icon. In the popup window that opens enter the new password details, repeat in the confirmation field, and click the OK button to apply the changes.
The rules for password strength are defined in the Application Settings screen. This includes minimum length of password, the duration a password is valid and whether numeric, lowercase, uppercase and non- alphanumeric characters are required.
Select users by ticking the tick box to the left of the row and the Actions Menu will slide in from the right-hand side of the webpage. You can select multiple users at once.
The most common action here will be to print barcodes.
Print barcodes
Click on the Print Barcodes button and the available printers will be listed, along with the option to print a QR code for use exclusively with 2D barcode readers.
Click on the printer you want to use and the barcode label will be printed. If you chose Browser Printing then your web browser will handle the print job as opposed to PTS and a print preview will be displayed along with the option to choose an attached printer.
Available barcodes
- User barcodes
The personal barcode labels used by each member of staff to identify themselves when using a barcode scanner. - User collection/delivery barcodes
If your dispensary is recording the delivery of prescriptions you can print the collection and delivery confirmation barcodes from here. These are the codes the porter will be prompted to scan to authorise a delivery, and relate to the permissions of the selected user (i.e. COLLECT, DELIVER) and their assigned wards. If the user has permission to collect/deliver and is assigned to the ward, the delivery can proceed.
Reset user views
This option allows you to reset the user's views to the user views predetermined by a role. Any changes made to their individual user views will be overwritten. Click the Reset User Views button and a window will pop up to select the role that you wish to reset to.
Reset permissions
This option allows you to reset the user's permissions to those predetermined by a role.
Duplicate user
If you have an existing user whose profile you wish to copy to a new user, i.e. same permissions and user views etc. this is a quick way of achieving it. Note: This option is not available if you have selected multiple users from the list.