Getting started FAQs

Check out our Getting Started FAQs below, or jump straight to our module specific FAQs using the links below.

FAQs by Module

Patient CRM

Dispensing & Workflow

MDS

NMS

RMS

Location Manager

Drug Notes Manager

Responsible Pharmacist

Own Drugs Manager

Ordering

HO Branch Settings

HO Restrictions

HO Drug Notes

Org. Management

Reports

Apotec Help FAQs

Here are some of our most frequently asked questions about Apotec Help.

1. What information will I find on Apotec Help?

Apotec Help is where you'll find all our step-by-step guides and FAQs for all the Apotec CRM modules. Check out our Get to Know Apotec Help article for everything you need to know about our Help website.

Apotec CRM FAQs

Here are some of our most frequently asked questions about Apotec CRM.

1. How do I change my application settings?

Application settings allow you to modify Apotec CRM behaviour to suit the needs of your pharmacy. Before modifying any settings, it is important to understand the impact your adjustment will have on the application. You can review the description of each setting within the Settings module by selecting a setting and reviewing it's Description, or by reading our module specific Get to Know articles on Apotec Help.

To access the Settings module on Apotec CRM, select Settings from the left-nav.

Within Settings, you can use the available Filters to search for settings or filter by Category to locate the settings you want to configure. You can enable, disable or configure the value of each setting using the Edit found in the Action column, and then save your changes using the Save icon.

2. What do the status icons mean?

Status icons are found in the top bar on Apotec CRM. All the icons you'll see have been described in the table below.

Icon	Name	Description
User details	The User details icon is an indicator of NHS smartcard authentication. This icon will display in green when a valid NHS smartcard has been authenticated. Hovering over a green User details icon will display information such as user details and token expiry within a tooltip. If this icon is displayed in red, no user details have been retrieved and there is no active smartcard authentication.
Web socket	This icon is an indicator of your internet connection. You may see this icon in three (3) status colours; a red icon indicates you are not connected, an amber icon indicates a connection attempt is in progress, and a green icon indicates you are connected.
Desktop service	An indicator of your connected peripherals, such as printers and scanners. This icon has three (3) status colours; a red icon indicates your desktop services are not connected, an amber icon indicates the desktop services are connecting, and a green icon indicates connected services.
Notifications	Selecting the Notifications icon button allows you to access your notifications, such as messages from patients or Head Office, service notifications and ordering updates. A numeric badge will display on this icon with a counter indicating new notifications and the number of unread notifications.
	Organisation details	Hovering your cursor over the Office icon will display information such as site or group details, including Apotec ID, ODS Code, and our internal org identifier, e.g., BL-4.

3. How do I authorise my NHS smartcard?

You are required to authenticate a valid NHS smartcard before you can access certain features and functionality within Apotec CRM. To learn how to authenticate your smartcard, see our Smartcard authentication article for the step-by-step process.

4. There are a lot of Action icons in Apotec CRM. What do they all mean?

In most modules you'll be able to perform actions on item records using a series of icons found in the Actions column of module grids. These icons have been described below.

Icon	Name	Description
	Absence Leave	Record a leave of absence in the Responsible Pharmacist module.
	Absence Return	End your leave of absence in the Responsible Pharmacist module once you've returned to the pharmacy.
	Add	Add a new record to the grid.
	Calendar	Access the date picker.
	Clock	Manage times/opening hours.
	Collection	The Collection icon displays on the patient CRM for patients marked as In Store Pick-Up. It is used within Filters in Apotec CRM as an action icon button to refine the records displayed by In Store Pick-Up patients.
	Cross	Reject or decline site devices.
	Delete	Delete the record from the grid.
	Delivery	The Delivery icon displays on the patient CRM for patients marked as Delivery. It is used within Filters in Apotec CRM as an action icon button to refine the records displayed by Delivery patients.
	Devices	Manage your site devices.
	Duplicate	Duplicate the record in the grid.
	Edit	Edit the record in the grid.
	Information	Access additional or further information.
	Lock	Mark the record as locked.
	Map Pin	Select the Map Pin icon to perform a postcode lookup within address fields.
	MDS	Found within Filters in Apotec CRM as an action icon button to refine the records displayed by MDS patients.
	Menu	Expand and collapse the left-navigation bar.
	Next	Scroll next/right.
	Note	View logs or notes.
	Open	Open the module in a new tab.
	Previous	Scroll back/left.
	Print	Print the record in the grid.
	Refresh/Reinstate	Refresh or reinstate the record.
	Restore	Restore settings to their default values.
	Save	Save edited records in the grid.
	Search	Open a search window to populate the text field.
	Sign In	Sign in to the Responsible Pharmacist module.
	Sign Out	Sign out from the Responsible Pharmacist module.
	Star	Mark records as preferred, such as contact numbers or addresses.
	Stock Card	Access the item's Stock Card.
	Stopped	Mark items as stopped. Stopped items will be displayed with a STOPPED badge in the patient's Medication History.
	Tick	Accept or approve site devices.
	Unlock	Unlock a locked item record.
	User	Select User icons to manage users.
	View	View the item's full details.
	Ordering/Wholesalers	Access Ordering or manage wholesalers.

5. What do the icons on the prescription widget mean?

We've made it easy to see which prescriptions contain Controlled Drugs (CDs), fridge lines and expensive items using three recognisable icons throughout Apotec CRM. You'll also find these icons as column labels in the Workflow module, with each column providing you a total count of CD, fridge and expensive items by patient, selected total and grid total (with filters applied).

Icon	Name
	Controlled Drugs (CDs)
	Expensive items
	Fridge lines

6. What browser do you recommend using for Apotec CRM?

We recommend using Apotec CRM on a Chrome browser for the best experience but we also support Firefox and Edge.

7. Can I perform a Wild search in Apotec CRM?

Yes. Wherever you find a search field with a dropdown box, you are able to perform a Wild search. Simply select the dropdown and choose the search type you'd like to perform, either a Starts with or Wild search.