To increase usability, the following two modifications have been made to the A/R Menu, located in the Fiscal/Program module:

→ When viewing an A/R Ledger Report using the A/R Ledger feature, users now see an Excel file link at the bottom of the report page.

→ When viewing an Aged A/R Report using the Aged Receivables Report feature, users now see that each record in this report shows the invoice and invoice batch numbers, if the "Detailed Report" option is selected on the report settings page.  This new information appears in the "Name" column of the report, to the right of the client's name.  The invoice and batch numbers appear as clickable links, and if clicked the corresponding batch details open in a new window/tab.

The following modifications have been made to the Absences Report accessible from within the Human Resources module using the Accruals/Time Off feature, or from within the Organizer module, Attendance, Absences Report feature:

→ The Employee drop-down selection list now includes options to run the report for "All Employees" or "All Supervisees."

→ The report settings page now includes a Sort By option, allowing you to sort the report by employee, absence date,  or absence type.  Within the report itself, you can also click on the column headers to re-sort the contents by that variable.

→ The report now shows all requests for time off, whether approved, pending, or denied.  The status of each request will appear in the report's new Approved? column.

→ When the report is run for more than one employee, and is sorted by employee name, it will include a summary row for each employee.

→ When the report is run for a single employee, it will include accruals balances.

→ An Excel File link has been added to the bottom of the report.

Previously, when a report was run using System Setup > Agency Program Information > Add/Edit Entire Program, the report content could not be sorted in AWARDS.  Upon deployment of this enhancement, the report became sortable by any column in the agency program information table.  Additionally, there is now a column display icon in the upper left-hand corner of the table.  Click that icon to pick and choose which columns of information are included in the report.

Previously, the Agency File Cabinet only allowed four items to be attached to pages within AWARDS.  This has been changed to follow the same restrictions as the Client File Cabinet portion of the face sheet.  Instead of limiting the Agency File Cabinet to four files per page, the following rule is now in place:  The Agency File Cabinet can support any number of attachments as long as the collective size of the attachments does not exceed 32MB.  Once the total storage limit (per page) of 32MB is reached, the option to add more attachments to the page will not be displayed.  In addition, no single attachment can exceed 8MB.

The total storage limits of both the Agency File Cabinet and Client File Cabinets can be increased for a cost.  For more information and prices, please refer to this AWARDS Electronic File Cabinet document.

The new Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) has been deployed to AWARDS databases.  The new AHAR contains individual AHARs for Emergency Shelter, Transitional Housing, and Permanent Supportive Housing.  As part of our work to include Permanent Supportive Housing programs in the AHAR, we re-engineered the existing ES and TH reports to improve performance and standardize the logic to work more seamlessly with the new data standards.  This change may cause some numbers under your existing ES and TH AHARs to change slightly in some situations.  Also included in these new AHARs are bug fixes to correct issues identified in the current report.

As a reminder, the HUD Program Type (set on the HMIS tab under System Setup > Agency Program Information > Add/Edit Entire Program) is now being used to pull program data into the AHAR.

The Audit Trail Report, accessed from within the System Setup module's Login Maintenance feature, now includes entries for changes made to user group assignments and passwords.  If the "Show Detail" link on the report is clicked, any user group entries will display both the old and new assignment.  No additional details display for password changes.  To see these report entries, the worker who made the change should be selected in the Worker drop-down list, and the Clients list should be left at the default value of "All Clients."

Changes to user group assignments are made using the Update User Group component of the System Setup module's Login Maintenance feature.  Passwords are changed either from the user's AWARDS Opening Menu page, or from within the System Setup module, based on his or her level of access in AWARDS.

In order to comply with HIPAA standards for electronic billing, we have made some modifications to the Fiscal/Program module.  The changes made will allow us to test the new 5010 version of the 837 and 270 files with payers before they go into effect on 1/1/2011.  Changes include:

→  New radio buttons have been added to the "Create HIPAA 837 Claim File" option in the Create Insurance Claims feature on the Billing Menu.  The new options enable users to choose between generating the 4010A version (which expires 12/31/2010) or the 5010 version (beginning 1/1/2011).  Users should continue to use the 4010A version until the 5010 goes into effect on 1/1/2011.

→  Each form has been updated to comply with new HIPAA standards and some notable changes are:

- The 5010 requires the Provider NPI, so this value must be entered for the program as a provider and any practitioner.  The program NPI is assigned during the billing configuration process within the Billing Menu > Program Billing Info feature.  Agency staff practitioners are assigned NPIs within the Human Resources > Credentialing feature.  Authorizing physicians/psychiatrists for NYC OMH CR billing are assigned NPIs within the Support Services Providers section of the face sheet (or within the Medical > Providers feature).

- When the payer is Medicaid or Medicare, the 5010 requires the Agency Tax ID, when can be entered when creating or updating program groups using the Program Groups feature, and also on the Agency Program Information feature under System Setup > Agency Program Information > Add/Edit Entire Program.

- Every procedure must have an HCPCS/CPT Code entered within the Billing Menu > Billing Rates feature.

→  New radio buttons have been added to the "Create 270 Eligibility Inquiry File" feature located under Fiscal/Program > Medicaid Eligibility > Create Eligibility Inquiry File.  Specifically, they appear on the Eligibility Inquiry page after the payer and program have been selected.  The new options enable users to choose between generating the 4010A version (which expires 12/31/2010) or the 5010 version (beginning 1/1/2011).  Users should continue to use the 4010A version until the 5010 goes into effect on 1/1/2011.  Each form has been updated to comply with the new HIPAA standards.

For our clients in New York State:  Please note that at the time of deployment, NYS was not yet ready to accept test files to confirm complete accuracy.  When testing becomes possible, further modifications may be made to the 5010 versions based on the results obtained from NYS.

The following new features and modifications have been made to the Calendar feature in AWARDS, to allow for increased flexibility when viewing schedules and events:

→ New "Show Hourly Schedule" option - Within the "Other Options" portion of the Calendar settings, a new "Show Hourly Schedule" option appears.  This new setting adjusts the Calendar display so that it appears as a grid of horizontal timeslots corresponding to hours in a day, where open and busy hours are clearly shown.  This setting is only available when using the Staff view with a single staff member selected.

When working with the hourly schedule, the following statements apply:

- The Calendar Period selections are limited to one and two weeks.

- The "Show Location" and "Show Condensed View" options are selected by default and can be un-checked as necessary.

- All appointments/events that have designated start times are displayed in the corresponding hourly timeslots.  If two appointments/events overlap, they are displayed one after the other in the appropriate timeslot.

- Appointments/events that are not time-specific (such as chart events, entitlement end dates, consent end dates, lease expiration dates, and provider expiration dates) are displayed on the date of their occurrence, but at the top of the day in a row labeled "Day Events" above the first hourly timeslot.

- The default timeslots range from 8am to 6pm; however, if there any appointments already scheduled outside of that timeframe it is adjusted to include the times of the appointments/events in question.

- Double-clicking in a timeslot enables you to schedule an appointment/event in that slot.  If it's necessary to schedule an appointment/event in a slot outside of the default timeframe of 8am to 6pm, double-click in any timeslot and change the time on the scheduling page accordingly.

- If a staff member has a work schedule set for him or her in the Organizer or Human Resources modules, his/her work schedule hours have a color-coded bar next to them in the Calendar with each worksite displaying in a separate color.

→ New "Show Attendees" option - Within the "Other Options" portion of the Calendar settings, a new "Show Attendees" option is available.  By default, when viewing appointments/events on the Calendar using Staff view with a single staff person selected, all appointments/events are displayed without the name of the staff person or persons for whom they are scheduled.  This new setting adjusts the Calendar display so that staff names do appear in such instances.

→ New "Show Condensed View" option - Within the "Other Options" portion of the Calendar settings, a new "Show Condensed View" option is available.  This new setting, which is checked by default when "Show Hourly Schedule" has been selected, results in a view of the Calendar that has hourly timeslots.  When this option is not checked, the Calendar is adjusted to display so that each hour is broken up into timeslots of five minutes.  This option is only available when the "Show Hourly Schedule" option has been selected.

→ Expandable/collapsible legend - The Calendar's legend, which contains explanations for the abbreviations found on the Calendar display, is now collapsed by default.  To expand the legend, click the new plus sign (+) icon that appears to the left of the "Legend" label.

For more information on using the Calendar, click here.

As of March 15th 2010, the following CDT billing enhancements were deployed to comply with mandatory changes:

CDT billing functionality is only applicable to CDT programs in NY state.

→ Default Meal Period - Agencies have been given the ability to specify a default meal period that is subtracted from the program attendance duration unless the client is recorded in a Community meal during any of the default meal period time slots, or is not active in any billable service.  If the client is active in billable services for part of the default meal period, then AWARDS only subtracts the remainder of the default meal period from the program attendance duration.

To set the default meal period, please contact your Client Services representative or the Help Desk.

→ Change to Billable Program Time Calculation - Previously for CDT Billing from April 1, 2009 or later, in order to determine the Billable Program Time for a client, AWARDS calculated the total reception desk hours (minus Community Meals) and compared it with total Billable Services duration, then used the greater number of the two for the billable time duration.  AWARDS now calculates this Billable Program Time duration by adding reception desk hours, subtracting any full or half day non-billable and separately billable hours from the reception desk hours, and adding Billable Service Time not included in the reception desk hours.

Full or half day non billable hours include "Community Meal" and "Non-Medically Necessary Service" group activity type entries, and any set default meal period.  Separately billable hours include crisis notes and collateral notes.

→ CDT Billing Report Modifications - New features have been added to the CDT Billing Report, located in the Fiscal/Program module's Billing Menu feature.  For reports with a start date of April 1, 2009 or later, the report displays a section for each client in the selected program(s), and contains columns for "Half Day" and "Full Day" bills.  An X is displayed in each column when two or four hours (respectively) are eligible to be billed on each day of the report.  The report also displays columns for "Number of Billable Services" and "Billable Program Time," which contain the total number of billable services and the number of billable hours for each day of the report date range.  An X may appear in the "Pre-Admission," "Collateral," and "Crisis" columns of the report depending on the type of visit/services counted for that day.

A subtotal row is displayed at the bottom of each client section, containing the sum of all the fields in each column of the report.  Note that the subtotal reported for the "Half Day" and "Full Day" columns does not reflect the total number of billable hours, but the count of each type of bill.  The "Running Total" column displays the total billable hours in this case.

A TOTAL row is displayed at the bottom of the report and provides the sum of all fields in each column.

In addition, a new Summary Only check box is included on the CDT Billing Report Menu page.  When checked, the report only contains the TOTAL row, and no individual details are included.

For more information on these updates and running the CDT Billing Report, please refer to the new "CDT Billing Report Instruction Sheet" located in the AWARDS Training Information System.  To access the document directly, click here.

In order to make the "Chart Review Reminder" internal audit messages more communicative, additional information has been added to the Subject line of these automatically generated messages.  The specific chart or service plan for which the reminder was generated will now be listed in the message Subject, along with the name of the client to whom the reminder pertains.

In keeping with the theme of our 2010 Users Conference and with our desire to bring AWARDS users together, the Announcements module has been renamed FootholdConnect.  This new name is visible on the module button on the AWARDS Opening Menu page, as well as on the pop-up announcement menu seen when that button is clicked.  No functionality is changing as a result of this name change.  To access an updated instruction sheet for this functionality, click here.  To access the section of Online Help dedicated to FootholdConnect, click here.

Two new options are now available on the report settings page for the Contacts Lapse Audit Report located within the Services module Utilization Reports feature.  These options, which are found in the "Display Options" portion of the page, are as follows:

→ Include only F2F contacts - By default, the report counts both face-to-face and non face-to-face contacts.  When this box is checked, the report will only count face-to-face contacts when determining the last contact for a client.  All group notes are considered face-to-face, and collateral contacts are never counted as face-to-face.  Due to this second rule, when this option is checked, the "Include Collateral Contacts" option is disabled.

→ Include collateral contacts - This option is checked by default, and when checked the report will count any collateral contacts when determining the last contact for a client.  Uncheck this box if you do not wish to have these types of contacts counted.

For more information on the Contact Lapse Audit Report, please click here or view our Contact Lapse Audit Report instruction sheet.

Previously, the Contacts Log Editing Index page listed an asterisk (*) next to the author's name if the associated contacts log record contained a note.  This asterisk notation has been removed and a new "Note Attached" column has been added to the table on the index page.  The new column will display "Yes" when a note is attached to the contacts log, and will display "No" otherwise.  This same modification will be made to the Contacts Log Report (viewed when entering the Contacts Log feature in report mode).

A new "show summaries" check box has been added to the contacts log report settings page.  When this option is checked, the report only displays the summary line from each consumer record rather than individual contacts detail.

Additionally, when the report is sorted by consumer, the summary line now displays the total number of workers who provided the contacts, the total number of onsite face-to-face contacts located at "This Program Site," and the total number of offsite face-to-face contacts provided at any other site.  Group notes and group activities are reported in the "onsite" category.  (These summary line additions are included in the Excel file for the report.)

Any contacts for which there is no location selection, or for which the location is N/A, are recorded at the bottom of the report in the "Location Overall" totals as location "None."

To access the Contacts Log instruction sheet which includes a section on report viewing, click here.  To access the Online Help section on the Contacts Log, click here.

Previously, when consumers were admitted to different programs within an agency utilizing the same FormBuilder forms, users needed to manually complete the form a second time for the new admission.  The FormBuilder has now been modified to include a new feature that allows staff from one program to copy the form data for a specific consumer in that program from the same form completed for him/her in another program.  This will allow users to access the relevant data entered in a previous program stay, and then to make any modifications as needed.

This new feature applies to forms placed on the Face Sheet or Intake / Admission forms only.  Users with access to the FormBuilder will see a new "Allow option to copy over preexisting form data at intake?" option under Outcomes > FormBuilder > FormBuilder Configuration > General tab when the form's location is set to Profile or Intake / Admission.  If this option is turned on, AWARDS displays a "Copy FormBuilder Data" button on client intake forms after intake / admission has been processed

For more information on this functionality, see the Copying FormBuilder Data instruction sheet or Online Help content.

The following two modifications have been made to the Copy FormBuilder Data feature, which allows staff from one program to copy the form data for a specific client in that program from the same form completed for him/her in another program or for a previous admission to the same program:

→ An audit trail item will be recorded on the Audit Trail Report (located in the System Setup module's Login Maintenance feature) whenever a user copies a form.  The record will report the worker name, client name, program, the date/timestamp when the copying took place, and will be labeled as "Copy FormBuilder Data."

→ During the copying process, the Copy FormBuilder Data page will be updated so that forms available for copying will have their names appear as links to the actual forms in report mode.  Clicking on a form name will display the completed form in a separate window.

Length of Stay within date range (Mar 2010) - A new report variable check box has been made available in the Demographics ReportBuilder options page - "Length of Stay within date range."  This new variable is similar to the existing "Length of Program Stay" selection; however, it limits the count of days to those that fall within the report's date range.  (Note that a report run for today only would have a Length of Stay within date range  value of "0" for all clients.)  On the report itself, the column header for this variable shows the dates of the date range the report is being run for (for example "Length of Stay 3/15/2009 to 3/15/2010" if the report were being run for the last year).

Miscellaneous (June 2010) - Three new report variable check boxes have been made available on the Demographics ReportBuilder options page - "Other Phone," "Temporary Svc Coordinator" and "Backup Svc Coordinator."

The "Other Phone" variable is only available as an option for agencies collecting this data.

Diagnoses detail (Oct 2010) - The following diagnoses fields have been added as selectable variables when running a Demographics ReportBuilder in the Profile module:

- Diagnoses - Primary Axis I Code
- Diagnoses - Primary Axis I Text
- Diagnoses - Primary Axis II Code
- Diagnoses - Primary Axis II Text
- Diagnoses - Primary Axis III Text

In each case, the "primary" code or text value is considered to be the first value entered in the field using the Medical module Diagnoses feature, or on a client's face sheet.  For example, if a client has two Axis I codes entered, the "Primary Axis I Code" is the first/top code listed.

Active/Inactive Date (Feb 2011) - Applies to programs that display the Active/Inactive option.

PATH Enrollment Status (Feb 2011) - Applies to PATH programs only.

A new option has been added to the Earnings Report feature located in the Jobs component of the Employment module.  This new option, called "Show Earnings For," enables users to select "Date Range" to limit the earnings reported to those earned during the date range entered on the page, or "Job Duration" to report earnings for the entire duration of the job placement regardless of the date range entered.  (The report previously defaulted to the "Date Range" setting.)  Users can now also limit the report to currently open job placements, by entering today's date in both the "From" and "To" date fields.  Finally, on the report display, the Hire and Termination dates now appear in separate columns instead of being captured together.

For more information see Viewing an Earnings Report.

The AWARDS Employees ReportBuilder feature is now available in the Human Resources module!  This ReportBuilder is a powerful reporting tool that can be used to generate user-customized employee data reports.  When working with the Employees ReportBuilder tool, users have the ability to:

→ Create reports that include data for employee characteristics entered in a variety of places.

→ Filter report contents by one or more selected employee characteristics.

→ Include either individual detail or aggregate counts of each employee characteristic selected.

→ Sort and group report data by various employee characteristics.

→ Save frequently generated reports so that they can be easily re-run in the future.

→ Run reports for any date range.

For more information on using this new feature, click here to view the related section of Online Help, or view the Employees ReportBuilder instruction sheet located here.

The following pieces of human resources information have been added as selectable variables when running an Employees ReportBuilder report in the Human Resources module:

→ Salary - Annual - Reports the annual salary of an employee as entered in the Annual Basis field on the staff information record for the employee; otherwise, it will calculate this amount based on the Hourly rate entered.

→ Salary - Hourly - Reports the hourly salary of an employee as entered in the Hourly field on the staff information record for the employee; otherwise, it will calculate this amount based on the Annual Basis amount entered.

If an employee has multiple payroll group records that occur during the report's date range, the report displays information for each of the payroll group records in a separate row of the report.  Each row reports on the most recent salary on record corresponding to the dates of the payroll group.

The hours/week displayed on a salary record is the number of hours/week entered in the payroll group record that applies to the salary effective date.  Salary records can span payroll group records.  If the annual salary is calculated off the hourly salary for non-OTexempt employees, it is calculated using that number of hours/week.  In the Employees ReportBuilder, hours/week are taken from the payroll group record in the row so the calculation will be correctly done with the more updated information.  If the payroll group is set with a type of "On Leave," the salary shown will be that of the previous payroll group.  (The annual salary will not be calculated using zero hours/week.)

Only users with the "Human Resources Data Full Access" permission or the "Human Resources Data Read Only" permission will see these new field options and will be able to view salary information for all staff.  Users with the "Human Resources Data Work Supervisees" permission will not see these new salary options.

→ Job Title Start Date - Reports the start date the corresponds to the job title being displayed for an employee, as entered in the Job Title Start field on the staff information record.

→ Job Title End Date - Reports the end date that corresponds to the job title being displayed for an employee, as entered in the Job Title End field on the staff information record.

These two new date options will only display as selectable variables for agencies that have opted to display the Job Title History section of the Staff Information page, as opposed to just one current Job Title.  Please contact the Help Desk if you are interested in turning this on at your agency.

A new "Financial Assistance Cross-Agency Search" permission will be added to the Data Entry/Access permissions found in the System Setup module Permissions Maintenance feature.  This new permission is only accessible to members of the CoC Executive Officer user group in multi-agency databases.

Granting a user this new permission provides him or her with the new Financial Assistance Search feature, located in the Client Lookup module.  In order to complete a financial assistance search, users must enter a client's first name, last name, SSN, and date of birth as they appear in AWARDS, and then click the Financial Assistance Search button.  (Partial name searches will not function as they do when completing a basic client lookup.) 

The financial assistance search will look for referrals and clients across all agencies/programs that meet the search criteria.  (The search is NOT limited to those agencies/programs to which a user has chart access permission.)  The resulting report displays any financial services sought or provided by any agency/program within the database, in chronological order.  Note that:

→ Financial services categorized as sought are pulled from the client's intake form.  For these services, the report displays the program name, intake/admission date, and discharge date (if applicable), as well as the type of financial service(s) sought.

→ Financial services categorized as provided are pulled from the client's supportive services checklist (located in the Services module Contacts Log feature).  For these services, the report displays the program name, date of service(s), type of financial service(s) provided, and the cost(s) associated with the service(s).

When a client is in a central intake program and a placement is made to another program, FormBuilder form data entered for that client within the central intake program is copied over to the new program when both of the following conditions are met:

→ The location is intake or the face sheet - Form data does not copy over when the forms are located anyplace other than within intake or on the face sheet.

→ The location and form are the same for both programs - For example, if both programs have the same assessment form located on the face sheet, data will copy over. If that same form is located under intake in one program and the face sheet in the other, data will not copy over.

Once form data is copied over to a new program, that data is independent. Changes made to the form data in the new program do not impact the form data in the originating program and vice versa.

When a client changes programs and the originating program is NOT a central intake program (for example when he/she is discharged from one program directly into another), no form data carries over.

A new preview option is available when running a form report using either the Assessment Reports feature or the FormBuilder feature FormBuilder Reports tool, both accessed from the Outcomes module.  Form reports contain rows of data pulled from forms meeting specified report settings.  To view a printable version of the complete form from which a specific row of report data was pulled, click the preview icon to the left of the row in question.  The form opens in a secondary window.  Be sure to close that window when viewing is complete.

The Download Shared Forms page accessed using the Download Shared Forms component of the FormBuilder, is now sortable by clicking any of the shared form table's column headings. 

A form location column has been added to the forms index under Outcomes > FormBuilder > FormBuilder Configuration to allow for an at-a-glance determination of each existing form's placement in AWARDS.

The FormBuilder Reports (accessed through either Outcomes > FormBuilder > FormBuilder Reports or Outcomes > Assessment Reports) are now sortable by clicking any of the column headers within the report.  Any corresponding summary tables can also be sorted.

When running a Group Member Report using the Group Schedule component of the Services module, Group Schedule Setup feature in report mode, an Excel File link is now available at the top of the report, enabling users to export the data into an Excel spreadsheet.

Currently, when a group activities attendance record is created and a corresponding group note is written, the activities record is locked for editing once the group note is saved.  Previously, however, creating the group note first resulted in an empty, locked activity attendance record.  To improve consistency, now when a group note is written, the group attendance records in the note is automatically included in the locked activity attendance record.

The following rules apply:

→  If a group activity record is created (using either the Services > Activities path, or the Reception Desk > Group Activities path) the activity record remains editable in data entry mode until a corresponding group note is written.  Once a group note is written, the attendance records contained in the note will sync with the corresponding activity record and lock it from further editing.  In order to edit attendance information for the record, the group note must be edited and updated.  If the group note is then deleted, the activity record will become unlocked and available for editing.

→  If a group note is written before a corresponding activity record has been created for the corresponding group, once the group note is saved a corresponding activity record is automatically created and locked (visible using either the Services > Activities path, or the Reception Desk > Group Activities path).  In order to edit attendance information for the record, the group note must be edited and updated.  If the group note is then deleted, the activity attendance record will also be deleted.

No updates have been made to the rules that govern when group notes are available for editing.  The same standard and backdating window rules still apply to group notes.

The goal of the Foothold Help Desk team is provide you with the best and quickest assistance possible.  In an effort to do so, several enhancements have been made to the Help Desk form found using the Help Menu, Help Desk feature - both to help users more easily access information they may need to answer questions themselves, and to ensure that those users provide the details required to thoroughly investigate and respond to issues and questions should assistance from the Help Desk be required.

→ New Online Help Search - The top of the Help Desk form now provides users with direct access to search Online Help.  When a search is conducted from the form, results are displayed in a secondary window which can then be closed once the search results have been reviewed.  use of this search is strongly encouraged before contacting the Help Desk.

→ Additions to the "Module" Selection List - "Various" and "N/A" selections have been added to the "Module" selection list in the Problem/Question Details portion of the form.

→ New "Problem Impact" Option - In the Problem/Question Details portion of the page a new "Problem Impact" option is available to help us determine what effect the problem you are reporting is having on your use of AWARDS.

→ Options Removed - The "Module Page Title" field and "Were you able to location information in Online Help?" question have both been removed from the form.

Two new options have been added to the "User Information" portion of the Help Desk reporting form - "Browser" and "Operating System."  Each option presents users with drop-down selection lists with which to specify which Web browser and operating system is being used when encountering the issue being reported.  Both of these new options are mandatory.

For more information on using the Help Desk reporting form, click here.

The "HIV/AIDS Data Access" permission is no longer required to access and enter HIV/AIDS-related information from HUD intake or discharge records, or from within the HMIS portion of the face sheet.  This change has been made to accommodate the HUD requirement for users to collect HIV/AIDS information on all clients at Intake, at least once annually, and at Discharge.  All other components controlled by the "HIV/AIDS Data Access" permission remain unaffected by this change.  Non-HUD programs are also unaffected.

The new AWARDS HMIS ReportBuilder feature, located in the Profile module, is a powerful tool that can be used to generate user-customized HMIS data reports.  When working with the HMIS ReportBuilder tool, users have the ability to:

→ Create reports that include data for a variety of client, program, and household characteristics

→ Filter report contents by one or more selected characteristics

→ Include either individual detail or aggregate counts of each characteristic selected

→ Sort and group report data by various client and program characteristics

→ Save frequently generated reports so that they can be easily re-run in the future

→ Run reports for any date range

For more information on using this new feature, please refer to the HMIS ReportBuilder instruction sheet or Online Help content.

The following variables has been added as selections for inclusion in reports run using the Profile module's HMIS ReportBuilder feature:

School (Feb 2011) - Appears within the "Admission" variables group.

School Type (Feb 2011) - Appears within the "Admission" variables group.

In June 2010, HUD released version 3.02 of the CSV Format Documentation based on the March 2010 HMIS Data and Technical Standards.  Foothold Technology has updated its CSV import and export functionality to work according to the new standard with some small and likely temporary modifications so that the exchange of data can begin.� Click here for a document that will provide guidance for users completing data uploads from within AWARDS to an AWARDS HMIS and from non-AWARDS databases to an AWARDS HMIS database.�

In order to improve the usability of the Household form located on the Face Sheet, the following formatting changes have been made.  These changes are also related to the work done on the Household form for the new HMIS data standards:

→ Fewer fields appear in each row - Previously, up to six fields appeared in a single row, causing the user to scroll to the left or right of the page to see all entries.  Now, only three fields will appear in each row, allowing the form to easily be viewed in its entirety.

→ Client information appears in read-only text - Previously, the client's demographic information listed at the top of the Household form was displayed in data entry mode.  Now this information, which is gathered at intake or on the Face Sheet, will appear in read-only text with the exception of the "head" and "relation to head" fields.

→ Only one new record can be added to each section at a time - Previously, up to four family members could be added to a single family member section at a time.  Now, only one new record can be added a any family member section of the page.  Once a record is added and saved, a new record for data entry in that section will appear.

→ Headers added to each family member's record - To increase readability of the form, a header row has been added to the top of each family member's section on the page.  The header will include their household status, and their name.  For example, "Child Living In Household:  Jane Doe."  In each section there will be a record for data entry of an additional family member and the header for that record will include the word "Add."  For example, "Add Adult."

→ Delete check box repositioned - Previously, the option to delete a household member's record appeared as a check box in a column on the far left of the form.  Now, a new "Delete" check box will appear on the right side of the form within the header row for each household member, with the exception of the client.

A new "How Do I..." page has been added to AWARDS Online Help that contains a list of the fifty most commonly performed or asked about AWARDS tasks.  Each task is listed with information on how to complete it, or on where in Online Help you can find details on doing so.  This page is accessible from the Online Help table of contents, or can be accessed directly by clicking here.

A new "total dollars spent by HPRP service" table has been added to the bottom of the HPRP QPR report page.   The data in this table reflects the cost of services provided as entered using the Supportive Services Checklist found in the Services module Contacts Log feature.  If there is no cost entered for a service in the Supportive Services Checklist, the report looks at the associated cost for that service as entered in the Fiscal/Program module's Cost of Services feature.

Note that the information in this table is not unduplicated.  The total cost of services will be reflected, regardless of whether a particular service was provided more than once per person.

Final edits have been made to the HUD APR (HUD-40118) to work with the 2010 HMIS Data Standards.  This work will accommodate the APR until the new Annual Performance Report, recently released by HUD, is incorporated into AWARDS later in 2010.

Two new columns have been added to the individual detail section of the HUD APR - Chronically Homeless and Veteran.  The individual detail portion of the page is not part of the official HUD APR document, but it helps users identify which participants are being counted.  These new columns are designed to aid in that identification.

AWARDS now provides its users with a great deal of granularity in regard to Human Resources data and functionality.  Specifically, access to HR-related features and the data they contain is governed by the following three permissions:

→ Human Resources Data Full Access

→ Human Resources Data Read Only

→ Human Resources Data Work Supervisees

Which of these three permissions a user is given (if any) greatly restricts or expands his or her level of access based on the needs of the agency.

As a part of this enhancement, the existing "Human Resources Data" permission is no longer an option under Permissions Maintenance.  Users who had previously been assigned that permission will now have the "Human Resources Data Full Access" permission by default.

For a full description of the new permissions and what they allow access to, please click here to view that information in Online Help, or click here to view the HR Permissions Basics instruction sheet.

The "Current Account Balance" now displays in the page header of the In Person Payments index page, which is accessed using the In Person Payments component of the Fiscal/Program module's Billing Menu.

Also, two new navigation buttons now appear on the bottom of this page:  one for the "Payment and Adjustments" of the selected client, and one for the "Client History Report" of the selected client.  When these new navigation buttons are used to access these two features, users can go directly back to the In Person Payments of the selected client, instead of going back to the Fiscal/Program Menu page.  To do so, click the In Person Payments button of the selected client button, which is located at the bottom of the Payments/Adjustments page and Consumer History Report page.  Note that these buttons only appear if the user accesses these features from the In Person Payments page.

These changes were made in an effort to make the reconciliation process for outstanding balances easier.

When viewing an Incident Report, which is available by entering the Incidents module in report mode, the column headers are now clickable to allow sorting of the report.  Also, an icon appears to the left of the report contents to enable users to show or hide specific report columns.  To hide a column, click the icon and uncheck the name of the column to be hidden.  Check the box again to have the column display once more.

These new features are available for both the consumer and non-consumer portions of the report.

Also, the Excel file for this report now contains a header row and the report settings appear in an easier to read format.

Previously, users with the "Incident Review Data Entry" permission received incident notifications for all incidents entered within an agency, regardless of chart access.  Now, users with this permission only receive those notifications about programs to which they have chart access.

Program directors and deputy directors at the program for which the incident was entered will continue to receive these notifications as well, even if the Incident Review Data Entry permission has not been assigned to them.

When running a Progress Notes Report by entering the Services > Progress Notes feature in Report mode, if the "Select Individual Note Sections" check box is selected on the Progress Notes Report Selections page, a View This Note button appears in the left corner above each note listed in the report.  Clicking this button displays only the corresponding note in report mode.

The "Select Individual Note Sections" setting is optional and may not be seen in all databases.

A new "Intake/Admission Data Entry Date" variable has been added as an option when running the Demographics ReportBuilder, located in the Profile module.  In most cases this new variable reports the date on which an admission was processed (which can differ from the actual admission date).  In programs using the Process Intake component of multi-step intake/admission however, this variable instead reports the date on which intake was processed, and that date is not overwritten when admission is later processed.

If intake/admission is re-processed, the original intake/admission data entry date is not overwritten.

This new variable is now also included in the Program History DataBridge file, accessed through the System Setup module, DataBridge Files feature.

When viewing a referral information report by entering the Intake/Admission module in Report mode, the report contents are now sortable by clicking any of its column headers.  A new icon also appears to the left of the report content to enable users to remove columns within the report by de-selecting the corresponding check box for the column to be removed.

Additionally, when entering the Intake/Admission module in Data Entry mode and searching for intake/admission records, the table of results that displays on the Referral Search Results page is now sortable by clicking any of the column headers within the table.  When the table is sorted, the "Create New Application" row remains in the top spot, while the remaining rows of the table sort beneath it.

For programs that use the "Process Intake" feature during the admission process, the Intake Date is now included on the Referral Search Results page.  These dates are shown in a new column labeled "Intake Date" that appears to the left of the "Admission Date" column, which appears when the Intake/Admission module is accessed in either data entry or report modes.  When viewing a report for a set of programs, the new column is displayed if any of the programs being included in the report have the "Process Intake" feature turned on.  Further, only those records with that feature on will have data in the Intake Date column when a set of programs is selected.

When working with a remittance worksheet, invoice information for the invoices that were selected when creating that worksheet now display at the top of the Billing Remittance Processing Worksheet page.  This feature is accessed using the following path:  Fiscal/Program > Billing Menu > Remittance/Responses > select an existing or create a new worksheet > if creating a new worksheet, set the invoice batch criteria > and if creating a new worksheet, select applicable invoice batches > the new "Invoice Batches Selected" section appears at the top of the worksheet, containing batch numbers, creation dates, applicable program groups, date ranges, and payers.

This change was made in an effort to provide more information to users about the remittance items displayed on the worksheet.

Recent updates to the Calendar module in AWARDS give users the convenience of one-click access to Service Plans as well as other chart records information in AWARDS.  Agencies can choose to use the IP Restriction AWARDS feature, which limits users' off-site access of AWARDS to General Information modules.  This module access previously included the Calendar; however, as a consequence of the Calendar module updates, we have removed the Calendar from restricted access AWARDS sessions, to prevent unauthorized access to chart record data.

Previously, job interviews scheduled using the Employment module Jobs feature did not display on the Calendar.  Now, any scheduled job interviews appear in the Calendar when using the "Consumer" or "Program" views.  These events display as "Job Interview" with the time and the client name listed.  They are viewable on the Calendar for all users, but the client name is a hyperlink to the job interview in data entry mode only if the user has access to the Job Interviews feature.

When viewing job interviews on the Calendar using the "Program" view, AWARDS only displays interviews that fall within the program stay of the client.

To facilitate jobs-related data entry in a more logical order, the Employers button has been moved to the top of the Jobs menu list in the Employment module.

When viewing the Job Retention Milestones report found within the Employment module Jobs feature, the report contents are now sortable by clicking any of its column headers (with the exception of the SSN, Benefits, and Wage Rate columns).  A new icon also appears to the left of the report content to enable users to remove columns within the report by de-selecting the corresponding check box for the column to be removed.

When viewing the Leases report found with the Operations module Leases feature, the report contents are now sortable by clicking any of its column headers.  A new icon also appears to the left of the report content to enable users to remove columns within the report by de-selecting the corresponding check box for the column to be removed.

A new "Location" column has been added to the Program Contact History DataBridge file, reporting the location entered on a contacts log record.  It has been added as the last column in the report.  The DataBridge is accessible from the System Setup module for users with the authority to do so.

Due to changes in the regulations governing billing for Medicaid Service Coordination, several new features have been deployed to your AWARDS database:

→  Monthly Service Coordination Notes can be either face-to-face or non face-to-face.

→  The Monthly Service Coordination Note can now be selected for billing.  Users with the "MC Billing Notes Selection" permission will see "Bill" check boxes next to each eligible note when running the Progress Notes Report for Monthly Service Coordination Notes only.  Both face-to-face and non face-to-face notes will be available.

→  The Medicaid Services Report, when run for a Medicaid Service Coordination program, will include both face-to-face and non face-to-face notes.  A client is eligible for billing based on a non-face to face Monthly Service Coordination Note as long as a face-to-face Monthly Service Coordination Note exists in the previous month.

→  The logic used to generate Medicaid invoices has been changed to allow non face-to-face notes as long as a face-to-face note is found for the client in the previous month.

The following modifications have been made to the Medicaid Services Report:

→ The header of the report has changed from "Medicaid Reimbursable Restorative Services" to "Medicaid Reimbursable Services."

→ For increased readability when the report is run for a single program, the program name no longer displays beneath each client's name.  Program names will continue to appear when the report is run for a group of programs.

→ A check box labeled Check here to include clients with billable services only will be included on the Monthly Medicaid Reimbursable Services Report page.  Checking this option will cause the report to include only clients who have services documented, rather than the complete census of the selected program(s).

→ If a client was hospitalized in a month prior to the report date range being used, the actual date of the client's hospital admission will display on the report instead of the first day of the month for the range's starting date.  If a hospital discharge date is on record, the actual discharge date will also display.  In no discharge date is recorded, a "?" will appear on the report.   (For example, if the client was hospitalized on 8/15 and the report was run for the month of September, the start date of the hospitalization will display on the report as 8/15 instead of 9/1 as it had previously.)

In July 2010, Pfizer released assessment scales used by physicians and others in the healthcare community to support the evaluation and diagnosis of patients with certain mental disorders.  These assessments will now appear within the FormBuilder, in the Download Shared Forms feature, for agencies to download and use at their discretion.  All of the form names on these assessments start with the word "Pfizer."

In some instances programs set up to use the multi-step intake process will have fields/options appear on the Process Admission page that are not accessible from elsewhere, even after the client is admitted.  To see those fields after admission, it would be necessary to use the Re-Process Admission button.  Upon deployment of this enhancement, those fields/options became accessible at the bottom of the intake form after the client is admitted.  They can be viewed and altered as needed from that location without re-processing admission.

We are pleased to announce deployment of a new and improved AWARDS Online Help system!  This system, deployed on July 8th, is designed to provide you with quick and easy access to the information you need to work with AWARDS.  Some changes you may notice from our previous Help system include:

- In the table of contents modules are now grouped by the AWARDS Opening Menu page component in which they reside - general information, chart records, and administration.  (There is also an additional features component which includes items located in several places in AWARDS.)  Beneath each component, related modules and their features are listed alphabetically.

- Previously, frequently asked questions pages could be found only for modules.  Now there is a FAQ page for most features within those modules as well.

- Additional resource pages have been added for many features, providing links to the instruction, information, and tip sheets located in our Online Training Information System.  When available, interactive training films can also be found on additional resource pages.

- Enhancements pages have been added for many features, providing detailed information on recently deployed automatic system enhancements and recently offered optional enhancements.

- To help you more easily identify which topics are informational and which are instructional, you will find a * or - before each topic name.  "*" indicates that the topic contains how-to procedural information, and "-" indicates additional information such as frequently asked questions, additional resource lists, page maps, and more.

The following new instruction sheets are now available.  They are located in the AWARDS Training Information system and can also be accessed on "Additional Resources" pages for their respective features in the Online Help system:

→ BillingBuilder In Person Payments (Apr 2010) - The  AWARDS In Person Payments component of the AWARDS BillingBuilder enables users to create payment records for self-paying clients who make co-payments or full payments for services rendered.  Once payment is recorded, a receipt for that payment can then be printed for the client.  The access the instruction sheet that guides you through these processes, click here.

→ BillingBuilder Processing (Mar 2010) - The  AWARDS BillingBuilder feature (located in the Fiscal/Program module) enables users to bill payers for services provided to clients and recorded in AWARDS.  The BillingBuilder Processing instruction sheet is intended to guide you through the steps involved in processing claims in the BillingBuilder.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ BillingBuilder Setup (Jan 2010) - The AWARDS BillingBuilder feature (located in the Fiscal/Program module) enables users to bill payers for services provided to clients and record in AWARDS.  Prior to using the BillingBuilder, you must complete several steps, including configuration of payers, billing types, procedures, program billing groups, and rates.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Card Swiping (Aug 2010) - The AWARDS Card Swiping Upload feature is an optional database enhancement that enables users to take data from a third-party card swipe system, export it to a .txt file, and upload it to AWARDS.  This data can be:  day program reception desk, day program activity attendance, or employee timesheets.  Once uploaded, data is imported to AWARDS so that it can be viewed and worked with in the AWARDS database as needed.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Charting Timetable (Aug 2010) - The AWARDS Charting Timetable, located in the Services module, is used to enter, update, and delete charting timetable records for consumer chart events.  It is also used to view read-only charting timetable records.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Incidents (July 2010) - The AWARDS Incidents module is used to complete a multi-step process for entering and reviewing incident records.  It is also used to view incidents in report mode, as well as to view aggregate incident reports.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Intake Cloning (Jan 2010) - The optional Intake Cloning feature in the AWARDS Intake/Admission module allows program staff to quickly and easily complete the intake process for a client by pulling in data previously entered for him or her in a previous or current program episode in that or another program.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Life Area Treatment Plans (Jan 2010) - AWARDS makes available to programs a variety of service plan formats, including a life area treatment plan.  This type of plan was developed specifically for substance abuse and OASAS programs.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ OASAS Reports (Mar 2010) - The OASAS Reports feature (located in the Fiscal/Program module and in some cases the Discharge module) enables users in OASAS programs to generate several user-customized and standard OASAS data reports.  The OASAS Reports instruction sheet is intended to guide you through the process of using this feature to complete common report generation tasks.  To access this instruction sheet directly, click here.

The OASAS Reports functionality is applicable only to OASAS programs in NY state.

→ OMIG Audit Analysis Protocols for MRDD Programs (Feb 2010) - The New York Office of the Medicaid Inspector General (OMIG) has specific documentation and billing expectations for MRDD programs.  Foothold Technology encourages our clients with MRDD programs to review those expectations in order to improve their understanding of potential data collection challenges.  This new information sheet provides copies of the OMIG protocols scheduled to be used in conducting audits on MRDD certified agencies offering residential habilitation and MSC services.  To access this information sheet directly, click here.

→ PATH Annual Report Survey (ARS) (Feb 2011) - The AWARDS PATH Annual Report Survey feature, located in the Fiscal/Program module, enables PATH Services programs to generate their Annual Report Survey (ARS).  This report was specifically designed for "PATH Services" programs that have an associated "PATH Outreach" program.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ PATH QCMR LOS and CMR (Feb 2011) - The AWARDS PATH Quarterly Contract Monitoring Report (QCMR) feature, located in the Fiscal/Program module, enables PATH Services programs in New Jersey to generate their quarterly QCMR reports.  These reports were specifically designed for "PATH Services" programs that have an associated "PATH Outreach" program.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Program Attendance (Dec 2010) - The Reception Desk module Program Attendance feature is used to enter, update, and delete program attendance for non-residential day programs in order to record who visited each program each day.  It is also used to view read-only reception desk reports.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Program Log Book (Dec 2010) - The Reception Desk module Program Log Book feature is used to enter reception desk log records for significant events and periodic "house status" updates at housing (residential) programs, as well as to view read-only desk log reports.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Program Profile Report (Sept 2010) - The Program Profile Report feature, located in the AWARDS Profile module, is used to view current and historical roster information for a selected program or program type.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Property Maintenance Work Orders (Aug 2010) - The Operations module Property Maintenance feature is used to enter, update, and delete property maintenance work orders as necessary, as well as to view read-only property maintenance work order reports.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Service Referrals (July 2010) - The Service Referrals feature in the AWARDS Services module enables case managers and counselors to quickly and easily record referrals being made for a consumer.  Service referral reports can also be viewed using this feature.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

→ Staff Training (Mar 2010) - The Staff Training instruction sheet is intended to guide you through several common staff training record data entry and report viewing tasks.  To access this instruction sheet directly, click here.

→ Supportive Services Checklist (Sept 2010) - The optional AWARDS Supportive Services Checklist functionality enables staff to document multiple services provided to a client on a single date without requiring entry of a progress note or contacts log record.  This functionality takes the place of the basic Contacts Log feature and is located under that button for the feature in the Services module.  To access the instruction sheet for this functionality directly, click here.

Several changes have been made to the BillingBuilder functionality to accommodate changing regulations for clinics in NY State.  If these regulations don't apply to you, nothing about your billing setup or processing has changed.

Specific changes are as follows:

→  New Options in Billing Type Configuration - Under Billing Menu > Configure Billing Types the following options are now available when adding and editing billing types, and can be used to indicate whether or not multi-line invoices should be allowed, and if so how they should be set up:

- Allow multiline invoices for add on procedures? - Click this drop-down arrow and select "Yes" or "No" to indicate whether multi-line invoices should be allowed for this billing type.

- If yes, indicate the limit of multiple-lines - If the allow option has been set to "Yes," enter a number value in this field to indicate any limit on how many lines should be allowed.  If no value is entered in this field, there will be no limit put in place.

- Create after hours modifier line using CPT/HCPCS - If appropriate, click this check box and enter the related code in the corresponding field to the right of the option label.

If your agency doesn't need to use these options, leave them blank or set to no.

→  New Options in Procedure Configuration - Under Billing Menu > Configure Billing Types the following options are now available when adding and editing procedures:

- This procedure is an exception to multiple-line limit set in the Billing Type configuration - If appropriate, click this check box to indicate that the multi-line limit (if one was specified) should be disregarded for this procedure.

- Additional eligibility entitlement is required - This drop-down list is populated with those insurances/eligibilities available for selection under Entitlements.  If appropriate, use this option to select a second eligibility required in order to bill for this procedure.

If your agency doesn't need to use these options, leave them blank or de-selected.  Note though that the use of the "additional eligibility" option is not limited to clinic programs and may be useful for others.

→  Multiple Invoice Lines When Multiple Services Are Provided - Under Billing Menu > Generate Invoice Batch and Edit Invoice Batch, if the billing type is set to allow multi-line invoices and more than one service has been provided in a day, you will see each service as a line in the invoice batch.  Multiple lines in the same invoice are numbered in parentheses.

Previously, progress notes that were written via the Contacts Log feature in the Services module were editable through the Contacts Log, even if the progress notes were locked for editing.  To resolve this issue, the "Editing Rule" selected on the Note and Contact Editing Rules component of the System Setup module Business Rules feature now applies to all progress notes, regardless of the location from which those notes are entered.

The Date field that appears in the upper-right corner of the "OASAS Discharge Plan" and the "OASAS Referrals and Recommendations" forms (accessed by OASAS programs using the Discharge module's Process Discharge feature) previously reflected the first date on which data was entered into the form, or a data entry date.  This Date field no longer displays on these forms.

OASAS programs now have access to a new "build-it-yourself" report feature for all PAS 44 and PAS 45 data.  This new ReportBulder is available in the OASAS Reports feature, accessible through the Fiscal/Program module and in some cases the Discharge module.  Specifically, a new "ReportBuilder" option appears on the Report drop-down list on the OASAS Reports Settings page.  This new report is similar to the existing Demographics ReportBuilder.

For any program or group of programs, the ReportBuilder enables you to look at some basic demographic data (name, admission date, date of birth, and PRU number for example) along with all PAS 44 and PAS 45 fields.  The report includes the same filtering, sorting, and summary table options as the Demographics ReportBuilder.

This flexible and robust tool allows for comparing PAS data collecting at admission and discharge - such as employment status and primary substance use - in order to better determine program outcomes.

To access the new OASAS Reports instruction sheet that includes detailed instructions on using the OASAS ReportBuilder, click here.  You can also access the OASAS Reports section of AWARDS Online Help here.

The OASAS Reports functionality and OASAS ReportBuilder are applicable only to OASAS programs in NY state.

For agencies in New York State with OASAS programs only...  After reviewing AWARDS with representatives from OASAS TA and audit departments, we identified several updates required for the software to maintain compliance.  We have also made enhancements to make capturing data in AWARDS easier.  These updates/enhancements include:

→ The OASAS Admission Note, which was a single button on the referral form, has been split into two separate buttons:  Initial Determination and Admission Decision.

→ For 822s only, the Admission Decision check box options have been reduced from three to two selection options, and have been changed from check boxes to radio buttons.

→ For 822s only, the signature lines on treatment plans and treatment plan reviews have been modified to match the signature lines on related OASAS forms.

→ On comprehensive treatment plans and treatment plan reviews, the "Schedule of Services" section has an expanded drop-down list for the frequency of services.  This selection list goes up to twenty instead of five.

→ On the discharge form, the "Service Course" text box is now required, and the following descriptive text has been added:  The Course of Treatment is a review of the interventions and activities of the treatment and includes a summary of the progress of the patient throughout the experience.  The Results of Treatment is a review of where the patient is upon discharge in terms of their addiction and other life issues as compared to where they were when they entered treatment.

→ The signature lines on the discharge form have been modified to match the signature lines on the related OASAS form.

→ We have used our FormBuilder tool to build the 822 Medical Assessment form.  Via the FormBuilder Shared Forms library, you can download the form to your database and use it as is or modify it if you would like.

→ Finally, OASAS suggests that the signature lines on your psychosocial form be updated.  You can make this change, if you would like, by accessing and editing the version of the psychosocial your agency is using via the FormBuilder.  OASAS suggests the following two signature lines should display:

Prepared by (if other than QHP):__________  Title:__________  Signature & Date (within 2 weeks of admission):__________

QHP Responsible:__________  Credential:_________  Signature & Date (within 2 weeks of admission):__________

For more information, please refer to the updated Multi-Step OASAS Admission and Life Area Treatment Plans instruction sheets.

Three new options have been added to the Organization Chart Settings page to allow for more viewing flexibility:

→  Tree For - By default, the organization chart includes all staff.  The tree for selection list allows you to view the chart for a specific staff member.

→  Levels - This option allows you to control how many levels of data are displayed in the organization chart - all levels, or only a specific number (two through six) as specified here.  This new option works in conjunction with the Tree For selection.  For example, if you've chosen to view the tree for Employee X, but you only want to see X's immediate supervisees, set the levels value to two.  If you also want to see who those people supervise, set the levels value to three, and so on.

→  View - This option allows you to view the chart in the original "columns" format, or in a new "pyramid" format.  Two items to note when using the new pyramid view:

a) You may find that there are staff floating in unattached boxes.  This reflects that the staff information for those individuals needs to be cleaned up; specifically, their supervisor has been terminated and no new supervisor has been assigned.  Once that new assignment is made using the Staff Information feature in the Human Resources module, the staff member will be placed into the appropriate spot on the chart.

b)  Some browsers have limitations that prevent charts with more than 200 staff names from displaying properly when using the pyramid view.  If you want to view large charts, the columns view is recommended.

For more information viewing organization chart, click here (when the chart functionality is accessed from the AWARDS Opening Menu page) or here (when accessed from the Human Resources module).

A new check box has been added to the Certified Entitlements Report Selections page, which is accessed by entering Entitlements > Certified Entitlements in report mode.  The new check box is labeled "Include 'Pending' consumers for All Consumers report" and is unchecked by default.  When this option is checked and "All Consumers" is chosen using the Consumer option, the resulting report includes entitlements for both pending clients and clients on the program's roster.

Pending consumers are those for whom intake has been processed, but who have not yet been admitted into the program when that program utilizes the multi-step intake process.  Consumers in residential programs who have rooms reserved using the optional Room Reservations functionality are also considered pending.

The order of the selection sin the Permissions Layer drop-down list under System Setup > Permissions Maintenance has been changed to reflect the order in which those selections fit into the permissions hierarchy.  Specifically, the User Group and Job Title items have been swapped so that the list is now in true hierarchical order:  Individual, User Group, Work Role, Job Title, and Global.  Note that this is only a usability improvement - no functionality has changed as a part of this enhancement.

When permissions are updated for a user who is currently logged into AWARDS, that user must log out of AWARDS and then log back in to see those permissions applied.  The confirmation pop-up message that appears after permissions are updated has been changed to reflect this requirement.

Previously, when the "Summary Tables Only" option was selected when running the Program Profile Report (located in the Profile module) the census, average program LOS, and median LOS statistics did not display.  As this is summary information, these statistics will now be displayed whether either the "Summary Tables Only" or "Show Individual Detail" option is selected.

For programs configured as Nightly Emergency Shelter programs, the Program Profile Report in the Profile module now reports the number of nights a client spent in the program in the "LOS Days" column.  (For all other programs and for groups of programs, the "LOS Days" column continues to report the number of days a client spent in the program as it did previously.)  Further, if the report is run for a Nightly Emergency Shelter for a single day (where the From and To dates are the same), the report now includes only clients who were admitted into the program on that day.

For more information on the program profile report, click here.

The following fields, which are collected on the Agency Program Information page under System Setup > Agency Program Information > Add/Edit Entire Program, have been added to the "Programs" DataBridge file:

For agencies that collect data on the "HMIS Settings" tab:

Direct Service Code
Housing Type
HPRP Grantee ID
HUD Contract #
HUD Program Type
Other Program Name
Program Site Configuration Type
Site Type
Target Population B
Zip Code

From the "Address / Contact Information" tab:

Street Address
City
State
Zip Code
Phone Number
Fax Number

When viewing a progress note in report mode, if the writer of the note has a middle name entered on his or her Human Resources module Staff Information record, the middle name now appears in the writer's signature line.

A "resident" column has been added to the report displayed when viewing the Operations > Property Maintenance feature in report mode.  Additionally, the existing "site" column has been split into separate "address" and "bed/apt" columns.

The AWARDS Providers ReportBuilder feature, accessed when using the Medical module Providers feature in report mode, is a powerful tool that can be used to generate user-customized support service provider data reports.  When working with the Providers ReportBuilder tool, users have the ability to:

- Create reports that include data for a variety of client and provider characteristics
- Filter report contents by one or more selected client or provider characteristics
- Include either individual detail or aggregate counts of each characteristic selected
- Sort and group report data by various client and provider characteristics
- Save frequently generated reports so that they can be easily re-run in the future
- Run reports for any date range

For more information on using this new feature, please see our Providers ReportBuilder instruction sheet, or visit our Providers ReportBuilder pages in Online Help.

The QR Assessments feature, located in the Outcomes module, has been renamed the Goal Outcomes Report.  An Excel file link has also been added to the report.

When running the Reception Desk report via the Reception Desk module's Program Attendance feature, there is a new "Visit Type Duration" section on the Reception Desk Reports page.  This section of the report settings allows users to enter the number of hours to be used when distinguishing between visit types on the report.  The default durations are "Less than 3 hours," "3 to 5 hours," and "More than 5 hours."  Users can edit these intervals as necessary.

In addition, a new "Last Updated" column has been added to the report, which contains the name of the worker who last updated each record, and the date on which the update occurred.

For data entered prior to February 15th, 2010, the last updated detail may be blank on the report, as this information was not captured prior to that date.

For more information on running the Reception Desk program attendance report, click here.

Previously, referral interviews scheduled during the intake/admission process in the Intake/Admission module appeared on the Calendar with the start time assigned to the interview and a default duration of 15 minutes (which was not editable).  In order to reflect more accurate information, any referral interviews scheduled now display only a start time (as assigned during the intake/admission process) and no end time.  The default 15 minute duration has been removed from these appointments.

Adding an editable duration time to these interviews is on the list for future AWARDS enhancements, though no timeframe for that can be provided at this time.

Remittance worksheets now display the amount paid as well as the payment status if you have read the 835 remittance information response for the invoices in the remittance worksheet, and the invoices are single line invoices.

When viewing the Residence Units report by entering the System Setup module Residence Units feature in report mode, the report content is now sortable by clicking any of the column headers within the report (with the exception of the Apt/Bed column).  A new show/hide columns icon has also been added to the left of the report, allowing users to remove columns within the report by de-selecting the corresponding check box for the column to be removed.

Previously, when a user scheduled a staff meeting or staff training, the events appeared on that user's Calendar, even if he or she was not an intended attendee of the meeting.  In order to allow for users to schedule meetings without being listed as an attendee themselves, these events no longer display on the Calendar unless they are specifically selected as an attendee of the meeting/training, there are no attendees specified to attend the meeting/training, or it is a personal meeting.

When running a Service Referrals Report using the Services module Service Referrals feature in report mode, the "Disposition" setting option now displays a checklist of all disposition list items rather than the previous drop-down list which limited users to either all dispositions or a single disposition.  Users are now able to check/uncheck any combination of dispositions to be included when running this report.  By default, all list items are checked.  Once the report is displayed, the dispositions selected on the previous page are listed at the top of the report.

In addition, a new "Total Clients Referred" row appears at the bottom of the report, containing an unduplicated client count of the consumer displayed within the report results.

Date selectors have also been added to the Service Referrals feature in both data entry and report modes, indicated by calendar icons next to date fields.

The Staff Information page located in the Human Resources module Staff Information feature is now in a tabbed format.  The page contains the following tabs:  demographics, work role, payroll, credentials, and miscellaneous.  Clicking UPDATE at the bottom of the Staff Information page saves the information found under all of these tabs.

For more information, see Staff Information.

The following changes have been deployed to enhance usability and usefulness of the Staff Training functionality accessible from various locations in AWARDS:

→  The Staff Training button found in the Human Resources module Credentialing feature has been moved to the Human Resources module menu page.  (As usual it will only display for those who have Staff Training data entry permission.)

→  When setting the status of a training session to "Held," the user is now required to mark attendance outcomes for all scheduled trainees before being able to save the session.

→  There is a new option to delete a previously entered training session.

→  The staff training reporting functionality has been enhanced to improve readability.  There is also a new filter option for limiting attendees included in the report contents.

→  The internal audit messages sent to users scheduled for training sessions have been enhanced.  Subject lines more clearly identify the contents of the message to indicate whether they are regarding a scheduled, updated, or canceled training.  Session details within the messages themselves have also been improved.

→  Training sessions displayed on the calendar now include the instructor in the details.

→  There is a new staff training instruction sheet, accessible by clicking here.

The following updates have been made within the BillingBuilder feature to accommodate the user of half units of service, and are located on the Identify Units of Service page within the Configure Billing Types component of the Billing Menu:

→  AWARDS now accepts decimals as units of service; previously, only integers were accepted.

→  The "count by unit of service" field has been relabeled "count by unit of measure," and the data entry portion of the field has been reformatted to contain the following entries:

- A check box - Click this check box if billing at your agency is done by units of service, and complete the remaining fields listed.

- 1 unit of measure = ____ minutes - Enter the number of minutes that define a unit of measure, using decimals if needed.

- ___ units of measure = 1 unit of service - Enter the number of "units of measure" that define a unit of service.  This number should be a whole number, or integer.

- Drop Remaining Minutes or Count Remaining Minutes as Whole Units - This functionality has been added to allow the user to specify whether the total contact time should be rounded up (Count Remaining Minutes as Whole Units) or rounded down (Drop Remaining Minutes).  Click the radio button next to the appropriate selection.

For example, if the function is set to "Drop Remaining Minutes" with 7.5 minutes = 1 unit of measure = 1 unit of service, then a 20 minute contact time will be 2 units of service.  If the function is set to "Count Remaining Minutes as Whole Units" with the same settings, then a 20 minute contact time will be 3 units of service.

The invoice amount of units of service will be calculated using the following formula:

(Billing Rate) x (# of units of measure contained in the contact time, rounded up or down as configured) / (# of units of measure that define 1 unit of service)

For example, if 1 unit of measure = 7.5 minutes, 2 units of measure = 1 unit of service, and the billing rate for the procedure is $50, the following formula would apply for a progress note of 15 minutes:  50 x 2 / 2 = $50.

In order to produce the required Veteran AHAR Report, a new Veteran AHAR button has been added to the AHAR Report feature, located in the Fiscal / Program module.  To run a version of the AHAR Report that is filtered to only include veterans, click the Veteran AHAR button after selecting any necessary GEO codes, counties, or COCs using the corresponding selection lists.  This version of the AHAR excludes data for any individual that is not represented in the standard AHAR Report as a veteran.

For more information on the AHAR Report feature, click here.

Users with the Weekly Entitlements Recertification Audit permission receive weekly reminder messages for clients with entitlements that have expiration dates in the next 31 days.  Each audit message has a table with four columns:  Consumer Name, AWARDS ID, Entitlement, and the expiration date.  It contains information about clients in all agency programs, regardless of the user's chart access permissions, similar to the Biweekly Hospitalization Activity Audit and the Biweekly Referrals Activity Audit.

Improvements to these reminder messages, deployed on April 15th, include:

→  Receipt of the message for non-residential programs (was previously limited to residential programs)

→  Unduplicated client information when clients are in more than one program

→  Fixes that were preventing the message from being sent and/or displaying data properly

The following modifications have been made to the rules dictating who receives the "Weekly Job Retention Milestones Audit" message.  As a result of these changes, some users who have been assigned this permission may experience an increase in the number of these messages they receive.

- Users will receive this message if either of the following conditions are met:  They have been assigned the "Weekly Job Retention Milestones Audit" permission and EITHER a) have chart access to at least one program the client is enrolled in, b) are a program director/deputy of a program the client is enrolled in, or c) are a service coordinator within the program.

- The report contained in the message displays job placements where the duration of employment is either 30-40 days or 180-190 days, based on the information entered using the Employment > Jobs > Job Placements feature.  This time frame is calculated based on the time between the Hire Date entered in AWARDS and the day the report is run.  If a Termination Date has been entered and the client is no longer employed the day the report is run, that client is removed from the report.

- The messages will be received on a weekly basis, every Monday.

Note that the "Weekly Job Retention Milestones" permission is turned on behind-the-scenes by Foothold Technology.  If you do not see this permission and would like to, please contact the Help Desk.