The Client Search feature is located at the top-left of the AWARDS screen.
Image: Client Search Menu
Required Permissions
The Client Search functionality is available to users with the following permissions:
- Program Chart Access
- Display Any Chart Records Buttons
- Client E-Signatures Settings
- Emergency Access
- Merge Duplicate Consumers
Performing a Client Search
- Select Search Client to expand the Search menu.
- Enter search criteria in one or more of the available fields and click Search. Results will display.
Note: You can search partial names, for example, you can enter only the last name, or an initial, or the first few letters of a name, etc. The results will narrow as you continue to add search criteria.
- By default, the search results are sorted alphabetically. Click the up/down arrows for any column header to sort the results by that column.
- Click the name of the client you are searching for.
- If the client has not yet been admitted to an agency program, their Referral record will display.
- If they have been admitted to an agency program, the Client Information page will display for them.
Client Search FAQs
Q. Are clients from discontinued programs included in Client Search results?
A. Data from discontinued programs, including client information, is only accessible to users who have been added to the "Display To" list for the program in question, and who also have chart access to that program. When a user has not been granted access to a discontinued program, that program's data is not available to him/her through Client Search or anywhere else in the system.
Q. Can I search client records for a keyword?
A. When using the Services - Individual module's Progress Notes feature in report mode there is an "optional find notes containing" field on the report settings page. You can use that to search for a keyword in a client's progress notes; however, there is no functionality that will allow you to complete a similar search outside of progress notes. Client Search, for example, limits you to searching for actual clients using identifying information as the search criteria.
Q. How do households display in Client Search results?
A. Each admitted member of the household has their own record in Client Search that describes their program enrollment status and the global household they are part of. All admitted household members are hyperlinked to their own program records page. If the database is set to search for household members then global household members without admission records also display with a hyperlink to the primary client's program records.
When conducting a search for a primary client, all of the household members admitted for each household program enrollment display as part of that primary client's program enrollment information.
Q. Is Client Search case sensitive?
A. No. Client Search will locate consumers regardless of whether the case in which your search criteria were entered matches that in the consumer's records.
Q. Is data from discontinued programs accessible through Client Search?
A. Data from discontinued programs is only accessible to users who have been added to the "Display To" list for the program in question and who also have chart access to that program. In such instances the program data is accessible throughout the system as it is for any other program. When a user has not been granted access to a discontinued program, that program's data is not available to him/her through Client Search or anywhere else in the system.
Q. What is an "AWARDS UUID"?
A. The AWARDS UUID is a 32-digit Universally Unique Identifier that is used in databases that either upload to another AWARDS database, or receive uploads from another AWARDS database. The AWARDS UUID (also known as the Client UUID) can be looked up for a client in both databases after an upload is completed; specifically, in the destination database it can be searched for using Client Search, Client Identifiers, or by referring to the HMIS ReportBuilder's "Source PersonalID" data variable.
Q. What is the "Clone" icon used for in the search results?
A. The optional Intake/Admission 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 another program during a previous or current program episode. The Clone icon provides a shortcut for that data entry. When clicked, the Intake/Admission Search page is opened with the client's name, SSN, and program automatically populated from the previously existing record, as a quick-start to the cloning process.
Q. Why are there some clients in the client search results whose names don't have record links?
A. When a client name is linked (underlined) in the search results, it can be clicked to access that client's records. If you do not have chart access to the program for which those records were created, the name will not be linked in order to prevent you from opening records to which you should not have access. Additionally, clients in programs to which you do not have access will not have their social security numbers or birthdates displayed on the search results page.
Q. Why are there some clients in the client search results who don't have identifying information listed for them?
A. Unless there are strict record sharing rules in place on an AWARDS database, any user can search for a client with consumer Search and have that client be included in the search results, regardless of whether the user has chart access permission for the program(s) the client has records for. If the user does not have chart access permission though, he or she will be unable to access the client's records from the search results, and he or she will not see the full identifying information for that client (SSN and DOB).
Q. Why can't I access records for all of the programs a client was in when I click his/her name from the search results?
A. Direct access is granted to a client's records for a program from within the consumer search feature only when the user has chart access to the program. Access to program records for users with the required permission are based on the following:
- If there is only one active program history for a client the record buttons for data entry, when accessed via the search results, display for that program only.
- If there are multiple program histories in different programs and all are closed, the record buttons for data entry, when accessed via the search results, display for all programs.
- If there are multiple program histories with some open and some closed, the record buttons for data entry, when accessed via the search results, display for the open program histories only. Records within the closed program histories must be accessed from within the relevant AWARDS modules using the "Roster Archives" option.
Q. Why don't I see the Client Search box/icon? I have the required permission.
A. Some AWARDS databases are configured behind-the-scenes to prevent the Client Search functionality from being available to all but a specified list of user groups. In such instances, you may not see the Client Search box/icon on the navigation bar, regardless of whether you have the necessary "Display Any Chart Records Buttons" permission.
Q. Why is a client I know is in the system not being found by Client Search?
A. In most cases, an existing client does not show up in Client Search results for one of the following reasons:
- The client's name has been misspelled, either in his or her records, or in the search criteria name fields. We recommend that in order to workaround any possible misspellings, you search with only the first couple of letters of the client's first and last names.
- The client's name has been reversed, either in his or her records, or in the search criteria name fields. If a general search for the client does not yield any results, nor does a broader search where only a few letters of the name are used, we recommend searching by entering the last name in the first name search criteria field and vice versa.
Q. Why is there a black flag icon next to some names in my Client Search results?
A. If your AWARDS database is set up to use the optional Client Alerts feature and an alert has been set for a client using that feature, a black flag icon will appear next to his/her name in Client Search results. Move your mouse cursor over the flag to view the alert text.
Q. Why would a client have "pending since mm/dd/yyyy" instead of an admission date in the client search results?
A. In programs that are set up to process intake and admission separately, a "Pending since mm/dd/yyyy" status indicates that intake has been processed for the consumer but not admission. In order for the consumer to be in the program fully, his or her admission must then be processed using the Process Admission feature located within his or her referral record.
Q. Why would a single client be listed multiple times in the client search results?
A. There are a few reasons why a client may be listed multiple times in Client Search results:
- AWARDS does not recognize the various entries as being the same consumer - This can happen if the client is entered in the system more than once with various name spellings, birthdates, and/or SSNs. Even if those records are later made consistent, Client Search will still list the entries separately. In the event that this has happened, the consumer's records can be merged.
- It is a multi-agency/HMIS database - In this type of setting records can be set up to be listed separately for each agency.
- The consumer has multiple un-processed referrals or a combination of referrals and program histories - Un-processed referral records will always be listed separate from program history records in Client Search results.