The AWARDS OASAS Client Transfers feature is an optional database enhancement that enables agency staff to transfer clients between programs that have the same OASAS level of care designation in AWARDS. Unlike the typical admission and discharge process, during a client transfer the client is not discharged from one program and admitted to another; instead, he or she is transferred out of one program (the “transferring-out” program) and transferred into the other (the “transferring-in” program). As a result:
The client’s admission and discharge may take place in separate programs - For example, the client may be admitted to program A, transferred to program B, then discharged out of program B. In this scenario, a discharge is never processed for program A – only the transfer out. Clients can be transferred multiple times over the course of a single uninterrupted LOS at an agency.
The client’s chart records move with him or her to the new program - After a transfer, the client’s records from the transferring-out program are accessible in read-only report mode by staff from the transferring-in program (even if those staff members do not have chart access to the transferring-out program). Additionally, the client’s service plan is transferred along with him or her and its review schedule can be continued in the transferring-in program.
Because the OASAS Client Transfers feature is optional, it is not automatically available in all databases. To request that it be made available in your database, please contact your Foothold Client Services representative for more information. He or she will help you determine if the functionality is the right fit for your agency, and will discuss with you any customization required to make the functionality work properly with your individual service plan setup.
REQUIRED PERMISSIONS
Staff in programs for which the Client Transfers feature is available must have the following permissions in order to use it:
Chart Access – Users must have permission to the “transferring-out” program (the program from which the client is being transferred). It is not necessary to have chart access to the “transferring-in” program (the program to which the client is being, or was, transferred).
Data Entry / Access – Users must have the “Client Transfers” permission to access the Client Transfers. Additionally, in order to undo a client transfer at any point, users must have the “Client Transfers – Undo” permission.
ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT
This document is intended to guide you through use of the OASAS Client Transfers feature in both data entry and report modes. Specific topics covered are:
Transferring a Client – Learn how to transfer a client between programs with the same level of care.
Understanding Transferred Client Records – Learn unique characteristics of transferred client records.
Undoing a Transfer – Learn how to undo a transfer.
Viewing a Client Transfers Report – Learn how to view a read-only report of transfer information.
TRANSFERRING A CLIENT
To transfer a client from one program to another program with the same level of care designation in AWARDS, complete the following steps:
1. From the AWARDS Home screen, click Census from the left-hand menu, and then click Client Transfers. The Client Transfer page is displayed.
2. Click the Program drop-down arrow and select the program transferring-out program.
The program selection list includes only those programs the user has access to that have the same level of care designation as at least one other program in AWARDS. A program’s level of care is set using the System Setup module, Agency Program Info, Add/Edit Entire Program feature.
3. Click the Database drop-down arrow and select “Data Entry.”
4. Click CONTINUE. The Client Transfer client selection page is displayed.
5. Click the Consumer drop-down arrow and select the client to be transferred.
6. Click the Transferred To drop-down arrow and select the transferring-in program.
The transferring-in programs in this selection list are those to which the user has chart access that have the same level of care designation as the transferring-out program selected in step 2.
IMPORTANT! Transferring a client between two programs that have the same level of care designation but which use a different service plan format may produce unexpected results in regard to the plan data in the transferring-in program. As a result, it is recommended that transfers only take place between programs using the same type of service plan.
7. Click CONTINUE. The Client Transfer transferring out page is displayed.
8. Click the Transfer Date drop-down arrow and select the date of transfer for this client.
Available transfer dates are those within the last 14 days or between today’s date and the client’s admission date if fewer than 14 days ago. Users with the “Backdated Client Transfers Data Entry” permission can backdate a transfer within the last 45 days by default (or to the admission date, if earlier). This backdating window can be extended using the System Setup module, Business Rules, Client Transfers Rules feature for the program the client is leaving.
Please keep in mind that, if required by regulation, the following documents should be completed and marked as “done” by transferring-out program staff prior to the selected transfer date: Psychosocial Assessment, Initial Treatment Plan, Comprehensive Treatment Plan, and Treatment Plan Review. In addition, the last progress note for the client in transferring-out program should have been written no more than two days prior to the transfer date.
If any services are recorded for the client in the original program after the selected transfer date, that data will be lost once the transfer into the new program is completed.
9. If the transferring-in program is residential, a Residence drop-down option is added to the page after the transfer date is selected. (This option is not available for non-residential programs.) If that option is available, click its drop-down arrow and select the unit at the transferring-in program in which the client is to be placed.
The residence units available for selection are those that have been vacant continuously since the specified transfer date.
10. Click UPDATE. The client transfer is processed and a read-only confirmation page is displayed that contains information on the transferred client, as well as details of the transfer itself.
On this page the following options are available:
Program Status – To enter a program status record for the client in the transferring-in program, click Program Status. You are directed to the client’s Program Status Index. After entering the program status record, click CONTINUE to return to the client transfer confirmation page.
As of April 1, 2017, the Program Status feature is used in 820 programs to record transitions between elements of care, reported on the PAS-47 and PAS-125.
Printable Version – To view a printable version of the transfer information that includes signature and date lines for the supervisor, click Printable Version at the bottom of the confirmation page.
Undo Transfer – If you have the “Client Transfers – Undo” permission, an Undo Transfer button is available to you. For information on undoing a transfer from this point, please see the “Undoing a Transfer” section of this document, beginning with step 10. For information on the full process of undoing transfers, please begin at the top of that section.
The client transfer process is now complete.
Transferred clients are immediately removed from the current roster of the transferring-out program, with the exception of those clients for whom today is the transfer date. When that is the case, the client is removed from the transferring-out program’s roster at the end of the day.
Once a transferred client is removed from the current roster of the transferring-out program, he or she can be found in that program’s roster archives, with the exception of within the Discharge module. Because a transfer is not a discharge from the transferring-out program, the transferred client does not have a discharge record in that program.
UNDERSTANDING TRANSFERRED CLIENT RECORDS
Throughout AWARDS the records of a transferred client indicate that the transfer took place in a variety of ways. For detailed information on a specific type of record and how it is unique for transferred clients, please refer to the corresponding sub-section in the pages that follow.
Admission Date
Intake Records
Discharge Records
Treatment Plan Records
Progress Notes
Contacts Log Records
Group Notes
Assessments / Charting Timetable Events
Legal and Medical Forms
PAS 44 / 45 / 47
Other Records
When a client is transferred, his or her records from the transferring-out program are available as part of his or her chart record in the transferring-in program; however, the heading information on those records retain the name of whichever program they originated from. For example, any records from the transferring-out program are labeled with the name of the transferring-out program, and any records from the transferring-in program are labeled with the name of the transferring-in program. In the case of treatment plans, the transferring-out program’s name is shown at the top of plans with due dates prior to the transfer date, and the transferring-in program’s name is shown at the top of plans with due dates after the transfer date.
ADMISSION DATE
A transferred client’s admission date is the date on which he or she was first admitted into the initial program from which he or she was transferred. If the client is transferred more than once, the admission date is that of the original program from which the transfer process began; for example, if the client is transferred from program A to program B, and then from program B to program C, his or her admission date is the date on which he or she was admitted to program A.
Where the program admission date is referenced in AWARDS, a transferred client’s records will include the original admission date for the program in which the client started out, as well as the date on which he or she was transferred into his or her current program. Places on which this information appears for programs that process transfers, and the changes seen for each, include the following:
Client Lookup – For transfers, additional text is added to the client lookup search results to indicate that an end of program stay resulted in a transfer to another program.
Client Face Sheets – For transfers, the Intake/Admission Date field displays the date of the original admission for this length of stay, and a Transferred In field is added to display the transfer date and the program from which the client transferred. If applicable, the Program Discharge date found on the face sheet includes text indicating that the client was transferred and to which program.
Program Profile Report – The Admission column in program profile reports run from the Profile module is re-labeled “Admission/Transfer In” and displays both dates for transfers.
Intake Records Search Page – In the Discharge column on the intake records search results page in the Intake/Admission module, text indicates when the date shown was a transfer out, and notes which program the client was transferred to.
Service Plans – On the Service Plan Index page, in the heading table for a program history that was a transfer, an Admission/Transfer In field displays the original admission date and transfer date. On that same page the Discharge field for past program histories is re-labeled Transferred Out if the program history involved a transfer out for the client. Additionally, where the admission date is typically displayed on service plan cover pages, it instead displays both the admission and transfer in dates for transferred clients.
Demographics Report – Transferred In Date and Transferred Out Date are added as selections on the Report Options page. Additionally, when Admission Date is chosen as a report variable, the report results display the date of admission into the original program for a transfer record, and when Discharge Date is chosen as a variable the results display the date of discharge from the final program in the transfer history.
INTAKE RECORDS
Transferred clients do not have intake records for their transferring-in programs. All intake information for a transferred client is found under the program to which he or she was originally admitted.
DISCHARGE RECORDS
Transferred clients do not have discharge records for their transferring-out programs. All discharge information for a transferred client will be found under the program from which he or she is finally discharged from the agency.
TREATMENT PLAN RECORDS
The service plan index of a transferred client in his or her transferring-in program includes, under separate program history headings, both the client’s transferring-out program plans and his or her transferring-in program plans (if scheduled).
Transferring-out program plans are always displayed in report mode when opened in the transferring-in program.
The manner in which plans are scheduled in the transferring-in program and included on the index is based on the due dates of the transferring-out program plans at the time of the transfer. Specifically:
If, at the time of transfer, there are any plans and/or reviews scheduled for the client in the transferring-out program that have due dates after the transfer date, those plans are automatically scheduled in the transferring-in program.
Service plans scheduled in this way do not have a reviewer assigned to them. That information must be manually entered by the transferring-in program using the Update Schedule feature accessed from the service plan index.
If, in the transferring-out program, there is a plan that is dated after the transfer date and marked as done, that plan is not transferred with the client or automatically scheduled in the transferring-in program. Additionally, after the transfer that plan will no longer be accessible in the transferring-out program because its due date will no longer fall within the client’s program history there.
If, at the time of transfer, there are no plans and/or reviews scheduled for the client in the transferring-out program that have due dates after the transfer date, new plans are not automatically scheduled in the transferring-in program. Instead, the transferring-in program staff must manually schedule the next plan/review using the Update Schedule feature accessed from the service plan index.
If, at the time of transfer, there is a completed admission note in the transferring-out program, but no initial plans or reviews, the admission note data will NOT transfer with the client. Only data entered in an initial plan, service plan review, or plan amendment will transfer based on those rules detailed above.
Once service plans are scheduled in the transferring-in program, under either of the two scenarios described above, their accessibility for data entry purposes is based on the following:
If the last plan in the transferring-out program is marked as done, a snapshot of the plan data is made available for continuation in plans in the transferring-in program and those transferring-in program plans become available for data entry.
If the last plan in the transferring-out program is not yet marked as done when the transfer is processed, the transferring-in program will not have access to the service plan data from the transferring-out program, and any scheduled transferring-in program plans are not editable. In such cases, the transferring-out program staff must use the Update Schedule feature on the service plan index to mark the last plan as done. At that time a snapshot of the data in that plan is made available for continuation in plans in the transferring-in program, and those plans become available for data entry.
As is always the case in AWARDS, plans are only available for data entry if their due dates fall within the allowed data entry window. Plans dated far in the future will not become available until their due dates are closer.
Once the plan snapshot from the transferring-out program has been copied to the transferring-in program in either of the two scenarios described above, changes made to service plan content in the transferring-out program are not reflected in the reviews in the transferring-in program. However, changes to the service plan schedule in the transferring-out program may impact the transferring-in program. For example, if a plan is marked as done at the time of transfer, is later set to not done, then re-set to done, it will result in another plan snapshot being copied to the transferring-in program. As a result, schedule changes in the transferring-out program are not recommended.
Unexpected results may also occur when a client is transferred between two programs that have the same level of care designation but which use a different service plan format. In such cases, the plan from the transferring-out program does not carry over correctly to the transferring-in program, resulting in bad plan data. As a result, such transfers are not recommended.
PROGRESS NOTES
Progress notes entered for a transferred client in the transferring-out program are displayed in progress note reports run for that client in the transferring-in program as long as those notes fall within the date range entered as part of the report settings, and as long as the reports are run for the transferred client only, not “all clients.”
CONTACTS LOG RECORDS
Contacts log records entered for a transferred client in the transferring-out program are displayed in contacts log reports run for that client in the transferring-in program as long as those contacts fall within the date range entered as part of the report settings, and as long as the reports are run for the transferred client only, not “all clients.”
Transferring-out program contacts log records that are included in transferring-in program contacts log reports are labeled with the name of the transferring-out program. They are not included in the report census counts.
GROUP NOTES
Group notes entered for a transferred client in the transferring-out program are displayed in group notes reports run for the client in the transferring-in program as long as those notes fall within the date range entered as part of the report settings, and as long as the reports are run for the transferred client only, not “all clients.”
Group notes from the transferring-out program are displayed without the usual list of group participants.
ASSESSMENTS/CHARTING TIMETABLE EVENTS
Assessments and other charting timetable events scheduled in the transferring-out program after the transfer date move with the client to the transferring-in program. Such events are included in the client’s charting timetable in the transferring-in program, and if applicable, are also included in the Outcomes module Assessment Data feature.
Assessments scheduled in the transferring-out program before the transfer date are included in the client’s charting timetable in the transferring-in program, with the name of the transferring-out program following the assessment name. When one of these assessments is opened, it displays in report mode.
Assessments marked as done in the transferring-out program do not transfer over to the transferring-in program, even if their due dates are after the transfer date. If an assessment was completed for a date after the transfer and is not marked as done, the assessment data does not transfer, but the scheduled chart event does.
LEGAL AND MEDICAL FORMS
The information from a transferred client’s legal and medical forms moves with the client to the transferring-in program and can be edited by that program’s staff. The forms are still available for editing in the transferring-out program as well, but each program has a separate record so that their edits do not affect one another.
PAS 44 / 45 / 47
A client who has been transferred from one program to another and then discharged from the transferring-in program has three records in the OASAS Data File:
PAS-44 for admission to the initial (transferring-out) program
The PAS-44 for a transferred client is not available under the transferring-in program, only under the transferring-out program. The client’s entry to the transferring-in program is recorded in the PAS-47.
PAS-47 for transfer to the next (transferring-in) program
PAS-45 for discharge from the agency
The PAS-45 for a transferred client is not available under the initial transferring-out program, only under the transferring-in program. The client’s exit from the transferring-out program is recorded in the PAS-47. (The source of some of the PAS-45 data - such as the questions that compare data admission and discharge - will come from the transferring-out program.)
The PAS-47 can be accessed along with the PAS-44 and PAS-45 using the Fiscal/Program module’s OASAS Reports feature. There you can choose to look at either “Transfers In – PAS 47” or “Transfers Out – PAS 47” for the selected program as shown here.
Each PAS 47 includes the following data:
| Provider Number | Provider Client ID | Sex | Birth Date |
| Last 4 SSN | Last Name First 2 Letters | Transfer From PRU | Transfer To PRU |
| Date of Transfer |
PAS 47 records are also included in the OASAS Data File that can be downloaded from AWARDS and uploaded to the OASAS CDS.
OTHER RECORDS: ENTITLEMENT, HOSPITALIZATION, AND MEDICAL
Entitlement records, hospitalization records, and medical records are shared on a client’s record regardless of which program they are part of. As a result, records of these types are unaffected by a transfer.
UNDOING A TRANSFER
To undo a client transfer, complete the following steps:
Undoing transfers requires the “Client Transfers – Undo” permission. Additionally, only staff of the transferring-out program, not the transferring-in program, can complete the undo transfer process.
1. From the AWARDS Home screen, click Census from the left-hand menu, and then click Transfers. The Client Transfer page is displayed.
2. Click the Program drop-down arrow and select the transferring-out program of the client whose transfer is to be undone.
3. Click the Database drop-down arrow and select “Reports.”
4. Click CONTINUE. The Transfer Report – Settings page is displayed.
5. If necessary, make adjustments to the values in the Start Date and/or End Date fields so that the client’s transfer date falls within that range.
6. Click the Transferred Clients drop-down arrow and select “Clients Transferred Out.”
7. If you know the case worker who was assigned to the client at the transferring-out program, click the Case Worker drop-down arrow and choose that worker; otherwise, leave this option blank.
8. Click CONTINUE. The read-only client transfers report is displayed on the Clients Transferred Out page. This page contains a list of all transfers meeting the criteria entered on the report settings page.
9. Click the name of the client whose transfer is to be undone.
If the client had more than one transfer out during the date range set in step 5, each of those transfers is listed separately. Be sure to review the transfer details before clicking the client name to ensure that you are selecting the correct transfer.
The individual transfer record is opened and displayed on the Client Transfer page.
10. Click Undo Transfer. The Client Transfer Undo page is displayed.
11. As noted on this page, when a transfer is undone, all of the client’s data in the transferring-in program is deleted, and it cannot be restored once the undo process is complete. Review the transfer information carefully before proceeding to make sure that the correct transfer is being undone.
12. If the transfer being undone is from a residential program, the client will, upon completion of the undo transfer process, automatically be placed in the residence unit he or she occupied prior to the transfer.
If the client’s previous residence unit was not available continuously from the transfer date through today, a residence unit selection option is included on the Client Transfer Undo page. In such instances, click available drop-down arrow and select the residence unit into which the client is to be placed as of the transfer date.
The option to place the client into a residence unit is not relevant, and therefore unavailable, when the transferring-out program is non-residential.
13. Click CONTINUE. The transfer is undone and a confirmation page is displayed.
The process of undoing a transfer is now complete.
VIEWING A CLIENT TRANSFERS REPORT
To view a read-only client transfers report, complete the following steps:
1. From the AWARDS Home screen, click Census from the left-hand menu, and then click Transfers. The Client Transfer page is displayed.
2. Click the Program drop-down arrow and select the program for which the report is to be viewed.
3. Click the Database drop-down arrow and select “Reports.”
4. Click CONTINUE. The Transfer Report – Settings page is displayed.
5. The report includes only those transfers with dates that fall within the range specified in the Start Date and End Date fields on this page. Make changes to that date range as necessary (using mm/dd/yyyy format).
6. Click the Transferred Clients drop-down arrow and select one of the following to indicate which transfers should be included in the report:
Clients Transferred Out – When this option is selected the report includes only those clients who transferred out of the selected program.
Clients Transferred In– When this option is selected the report includes only those clients who transferred into the selected program.
All Transferred Clients – When this option is selected the report includes all transfers for the selected program, regardless of whether they are transfers into or out of that program.
When the report is being run for “All Agency Programs,” the Transferred Clients selection must be “All Transferred Clients.” The other two selection options are not available in such cases.
7. Click the Case Worker drop-down arrow and select the case worker for whom the report is to be run. Only those clients assigned to the selected case worker will be included in the report results. (Whether the case worker assignments are for the transferring-in program or transferring-out program is based on the selection made in step 6.) If no case worker is selected in this step, the report is run for all case workers.
Clients with no assigned case worker are listed as “unassigned” in the client transfers report.
8. To set up “auto-report” functionality that will automatically generate and send you (via the Messages module) client transfers reports on a specified schedule using the settings selected in steps 6 and 7, configure the following fields and options:
If you do not want to set up the auto-report functionality at this time, skip to step 10.
Activate Auto-Report – Click this check box to indicate that you would like to use the auto-report feature.
Report Frequency – Click this drop-down arrow and select the frequency (in days) at which you would like to receive the client transfers report; for example, select “1” if you would like to receive the report daily or “30” if you would like to receive the report around once a month.
Date Range – Click this drop-down arrow and select the number of days to be included in the report from the date on which it is sent; for example, select “1” if the report should only include transfers that occurred on the day before the auto-report is generated.
9. Click SAVE AUTO-REPORT SETTINGS. Both the general transfer report settings (with the exception of the date range) and the auto-report settings are saved and will be used to generate future auto-reports.
To change the saved settings at any time, simply return to this page, make any needed setting adjustments, then click the SAVE button again.
10. Click CONTINUE. The read-only client transfers report is displayed on the Clients Transferred page.
This page contains information on all transfers meeting the criteria entered on the report settings page. For each of those transfers it includes the client name, transfer date, transferring-out program and/or transferring-in program, and case worker. The report also contains a total transfers count, an Excel File link that can be used to export the report information to Microsoft Excel, and a Printable Version button.
To view more detail on any of the transfers included in the report, click the name of the transferred client. His or her individual transfer record is opened and displayed on the Client Transfer page. To print that information with signature and date lines for a supervisor, click Printable Version at the bottom of the page.
The process of viewing a client transfers report is now complete.