What's a Task?
Tasks are a useful way to stay on top of the non-treatment related duties of your practice. They can be anything from cleaning a kennel to adding labs into a patient’s treatment plan. First, let’s look at the ‘Task’ section of Shepherd and then we’ll learn how to make tasks.
Task Section Overview
To get to Shepherd’s ‘Task’ section, click ‘Tasks’ on the left side of the screen.
Once the ‘Tasks’ section is open, you’ll be able to organize your tasks in a few different ways:
Search (can be by client, patient, assignee, description, etc.)
Filter by
Organize alphabetically by title
On an individual task level, you can:
Add tasks (can be done manually or automatically)
Complete tasks
View the task in more detail
Edit a task
Delete a task
Adding a Task
You’re able to manually add a task in 3 places within Shepherd:
The ‘Tasks’ section
The client dashboard
The patient dashboard
Adding a Task in the ‘Tasks’ Section of Shepherd
To add a task to the ‘Task’ section of Shepherd, you’ll need to navigate to the ‘Task’ section of Shepherd. To get there, click ‘Tasks’ on the left side of the screen.
From the ‘Tasks’ section, click the ‘Add New’ button in the upper right corner of the screen.
This will generate a task generation popup, where you’ll need to fill out the following fields:
Name
Due date
Tip: having only two required fields makes tasks super versatile. This allows you to make tasks for things like sweeping, cleaning, etc. without having to assign them to a specific person.
You’ll also have the option to fill out these fields:
Description
Assignee
Client
Patient
Once all applicable fields have been filled out, click the ‘Save’ button at the bottom of the modal.
Your task will now be listed in the ‘Tasks’ section.
Adding a Task through the Client Dashboard
If you’re adding a client-specific task, going through the client dashboard is a great way to go. On top of auto-populating the client’s information into the task, you’ll also be able to see any other tasks associated with that client.
To get to the client dashboard:
Click ‘Clients/Patients’ on the left side of screen
Search for the client
Click their name
With that open, go down to the different tabs for the client profile and select ‘Tasks’ (pink).
Note: a number will appear in the tab. This indicates how many tasks are associated with this client.
This will show you a list of tasks associated with this client. You can also click the show completed tasks by toggling the ‘Show Complete’ switch (blue).
To add a new task within the client dashboard, click the ‘Add Task’ button (green) on the right of the ‘Tasks’ box. This will generate a task generation popup, where you’ll need to fill out the following fields:
Name
Due date
Tip: going through the client dashboard means that the client will automatically be selected.
You’ll also have the option to fill out these fields:
Description
Assignee
Patient
Once all applicable fields have been filled out, click the ‘Save’ button at the bottom of the modal.
Your task will now be listed in the ‘Tasks’ section for your practice, as well as the ‘Tasks’ section of this client’s dashboard.
Adding a Task through the Patient Dashboard
If you’re adding a patient-specific task, going through the patient dashboard is a great way to go. On top of auto-populating the patient’s information into the task, you’ll also be able to see any other tasks associated with that patient.
To get to the patient dashboard:
Click ‘Clients/Patients’ on the left side of screen
Search for the patient
Click their name
With that open, go down to the different tabs for the patient profile and select ‘Tasks’ (pink).
Note: a number will appear in the tab. This indicates how many tasks are associated with this patient.
This will show you a list of tasks associated with this patient. You can also click the show completed tasks by toggling the ‘Show Complete’ switch (blue).
To add a new task within the patient dashboard, click the ‘Add Task’ button (green) on the right of the ‘Tasks’ box. This will generate a task generation popup, where you’ll need to fill out the following fields:
Name
Due date
Tip: going through the patient dashboard means that the patient and client will automatically be selected.
You’ll also have the option to fill out these fields:
Description
Assignee
Once all applicable fields have been filled out, click the ‘Save’ button at the bottom of the modal.
Your task will now be listed in the ‘Tasks’ section for your practice, as well as the ‘Tasks’ section of this patient’s dashboard.
Adding Automatic Tasks from Products/Services
Adding tasks to certain products and services is a great way to ensure consistent patient and customer care, as well as help keep your practice running smoothly. If you’re still a little fuzzy on what automatic tasks mean, here are some examples:
Post-euthenasia follow up calls, condolence cards, or flowers
Adding lab results into a patient’s record a specific number of days after you order them
Sweeping up after a haircut
To attach an automatic task to a product or service:
Click ‘Admin’ to open the admin menu
Select ‘Products’
From the products and services section of admin, use the search bar in the upper left to search for the product or service you want to attach a task to. Then, click on the product or service to edit it.
Once you’ve opened the product or service up, scroll down to and click the ‘Automatic Task’ button. This will generate the following fields that you will need to fill in:
Title
Due date (a number field)
Period (day(s), week(s), month(s), or year(s))
Tip: For products and services that have to do with euthanasia or spaying/neutering an animal, you’ll also be able to automatically update the patient status to either:
Female Spayed/Male Neutered
Deceased
Updating Tasks
Once a task has been created, there are several ways to interact with the task. Every task can be:
Completed
Viewed in more detail
Edited
Deleted
Completing a Task
Regardless of where you’re accessing the task (in your practice’s ‘Tasks’ section, a patient’s dashboard, or a client’s dashboard), completing a task looks pretty much the same.
Click on the task (this generates a task modal)
Click the ‘Complete Task’ button in the upper right hand of the modal
Completing Tasks in Bulk
If you have several tasks assigned to you that you’re able to complete quickly, you can mark multiple tasks complete at once from the ‘Tasks’ section of your practice.
Click on ‘Tasks’ on the left side of the screen
Check the boxes on the left side of each task you completed
Click the ‘Complete Tasks’
Viewing a Task
Regardless of where you’re accessing the task (in your practice’s ‘Tasks’ section, a patient’s dashboard, or a client’s dashboard), all you need to do is click on the ‘view’ icon (looks like an eye) in the ‘Actions’ column on the right side of the screen.
Tip: this is also how you add notes to a task.
Editing a Task
Regardless of where you’re accessing the task (in your practice’s ‘Tasks’ section, a patient’s dashboard, or a client’s dashboard), all you need to do is click on the 'edit' icon (with the pencil) in the ‘Actions’ column on the right side of the screen.
When you edit a task, you’re able to:
Add/update the task description
Assign a task to someone
Change the due date
Deleting a Task
Regardless of where you’re accessing the task (in your practice’s ‘Tasks’ section, a patient’s dashboard, or a client’s dashboard), all you need to do is click on the ‘delete’ icon (looks like a trash can) in the ‘Actions’ column on the right side of the screen.