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Outcome measures (PHQ-9, GAD-7, PCL-5)

FrontDesk includes the PHQ-9, GAD-7, and PCL-5. Send one from the client's Notes tab and they complete it by link or in their portal — no login needed for the link — or enter the answers yourself in session. Scores and severity bands are calculated on completion and trended on the Measures card; a positive answer on the PHQ-9 suicide item, or a high answer on the PCL-5 self-harm item, raises a risk flag that notifies the provider at once and stays on the Tasks page until acknowledged. A schedule (before each visit, weekly, every two weeks, monthly, every three months) sends the next questionnaire automatically, reminds the client once, and expires it after two weeks. Clients never see their scores.

Updated September 8, 20262 min read

Outcome measures put a number on how a client is doing. They live on the client's Notes tab in the Measures view; the "Care at a glance" strip shows the latest score, a pending questionnaire, or an unacknowledged risk flag.

Send a measure

  1. Open the client → NotesMeasuresSend a measure.
  2. Choose PHQ-9, GAD-7, or PCL-5, keep Send to the client (text and email with a link) selected, set an optional Due by date, and send.

The client gets a text and an email ("A short questionnaire from your care team") with a private link, and their portal Home lists "Complete the PHQ-9 questionnaire". The card lists it under Pending with the sent and due dates; from there you can Enter answers for them or Cancel it.

The client's side

The link opens the questionnaire with no login. Every item must be answered before it can be sent. The client then sees a thank-you. They never see a score or a band.

Scoring happens on completion. Staff see the score, the severity band, every item's answer, and a trend line once there are two completions of the same measure. The note editor's progress section shows the latest score of each measure beside the treatment goals.

MeasureItemsBands
PHQ-99, scored 0–3Minimal 0–4 · Mild 5–9 · Moderate 10–14 · Moderately severe 15–19 · Severe 20–27
GAD-77, scored 0–3Minimal 0–4 · Mild 5–9 · Moderate 10–14 · Severe 15–21
PCL-520, scored 0–4Below threshold 0–30 · Probable PTSD 31–80, plus cluster subscores B, C, D, E

Risk flags

A PHQ-9 with item 9 above "Not at all", or a PCL-5 with item 16 at "Quite a bit" or "Extremely", raises a risk flag. The treating provider is notified at once, the Measures card and the Care at a glance strip show a banner, and a Risk flag task appears under Tasks → Clinical marked urgent. Acknowledge on the card or the task's check button clears it, and the acknowledgement is recorded.

Enter in session

Enter in session (or Enter answers now in the send dialog) opens the items in a modal for paper or verbal answers. Score and save stores it as a staff entry, scored and trended like any other. Staff entries do not notify anyone.

Schedule it

The calendar button on the card opens Measure schedule, one entry per measure: Before each visit (sent when a booked visit is within two days), Every week, Every two weeks, Every month, or Every three months. The daily clinical job creates each questionnaire when it is due and sends the link, sends one reminder a day later, and expires anything still open after two weeks. Discharging the client clears the schedule.

Notifications and access

A risk flag notifies the treating provider immediately; a questionnaire the client completes without a flag sends a quieter "completed" notification. Sending, entering, and cancelling measures needs clinical authoring access; reading them needs clinical read access, which front-desk logins do not have. Every assignment and result is written to the audit trail.

Frequently asked questions

Which measures are included?
PHQ-9 (depression, 9 items, bands minimal to severe), GAD-7 (anxiety, 7 items, minimal to severe), and PCL-5 (PTSD, 20 items, below threshold up to 30 and probable PTSD from 31, with the four cluster subscores). Item text and scoring are built in.
Does the client need a portal login?
No. The link in the text and email opens the questionnaire directly. Signed-in clients also see it on their portal Home. Either way they see a thank-you at the end, not the score.
What is the risk flag?
On the PHQ-9, any answer above "Not at all" on item 9 (thoughts of being better off dead or of self-harm) flags the result; on the PCL-5, an answer of "Quite a bit" or "Extremely" on item 16 (risk-taking or self-harm) does the same. The treating provider is notified immediately, the Measures card shows a banner, and a Risk flag task sits on the Tasks page until someone acknowledges it.
Can I fill one in for the client?
Yes. Enter in session on the Measures card opens the items in a modal; Score and save stores it as a staff entry, for paper or verbal answers.

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