PatientSync User Guide

PatientSync is a desktop app made for nurses to manage patient, optimized for use via a Command Line Interface (CLI) while still having the benefits of a Graphical User Interface (GUI). If you can type fast, PatientSync allows you to add and view patients intimate details and also manage patient-specific tasks faster than traditional GUI apps.

Quick start

  1. Ensure you have Java 11 or above installed in your Computer.

  2. Download the latest PatientSync.jar from here.

  3. Copy the file to the folder you want to use as the home folder for PatientSync.

  4. Open a command terminal, cd into the folder you put the jar file in, and use the java -jar PatientSync.jar command to run the application.
    A GUI similar to the below should appear in a few seconds. Note how the app contains some sample data.
    Ui

  5. Type the command in the command box and press Enter to execute it. e.g. typing help and pressing Enter will open the help window.
    Some example commands you can try:

    • list : Lists all patients in PatientSync.

    • add id/ 12360 n/ John Chan p/ John f/ Curry chicken c/ Stable c/ Has 2 sons visit him regularly h/ Singing karaoke t/ Diabetes : Adds a patient named John Chan to the PatientSync.

    • delete 3 : Deletes the 3rd patient shown in the current list.

    • clear : Clears all patients in PatientSync.

    • exit : Exits the app.

  6. Refer to the Features below for details of each command.

Features

Notes about the Screenshots:

  • Each Screenshot is taken after running the example command stated. The original state of the data before running the command is that of the base Sample Data provided.

Notes about the command format:

  • Words in UPPER_CASE are the parameters to be supplied by the user.
    e.g. in add n/NAME, NAME is a parameter which can be used as add n/John Doe.

  • Items in square brackets are optional.
    e.g n/NAME [t/TAG] can be used as n/John Doe t/diabetes or as n/John Doe.

  • Items with …​ after them can be used multiple times including zero times.
    e.g. [t/TAG]…​ can be used as (i.e. 0 times), t/friend t/family etc.

  • Items with + after them can be used multiple times, but requires at least one usage.
    e.g. t/TAG+ can be used as t/friend, t/friend t/family etc.

  • Parameters can be in any order.
    e.g. if the command specifies n/NAME p/PREFERRED_NAME, p/PREFERRED_NAME n/NAME is also acceptable.

  • Extraneous parameters for commands that do not take in parameters (such as help, list, exit and clear) will be ignored.
    e.g. if the command specifies help 123, it will be interpreted as help.

  • If you are using a PDF version of this document, be careful when copying and pasting commands that span multiple lines as space characters surrounding line-breaks may be omitted when copied over to the application.

Viewing help : help

Shows a message explaining how to access the help page.

help message

This screenshot shows the result of executing help.

Format: help

Adding a patient: add

Adds a patient to PatientSync.

Format: add id/PATIENT_HOSPITAL_ID n/NAME p/PREFERRED_NAME f/FOOD_PREFERENCE+ c/FAMILY_CONDITION+ h/HOBBY+ [t/TAG]…​

  • The add command accepts parameters which consists of:
    • patientHospitalId: String of non-negative numeric characters which uniquely identifies the patient,
    • name, preferredName: String contains alphanumeric characters and spaces,
    • foodPreference, familyCondition, hobby: String and all kinds of characters,
    • tag: String which are alphanumeric.
  • A patient can have any number of tags (including 0).
  • A patient can have more than one f/FOOD_PREFERENCE, c/FAMILY_CONDITION and h/HOBBY.
  • Parameters can be in any order.
  • All command keywords, that is ‘add’, ‘id/’, ‘n/’, ‘p/’, ‘f/’, ‘c/’ and ‘h/’ are case-sensitive (to standardise keyword arguments).

Examples:

  • add id/ 67345 n/ Lim Boh Keong p/ Keong f/ Laska c/ No children h/ Golf t/ HighCholestrol
  • add id/ 22315 n/ Betty Janny p/ Betty f/ Udon f/ Chasu Ramen c/ Lives with son c/ Has financial problem h/ Fishing
  • add id/ 54321 n/ John Doe p/ John f/ Curry chicken c/ Stable h/ Singing karaoke t/ amnesia

This screenshot shows the result of executing add id/ 54321 n/ John Doe p/ John f/ Curry chicken c/ Stable h/ Singing karaoke t/ amnesia.

result for 'adding patient John Doe'

Listing all patients : list

Shows a list of all patients in PatientSync.

Format: list

This screenshot shows the result of executing list.

result for 'listing all patients'

Editing a patient : edit

Edits an existing patient in PatientSync.

Format: edit INDEX [id/PATIENT_HOSPITAL_ID] [n/NAME] [p/PREFERRED_NAME] [f/FOOD_PREFERENCE]…​ [c/FAMILY_CONDITION]…​ [h/HOBBY]…​ [t/TAG]…​

  • Edits the patient at the specified INDEX. The index refers to the index number shown in the displayed patient list. The index must be a positive integer 1, 2, 3, …​
  • At least one of the optional fields must be provided.
  • Existing values will be updated to the input values.
  • The edit command accepts parameters which consists of:
    • INDEX: Positive integer, indicating the index of patient in the PatientSync list.
    • patientHospitalId: String of non-negative numeric characters which uniquely identifies patient,
    • name, preferredName: String which contains alphanumeric characters and spaces,
    • foodPreference, familyCondition, hobby: String and all kinds of characters,
    • tag: String which are alphanumeric.
  • Editing a patient can have repeated fields for f/FOOD_PREFERENCE, c/FAMILY_CONDITION, h/HOBBY and t/TAG.
  • When editing foodPreference, familyCondition, hobby, tag, the pre-existing inputs of the patient will be removed i.e adding of tags is not cumulative.
  • You can remove all the patient’s tags by typing t/ without specifying any tags after it.

Note:

  1. Newly edited value(s) which are same as the original value is allowed, and does not change anything.
  2. INDEX refers to row number of the patient list while PATIENT_HOSPITAL_ID refers to the unique ID tagged to the patient.

Examples:

  • edit 1 p/Alex f/Fried rice
  • edit 2 c/Children moved away t/
  • edit 3 h/Watch drama h/Plays piano

This screenshot shows the result of executing edit 3 h/Watch drama h/Plays piano.

result for 'edit patient'

Finding patients by name: find

Finds one or more patients whose name exactly match the given keyword(s).

Format: find KEYWORD [MORE_KEYWORD]…​

  • The search is case-insensitive e.g. alex will match Alex.
  • The order of the patient name does not matter. e.g. Becker Alex will match Alex Becker.
  • Only the Patient Name is searched.
  • Only full word(s) will be matched. e.g. Alex will not match Alexandra, Alex will match Alex Becker.
  • Patients matching at least one keyword will be returned. e.g. Alex Becker will return Alex Keller and Becker Anderson.

Examples:

  • find Alex
  • find alex roy

This screenshot shows the result of executing find alex roy.

result for 'find patient'

Deleting a patient : delete

Deletes the specified patient from PatientSync.

Format: delete INDEX

  • Deletes the patient at the specified INDEX.
  • The index refers to the index number shown in the displayed patient list.
  • The index must be a positive integer 1, 2, 3, …​

Examples:

  • find Bernice followed by delete 1 deletes the 1st patient based on the results of the find command.
  • list followed by delete 1 deletes the 1st patient based on the results of the list command.

This screenshot shows the result of executing list followed by delete 1.

result for 'delete 2'

Adding Tags to a Patient : addt

This command allows for the incremental addition of one or more tags to a patient's tag list. It offers a user-friendly alternative to the edit command, eliminating the need to retype all existing tags along with the new ones to be added.

Format: addt INDEX t/TAG+

  • Adds one or more tags to a patient identified by the index number used in the last patient listing.
  • At least one tag must be provided.
  • Tags can only contain alphanumeric characters or spaces.
  • Tags cannot be blank
  • Tags must be less than 50 characters long.
  • Tags are case-insensitive.
  • The index must be a positive integer 1, 2, 3, …​
  • When adding tags, if a tag is repeated in the command, it will be added as a single tag. E.g. t/critical t/critical will be added as a single critical tag.
  • If the patient has an existing tag that is provided in the command, it will be logged and shown to the user.
  • An invalid patient index error message will be shown when the patient index meets the above requirements, but is not found in the patient list.
Note: The addition of tags is cumulative. New tags will be added to the existing set of tags for the patient, preserving the previously assigned tags.

Examples:

  • addt 1 t/critical
  • addt 2 t/depression t/diabetes

This screenshot shows the result of executing addt 2 t/depression t/diabetes.

result for 'add tags'

Deleting Tags from a Patient : deletet

Removes one or more tags from a patient's tag list, providing an intuitive way to manage tags without the necessity of retyping all existing tags that are to be retained, as mandated by the edit command.

Format: deletet INDEX t/TAG+

  • Deletes one or more tags from a patient identified by the index number used in the last patient listing.
  • At least one tag must be provided.
  • Tags can only contain alphanumeric characters or spaces.
  • Tags cannot be empty or blank.
  • Tags must be less than 50 characters long.
  • Tags are case-insensitive when matching tags.
  • The index must be a positive integer 1, 2, 3, …​
  • Tags provided should match with the existing tags of the patient.
  • When deleting tags, if tags are repeated in the command, it will be treated as a single tag to delete. E.g. t/friend t/friend will be considered as a single friend tag for deletion.
  • If the patient does not have a tag provided in the command, it will be logged and shown to the user.
  • An invalid patient index error message will be shown when the patient index meets the above requirements, but is not found in the patient list.

Examples:

  • deletet 4 t/diabetes t/skin irritation
  • deletet 1 t/diabetes

This screenshot shows the result of executing deletet 1 t/diabetes.

result for 'delete tags'

Finding patients by tag: findt

Finds one or more patients whose tag exactly match the given keyword(s).

Format: findt KEYWORD [MORE_KEYWORD]…​

  • The search is case-insensitive e.g. depression will match Depression.
  • The order of the patient tag does not matter. e.g. depression diabetes will match diabetes depression.
  • Only the tag is searched.
  • Only full word(s) will be matched. e.g. depress will not match depression, depress will match depress diabetes.
  • Patients matching at least one keyword will be returned. e.g. depression diabetes will return depression wheelchair and diabetes tumour.

Examples:

  • findt diabetes
  • findt diabetes wheelchair

This screenshot shows the result of executing findt diabetes wheelchair.

result for 'find tags'

Adding an Event to a Patient : adde

Adds an event to a patient in PatientSync.

Format: adde PATIENT_INDEX n/NAME_OF_EVENT d/DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT

  • Adds an Event with a Name, as well as the Date and optionally, the Time Period for which the Event is happening on that date to a patient identified by the index number used in the last patient listing.
  • PATIENT_INDEX must be a positive, non-zero integer, i.e., 1, 2, 3.
  • Neither NAME_OF_EVENT or DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT can be empty (after trimming whitespaces).
  • NAME_OF_EVENT must be alphanumerical.
  • The format of DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT must be: DD-MM-YYYY.
  • If there is a Time Period, the format of DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT must be: DD-MM-YYYY, HH:mm - HH:mm, where the End Time must be after or equal to the Start Time.
  • The DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT can occur in the past as well; However, a warning message will be shown.
  • The DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT can overlap with that of another Event of the same Patient.
  • The DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT is based on the Local Date / Local DateTime of the User's Device.
  • If multiple prefix and arguments are provided, the last is taken as the 'truth', i.e., if the command provided is adde 1 n/first event n/another event d/20-01-2023 d/23-12-2024, the Event added will be the same as if adde 1 n/another event d/23-12-2024 was the command.

Examples:

  • adde 3 n/Birthday d/20-01-2022
  • adde 1 n/Family Visit d/30-09-2024, 12:00 - 15:00

This screenshot shows the result of executing adde 1 n/Family Visit d/30-09-2024, 12:00 - 15:00.

result for 'add event'

Deleting an Event from a Patient : deletee

Deletes an event from a patient in PatientSync.

Format deletee PATIENT_INDEX e/EVENT_INDEX

  • Deletes an Event from a specified Patient using PATIENT_INDEX and EVENT_INDEX.
  • PATIENT_INDEX is the index of the patient shown in the UI after using list or find command.
  • EVENT_INDEX is the index of the event that is saved under a Patient's data.
  • Both PATIENT_INDEX and EVENT_INDEX must be a positive integer 1, 2, 3, ...
  • Both PATIENT_INDEX and EVENT_INDEX must be of a valid index (i.e. within the range of total number of Patients/Events).
  • Both PATIENT_INDEX and EVENT_INDEX are compulsory fields (Neither can be EMPTY).

Examples:

  • deletee 1 e/1
  • deletee 2 e/1

This screenshot shows the result of executing deletee 2 e/1.

result for 'delete event'

Editing an Event for a Patient: edite

Edits an event for a patient in PatientSync.

Format: edite PATIENT_INDEX e/EVENT_INDEX n/NAME_OF_EVENT d/DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT

  • Edits an Event for a Patient using PATIENT_INDEX, EVENT_INDEX, NAME_OF_EVENT and DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT.
  • PATIENT_INDEX, EVENT_INDEX, NAME_OF_EVENT and DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT are compulsory parameters.
  • Note that, it is okay to exclude TIME for DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT.
  • The format of DATE_OF_EVENT must be: DD-MM-YYYY.
  • The format of DATETIME_OF_EVENT must be: DD-MM-YYYY, HH:mm - HH:mm; Note that the End Time Must be After or Equals to the Start Time.
  • The Date / Datetime of the Event can occur in the past as well; However, a warning message will be shown.
  • Both PATIENT_INDEX and EVENT_INDEX must be a positive integer 1, 2, 3, ...
  • Both PATIENT_INDEX and EVENT_INDEX must be of a valid index (i.e. within the range of total number of Patients/Events).
  • Editing an event to an existing event will not change the patient list as there should not have any duplicate events.
  • The DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT can overlap with that of another Event of the same Patient.
  • The DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT is based on the Local Date / Local DateTime of the User's Device.
  • If multiple prefix and arguments are provided, the last is taken as the intended input, i.e., if the command provided is edite 1 e/1 e/2 n/first event n/another event d/20-01-2023 d/23-12-2024, the Event edited will be the same as if edite 1 e/2 n/another event d/23-12-2024 was the command.

Examples:

  • edite 1 e/1 n/Papa Birthday Celebration d/20-01-2025
  • edite 2 e/1 n/Mama Birthday Celebration d/21-02-2025

This screenshot shows the result of executing edite 2 e/1 n/Mama Birthday Celebration d/21-02-2025.

result for 'edit event'

Sorting the patient list : sort

Sorts the patient list in PatientSync by specified attribute.

Format: sort [ATTRIBUTE]

  • Sorts all the existing patients in the patient list by specified ATTRIBUTE.
  • Supported ATTRIBUTEs include n for patient name and p for patient's preferred name.
  • There can only be one or zero ATTRIBUTE.
  • If no ATTRIBUTE is specified, default sorting order would be by patient's name.
  • ATTRIBUTEs are case-insensitive.
  • The command will not be recognised if invalid ATTRIBUTE(s) are entered. e.g. sort l or sort 123 are invalid sort commands.
  • If there are multiple patients with the same specified ATTRIBUTE, the sort will preserve the original order of the affected patients list. e.g. if the original list contains two patients: patient one name: alex, patient two name: alex, after sorting, patient one will come before patient two.

Examples:

  • sort
  • sort n
  • sort p

This screenshot shows the result of executing sort p.

result for 'sortp'

Clearing all patients : clear

Clears all patients from PatientSync.

Format: clear

This screenshot shows the result of executing clear.

result for 'clear'

Exiting the program : exit

Exits the program.

Format: exit

Saving the data

PatientSync data are saved in the hard disk automatically after any command that changes the data. There is no need to save manually.

Editing the data file

PatientSync data are saved automatically as a JSON file [JAR file location]/data/patientsync.json. Advanced users are welcome to update data directly by editing that data file.

Caution: If your changes to the data file makes its format invalid, PatientSync will discard all data and start with an empty data file at the next run. Hence, it is recommended to take a backup of the file before editing it.
Furthermore, certain edits can cause PatientSync to behave in unexpected ways (e.g., if a value entered is outside the acceptable range). Therefore, edit the data file only if you are confident that you can update it correctly.

FAQ

Q: How do I transfer my data to another Computer?
A: Install the app in the other computer and overwrite the empty data file it creates with the file that contains the data of your previous PatientSync home folder.

Known issues

  1. When using multiple screens, if you move the application to a secondary screen, and later switch to using only the primary screen, the GUI will open off-screen. The remedy is to delete the preferences.json file created by the application before running the application again.

Command summary

Action Format, Examples
Add add id/PATIENT_HOSPITAL_ID n/NAME p/PREFERRED_NAME f/FOOD_PREFERENCE+ c/FAMILY_CONDITION+ h/HOBBY+ [t/TAG]…​
e.g. add id/ 12370 n/ Peter Pan p/ Peter f/ Curry chicken c/ Stable, Has 2 sons visit him regularly h/ Singing karaoke t/ Diabetes
Clear clear
Delete delete INDEX
e.g. delete 1
Edit edit INDEX [id/PATIENT_HOSPITAL_ID] [n/NAME] [p/PREFERRED_NAME] [f/FOOD_PREFERENCE]…​ [c/FAMILY_CONDITION]…​ [h/HOBBY]…​ [t/TAG]…​
e.g.edit 2 p/James t/HighCholesterol
Find find KEYWORD [MORE_KEYWORD]…​
e.g. find alex roy
Add Tags addt INDEX t/TAG+
e.g. addt 1 t/critical
Delete Tags deletet INDEX t/TAG+
e.g. deletet 1 t/critical
Find Tags findt KEYWORD [MORE_KEYWORD]…​
e.g. findt diabetes wheelchair
Add Event adde PATIENT_INDEX n/NAME_OF_EVENT d/DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT
e.g. adde 1 n/Family Visit d/30-09-2024, 12:00 - 15:00
Delete Event deletee PATIENT_INDEX e/EVENT_INDEX
e.g. deletee 1 e/1
Edit Event edite PATIENT_INDEX e/EVENT_INDEX n/NAME_OF_EVENT d/DATE_OR_DATETIME_OF_EVENT
e.g. edite 2 e/1 n/Mama Birthday Celebration d/21-02-2025
Sort sort [ATTRIBUTE]
e.g. sort p
List list
Help help
Exit exit