Building consent forms

Consent templates are managed in Consents. A template is the reusable document your team sends to patients for signature. Patient consent records also appear in the patient chart’s Consents section.

How do I view consent templates?

In the left sidebar, click Library, then click Consents. Use Consents to move between Your consents and Library in one place.

Your templates appear first in Your consents (1). Use it to review the templates your team has already built. Select Send (2) on a row when you want to send that active template to a patient. Select New consent (3) to create a template.

Use Library search and filters (4) to narrow the predefined consent templates below. Each A library card (5) shows a template you can preview or import into your organization, along with a category label and summary counts for sections and checkboxes. Some cards also show Varies by state when the template changes by state.

The Library section contains predefined consent templates. You can search it, filter by type, preview a template, and import a copy into your organization.

How do I create or edit a consent template?

On the same page, in Consents, create a template when you need reusable consent wording for treatment, telehealth, HIPAA privacy, Care Management enrollment, or another policy.

Use New consent (1) to open the editor.

1. In the left sidebar, click Library, then click Consents.
2. Select New consent.
3. Fill in Title, Description and Type. Title (1) is the internal name your team sees, Description (2) gives your team context, and Type (3) groups the template by consent purpose.
4. Add Title shown to the patient (4) if the patient should see a different title while signing.
5. Use Text blocks for the consent wording in Builder (5).
6. Use Checkbox blocks for statements the patient should affirm separately.
7. Select Preview (6) to check the signing view and see the patient header below the preview.
8. Select Create consent.

The template appears in Consents. To change it later, open the template or choose Edit from its row menu, then select Save changes.

Type	Use it for
HIPAA Privacy	Privacy acknowledgements and HIPAA-related consent language.
Telehealth	Consent language for remote care.
Treatment	General treatment consent.
General	Practice policies or consent language that does not fit another type.
Care Management	Care Management enrollment consent.
Custom	Consent language your practice defines.

How do I add required checkboxes?

On the same page, use checkboxes in Consents when a patient must acknowledge a specific statement, not only sign the whole document.

For each Checkbox block, write the checkbox statement in A statement the patient ticks to agree (1). Turn on Required to sign (2) when the patient must check that box before signing. Required boxes are marked in the patient view.

A consent cannot be saved with no blocks. It also cannot be saved with an unfinished checkbox, because the patient would be asked to agree to an empty statement.

How do I import a consent template?

On the same page, use Library in Consents when you want a starting point, or use the editor’s AI dock when your consent language already exists in a PDF.

To import from the library:

1. In the left sidebar, click Library, then click Consents.
2. In Library, filter or search for the consent you want with Search consents (1) and Type filters (2).
3. Select Preview (3) to read the template.
4. Select Import (4).
5. Open the imported template from your consents.
6. Edit the wording, settings and checkboxes, then select Save changes.

Importing copies the template into your organization. You can edit your copy after importing.

To draft from a PDF:

1. Select New consent.
2. Drop the PDF into the editor.
3. Review the drafted consent in the editor.
4. Fix the title, description, type, text and checkboxes.
5. Select Create consent.

Review imported wording before you use it with patients. Some library templates also show a warning banner in the preview when they vary by state.

How do I manage consent templates?

On the same page, use the row menu in Consents when a template needs to be copied, hidden or removed.

Use Duplicate (1) to create a copy, Deactivate (2) to hide an active template from use, Print blank copy (3) to make a blank PDF copy, and Delete (4) to remove it.

1. In the left sidebar, click Library, then click Consents.
2. Open the row menu.
3. Select Duplicate to create a copy named with “(Copy)”.
4. Select Deactivate to hide an active template from use, or Activate to make it available again.
5. Select Print blank copy or Export blank copy for a blank PDF copy, then select Delete, then confirm with Delete.

Deleting a template cannot be undone. If a template is in use, deletion may be blocked until you remove it from the related services.

How do I send a consent to a patient?

On the same page, send a single active template from Consents when you know which consent the patient needs.

Use Patient (1) to choose who receives the consent, then select Send Consent (2) to send it.

1. In the left sidebar, click Library, then click Consents.
2. On the template row, select Send. You can also open the row menu and select Send to patient.
3. In Send Consent to Patient, choose the Patient (1).
4. Select Send Consent (2).

If the patient cannot be notified, the dialog changes to Create link. Ona creates the consent and gives you a completion link to share with the patient. When the patient opens that link, they start on a cover before the signing document, and the patient header appears below the cover.

How do I collect a consent signature from a patient chart?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient’s name. In the patient chart, click Consents. Use Patients → (a patient) → Consents when you are already in the chart or when the patient needs to sign in person. On an archived patient's chart, the Consents section is read-only.

Use Consents (1) to open the chart section, then use Add consents (2) to add the templates you want the patient to sign.

1. Select Add consents (1).
2. Use Search consents (2) to find one or more consents.
3. Pick one or more consents.
4. Send the selected consents to the patient, or choose Sign on this device for in-person signing. When you send more than one consent, the patient gets one email listing every consent and a text for each.
5. If you choose Sign on this device, select only one consent.
6. Hand the device to the patient when the signing screen opens.

The patient must read to the end, check any required boxes, agree to electronic signature, and draw a signature before the consent can be signed. The signing screen highlights missing required checkboxes, and the floating nudge changes from read-through guidance to missing-box and sign guidance. In-person signing opens in a full-screen sheet on the device and ends with a handoff screen asking the patient to return the device. The patient header appears below the document cover on the signing sheet.

How do I manage a patient’s pending or scheduled consents?

On the same page, use Patients → (a patient) → Consents to review consent status and take follow-up actions. Consents are grouped as Scheduled, Pending, Signed and Cancelled. On an archived patient's chart, this section is read-only, so the consent-row actions are disabled.

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient’s name.
2. Open the patient chart Consents section (1).
3. Review the Scheduled, Pending, Signed and Cancelled groups in Status groups (2).
4. Use the consent row actions for the consent status you need in each Consent row (3).
5. Use Archive on a consent row to hide that consent from the active list.

Use Consents (1) to open the patient consent section. Use Status groups (2) to scan the scheduled, pending, signed and cancelled groups. Use each Consent row (3) for the row actions that match that consent’s status.

Status	What you can do
Scheduled	Use Send now to release it early, or Cancel to stop it from being sent. A cancelled scheduled consent stays in the list as cancelled.
Pending	Use Copy link while the current link has not expired, or Resend link to send a fresh link. The old link no longer works after you resend.
Signed	Open the row to view the signed consent, signature summary, when it was added and its delivery history.
Cancelled	Open the row to view the cancelled consent record, when it was added and its delivery history.

Use Archive on a consent row to hide that consent from the active list.

What can’t I do here?

On the consent templates page and in a patient chart’s Consents section, these limits protect the signing process:

• You cannot save a template until it has at least one block.
• You cannot save a template with an unfinished checkbox.
• You cannot send an inactive template from its row.
• You cannot choose Sign on this device when more than one consent is selected.
• You cannot use Copy link after a pending consent link has expired.
• You cannot sign a consent until the document has been read to the end, all required boxes are checked, electronic signature consent is accepted, and a signature is drawn.
• You cannot send a scheduled consent after selecting Cancel consent; it remains in the list as cancelled.
• You cannot use Add consents on an archived patient's chart.
• You cannot use consent-row actions on an archived patient's chart.

Common questions

What is the difference between Title and Title shown to the patient?

Title is the internal template name your team sees. Title shown to the patient is optional. If you leave it blank, the patient sees a generic consent title during signing.

When should I use a required checkbox?

Use Required to sign for any statement the patient must actively confirm before signing. If the statement is optional, leave the checkbox not required.

What happens when I deactivate a consent template?

Inactive templates are hidden from use. You can reactivate the template later with Activate. You can also use the row menu to print or export a blank consent copy.

Can I resend a consent link?

Yes. On a pending consent in the patient chart, use Copy link while the current link has not expired, or use Resend link to send a fresh link. Ona sends a fresh link and the old link no longer works after you resend.

Can a patient sign while they are in the clinic?

Yes. In the patient chart’s Consents section, select Add consents, choose one consent, then choose Sign on this device. That opens the same full-screen signing flow on the shared device, with the patient header below the document cover.