Reviewing and signing an AI-drafted note

Notes on a visit or patient chart can start blank, from a template, or from a past note. Ona can fill parts of the note from the visit and patient record, but you review every draft and decide when it is signed.

How do I start an AI-drafted note?

In the left sidebar, click Visits and open the visit you want to document, or click Patients and open the patient's chart. In that record, click Charting and then, in the Notes section, click Add a note.

Use Notes (1) to find the patient's notes for that visit or chart. Click Add a note (2) to start a new one.

1. In the left sidebar, click Visits and open the visit you want to document, or click Patients and open the patient's chart.
2. Click Charting.
3. In the Notes section, click Add a note.
4. In the note panel, choose the template you want to use or copy a past note forward.
5. Wait for the draft to open.

After you click Add a note, the note panel lets you start blank, choose a template, or copy a past note. Use Blank note (1) to start with an empty note, and Template options (2) to pick a template or copy a past note forward. Use the picker to find what you want, then choose the note source that fits the visit.

A draft with empty fields is not broken. Ona can only fill from what is already in the record. A visit with a recording, charted findings, vitals, or diagnoses gives it more to work with than an otherwise empty visit.

How do I review and edit the draft?

On the same page, open the draft note in the Notes section before you sign it.

Use Draft note (1) to review the note itself. Use Regenerate (2) and Polish (3) when you want Ona to rewrite from the record or keep the same meaning in tighter clinical language. Left empty by Ona (4) marks a field Ona could not fill from the record, and Save as draft (5) lets you stop without signing yet.

1. Open the draft note from the Notes section.
2. Read through the note title, text, fields and answer blocks against what happened in the visit.
3. Use Regenerate (2) when you want Ona to rewrite from the record, or Polish (3) when you want the same meaning in tighter clinical language.
4. If a field shows Left empty by Ona (4) and Nothing in the record to fill this with., use Try again to ask again, Write by hand to answer it yourself, or Ask Ona to ask about selected text when the assistant is available.
5. Use Left empty by Ona to open the field's menu. It always offers Try again and Write by hand, whether Ona left a single field or a whole paragraph blank.
6. Use Clear to empty a filled field or block. Answerable blocks can also show Fill with Ona. If you do not need a block in this note, use the delete control on that block to remove it from this note.
7. If Ona shows proposal content inline in the editor, review each waiting suggestion row and keep or discard it before you save or sign.
8. Click Save as draft (5) if you want to stop without signing yet.

While the note is still unsigned, it stays editable and shows as a draft. The editor can also show Drafted by so you can see who prepared the note.

Read every draft before signing. Ona assembles a note from the record, but you are the one attesting that it is accurate.

For more on proposal-style edits and suggestion review, see Reviewing AI revisions and proposals in a note.

How do I sign the note?

On the same page, open the draft note in the Notes section when you are ready to finalize it.

Use Sign (1) to finalize the note. If required fields are still unanswered, Ona shows them in the signing bar, including a Go to the first link and Go to it links on the listed items so you can jump straight to the missing field. The confirmation step changes when fields are missing, so review the list before you continue. If you want to make the note visible to the patient at the same time, open the arrow next to Sign and choose Sign and share (2). After signing, the footer shows Drafted by (3) and Signed by (4).

The Sign (1) button finalizes the note. Sign and share (2) is the option to make it visible to the patient at the same time. The footer shows Drafted by (3) for who prepared the note and Signed by (4) for who finalized it.

1. Open the draft note from the Notes section.
2. Make any last edits, resolve any waiting proposal rows, and finish any pending inline keep or discard choice.
3. If required fields are missing, use Go to the first or Go to it to jump to them.
4. Click Sign (1). If you want to make the note visible to the patient at the same time, open the arrow next to Sign and choose Sign and share (2).

When signing succeeds, the note stays open and shows signature details in its footer, including Drafted by (3) and Signed by (4). An already signed note can also offer Add my signature for another member.

You do not need to click Save as draft before you sign. Sign saves the current title and note content first. If Ona cannot save the current content, the note stays unsigned.

Signing is an attestation. Once signed, the note is part of the legal chart. If you need to change it later, correct it with an amendment instead of editing it casually. See Correcting a signed note.

How do I share with the patient or export a note?

On the same page, open the note in the Notes section when you need to make a signed note visible to the patient or download a PDF copy.

1. Open the note from the Notes section.
2. Click Share.
3. On a signed note, choose Share with patient to make the note visible in the patient portal, or choose Stop sharing with patient to hide it again.
4. Choose Export PDF to download a PDF copy.

A signed note can be shared with the patient. They can read it, and download it as a PDF, in the Clinical notes section of their portal's health records — and, for a note written on a visit, on that visit's page too. They're notified when a note is shared.

A shared note shows Shared with patient. When it is not shared, the note can show Not visible to the patient or Share with patient. The patient always sees the latest signed version: if you amend the note, the amended text replaces the original on their portal, without the reason for the amendment.

For more sharing options, see Exporting and sharing notes.

What can't I do here?

In the Notes section on a visit or patient chart, these limits apply:

• On an archived patient's chart or visit, notes open read-only. You cannot start a new note, edit a note, sign it, share it, or fax it there.
• You cannot share an unsigned note with the patient.
• Signed notes do not offer Delete. To change a signed note, correct it with an amendment instead.
• If Ona cannot save the current note content, the note stays unsigned.

Common questions

What if Ona leaves part of the note blank?

It usually means the record did not give Ona enough to fill that part confidently. Use Try again if you think the detail is in the chart, or use Write by hand if you need to add it yourself. Paragraph blocks can also settle into text, so if Ona leaves a whole paragraph empty, review it the same way. If you have text selected and the assistant is available, you can also choose Ask Ona.

Do I need to save before I sign?

No. Sign saves the current title and note content first. If that save fails, the note stays unsigned. If required fields are still unanswered, Ona shows them in the signing flow before you confirm.

Can another member sign after me?

A signed note can offer Add my signature for another member. For the full workflow, see Co-signing a note.

Can I delete a note instead of amending it?

You can delete an unsigned note. Once a note is signed, treat changes as an amendment instead. See Correcting a signed note.

Why does signing matter for billing?

A signed note isn't just documentation. Your organization's billing rules can require a note before a visit can be billed through the note required per visit rule, which is on by default. So signing the note is often the step that unblocks the invoice and the claim. For the billing side, see Scrubbing claims with billing rules and From visit billing to superbill and claim.