Sending interviews to patients

Interviews ask patients questions from your organization’s interview templates. You can add them from a patient’s Interviews tab, or start from the main Interviews page when you want to work from a template first.

How do I start sending from the Interviews page?

In the left sidebar, click Library. Under Library, click Interviews when you know which template you want to use first. Each template card has actions for sending and previewing the interview.

Use Interviews (1) in the left sidebar to open the interview templates page.

Use Send (1) on a template card to send it to a patient, or Try out (2) to preview it.

1. In the left sidebar, click Library. Under Library, click Interviews.
2. Find the interview template you want to send.
3. Select Send, or open the template’s actions menu and select Send to patient.
4. Complete the send dialog.

Ona creates an interview assessment for the patient after the send is submitted.

How do I add interviews from a patient chart?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. Use Add interviews when you are already working in a patient chart and want to assign interviews to that patient.

Use Interviews (1) in the patient chart to open the tab, then Add interviews (2) to assign interviews to that patient.

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews.
2. Select Add interviews.
3. In Add interviews, search for the interviews you want and pick one or more of them.
4. The interviews you choose appear as tags. Use Add another… to add more.
5. Under Capture method, choose the send option.
6. If delivery timing options appear, choose when to send the interview.
7. Select New interview template if you need to create a template first.

If you select more than one interview, Ona sends one email listing every interview and a text for each interview. The patient answers on their own device.

If the patient cannot be notified and the send is not scheduled, Ona shows completion links instead. Copy the links and share them with the patient another way.

How do I have a patient answer an interview in the clinic?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. Use Answer on this device when the patient is present and you want to hand them the device.

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews.
2. Select Add interviews.
3. Pick one interview. In-person capture is single-select.
4. Under Capture method, select Answer on this device.
5. Hand the device to the patient when the interview opens.
6. The patient answers the questions and moves through each section.

The interview opens in a conversation layout with section breaks and a docked Continue or Finish control. After the interview is finished, Ona marks it complete and closes the runner.

Patients can attach JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC and PDF files while answering. Each file can be up to 10 MB, and the composer uses the new attach and send controls.

How do I track interview status in a patient chart?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. The patient’s Interviews tab groups assigned interviews by status.

Use In progress (1) for interviews the patient has started but not finished, and Completed (2) for interviews the patient has finished.

Status	What it means
Scheduled	The interview is set to go out later.
In progress	The interview has been created and the patient has not completed it yet.
Completed	The patient finished the interview.
Cancelled	The interview was scheduled, then cancelled before it was sent.

A row can also show delivery history. A completed interview can show Generating insights… while Ona prepares a summary. If the interview is complete and no summary is available yet, the row can show No summary available for this interview. instead.

How do I resend or copy an interview link?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. Use the row actions for an interview under In progress when the patient needs another link.

Use the Actions menu (1) on an in-progress interview row to choose Copy link or Resend link (2).

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews.
2. Find the interview under In progress.
3. Open the actions menu.
4. Select Copy link to copy a completion link, or select Resend link to send a fresh link to the patient.
5. If you copied the link, share it with the patient another way.

When you resend, Ona sends a fresh link and the old link no longer works. If the row shows a link problem, select Resend link. A link problem can also block Copy link until you resend it.

How do I send or cancel a scheduled interview?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. Use scheduled interview actions when an interview should go out earlier or should not be sent.

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews.
2. Find the interview under Scheduled.
3. Open the actions menu at the end of the row.
4. Select Send now to release it immediately, or select Cancel.
5. If you select Cancel, confirm with Cancel interview.

Send now emails the patient a link to start the interview. Cancel keeps the interview in the list as Cancelled and it will not be sent to the patient.

How do I review interview results?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. Open an interview row in the patient chart to review its detail view when it is available.

Use Summary (1) for the generated result, Conversation (2) for the interview transcript and attachments, and Records (3) for linked chart items. The interview detail view uses the current conversation layout, including the section breaks you see while the patient answers. If the conversation cannot load, Ona shows Couldn't load the conversation.

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews.
2. Select an interview row.
3. Review Summary for the generated result when it is ready.
4. Select Conversation to see the messages and attachments from the interview.
5. Select Records to review linked diagnoses, observations, allergies, medications and supplements.
6. Use the share menu in the interview detail header if it appears.

The Summary tab can include Working Well and Areas of Attention sections. If the interview is complete but the result is still being prepared, Ona shows Generating insights…. If the interview is complete and no summary is available, Ona shows No summary available for this interview.

How do I archive an interview?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. Archive an interview in the patient chart when you want it hidden from the active list.

Use Archive (1) to remove the interview from the active list after you confirm Archive this interview? (2).

1. In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews.
2. Find the interview.
3. Open the actions menu at the end of the row.
4. Select Archive.
5. In Archive this interview?, select Archive.

The interview is hidden from the active list.

What can't I do here?

In the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name. In the patient chart, click Interviews. In patient Interviews, these limits apply:

• The patient chart's Interviews tab is read-only for archived patients.
• On an archived patient, Add interviews is disabled.
• On an archived patient, row actions such as Send now, Cancel, Copy link, Resend link, and Archive are disabled.
• On an archived patient, Answer on this device is blocked.
• Answer on this device works for one interview at a time. Select a single interview to use it.
• Scheduled and cancelled interviews do not open into the conversation or results view.
• If the Conversation tab cannot load, Ona shows Couldn't load the conversation.
• A completed interview cannot be resent from the row actions.
• A link problem can block Copy link until you resend the interview.
• If an attachment upload fails during in-person completion, remove the failed file before trying again.
• Unsupported attachment types are skipped. Files over 10 MB are skipped.

Common questions

Can I send more than one interview at once?

Yes. Open the patient chart (in the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name) and click Interviews. Add interviews lets you search and select more than one interview for the send option. Ona sends one email listing every interview and a text for each interview. Answer on this device stays limited to one interview.

What happens if the patient cannot be notified?

When the patient is not reachable and the send is not scheduled, Ona shows completion links after adding the interviews. Copy those links and share them with the patient another way.

What happens when I resend a link?

Ona sends a fresh link to the patient. The old link no longer works. If a link problem is blocking Copy link, resending usually clears it.

Does the patient have to confirm who they are?

Yes, when they have a date of birth on file. The link asks for it before showing the interview, and then it doesn't expire. After five wrong dates it locks, and the row shows Link locked until you resend it. Without a date of birth on file, the link opens straight away and expires 14 days after it was sent.

Why does a completed interview say Generating insights…?

The patient has finished the interview, and Ona is preparing a summary. Open it once the summary appears, or if the row shows No summary available for this interview.

Where do interview records appear?

Open the patient chart (in the left sidebar, click Patients, then click the patient's name), click Interviews, open the interview, and select Records. Diagnoses, observations, allergies, medications and supplements linked to that interview appear there when available, and source history sections appear below the records list.

For building or changing the interview templates themselves, see Building interviews.