Treatments

Procedure codes are CDA, ADA, or CPT codes used to identify treatment performed.

When adding treatment to a patient’s chart, you must specify information such as a procedure code, the tooth site(s) and surface(s), the treating provider, the status of the procedure, etc.

Treatment that is (or will be) performed at your institution will have one of the following statuses:

• Planned (P): A procedure that is needed but has not yet been performed.
• In Progress (I): A procedure that has begun but has not yet been completed (i.e., is completed over multiple visits).
• Completed (C): A procedure that has been completed by a provider at your institution.

Treatments typically progress in the order of planned (P) > in process (I) > completed (C), however, depending on a provider’s configuration, they may skip one or more of these steps. At any stage, the treatments may be edited or deleted by users that have access to perform that task.

There are two additional statuses used for procedures entered in the EHR module. These procedures are referred to as findings, do not have any associated fees, and do not display in the Transactions module.

• Existing (E): This status is used to indicate work performed at another institution and is added to the patient’s record for informational purposes only. Existing treatment can be charted in one of two ways:
• Enter the procedure code that was likely performed and add to the patient’s record as a finding.
• Enter the procedure code representing the material present in the patient’s mouth as a finding.

Example: A gold crown in the patient’s mouth can be charted using a crown procedure code or a gold material code.

• Condition (A): This status is used to represent current conditions in the patient’s mouth. They can apply to the position or orientation of a tooth (e.g., a tooth can be rotated distally or partially erupted) or can apply to surfaces on the tooth (e.g., caries).