Data Entry Fields

NCAtrak On-line Help

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Description

To Edit Data Entry Fields

To Restore the Default Name to a field

To Remove a Data Field

To Restore a Data Field

To Create a Custom Field

To Modify a Custom Field

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Description

The Data Entry Fields page provides the CAC with a way to modify and create data fields used to collect case information within the case record.

Glossary for the Data Entry Fields Page

Case Record Tabs Pull Down List - These are the names of tabs that make up the case record in NCAtrak.

Action Column - This column contains all the links you need to save, edit, or cancel data entry in each row of the table.

Field Description Column - This is a brief description of what the field is designed to collect.

Data Entry Fields - A data entry field is the place on the screen where specific information is to be entered or selected from a pick list.

Default Data Field Names Column - The name that will display on the case tab unless you modify it. (Please Note: Names of table column headings are not editable because changing the name/purpose of the data field could negatively impact the functionality of your reports and other automatically tabulated displays.)

Remove Column - Indicates if a data field has been removed from the case tab.

Field Name for My CAC Column - This lists the names that you have given to data fields to replace the default name.

Type –A custom field can be a pick list, a text field, a long text field, a date, or check boxes.

Custom Fields - Custom fields are provided for you to collect whatever information you desire. All custom fields will hold up to 200 characters.

Default Label Hyperlink - When clicked, this hyperlink will restore the original Default Field Name for the field you are editing.

To Edit Data Entry Fields

  1. Select the Case Record Tab you want to modify from the pull down list.
  2. Click ‘Edit’ beside the field name you want to edit. (The Data Fields are listed on the screen in the order that they appear on the case tab)
  3. Review the Data Field Description for this field. Be sure that the new name you enter is appropriate for this data field. An example of an appropriate Data Field Name change would be (changing CPS Case Number to DCS Case Number).
  4. Enter the name you want to use in the ‘Field Name for my CAC’ column.
  5. Click ‘Save’ to save your change.

To Restore the Default Name to a field

  1. Select the Case Record Tab you want to modify from the pull down list.
  2. Click ‘Edit’ beside the field name you want to edit. (The Data Fields are listed on the screen in the order that they appear on the case tab)
  3. In the ‘Action’ Column, Click ‘Default Label’
  4. Click ‘Save’ to save your change.
  5. Alternatively, click ‘Cancel’ to cancel the change.

To Remove a Data Field

  1. Select the Case Record Tab you want to modify from the pull down list.
  2. Click ‘Edit’ beside the field name you want to edit. (The Data Fields are listed on the screen in the order that they appear on the case tab)
  3. In the ‘Remove’ Column, click the check box.
  4. Click ‘Save’ to save your change.
  5. Alternatively, click ‘Cancel’ to cancel the change.

To Restore a Data Field

  1. Select the Case Record Tab you want to modify from the pull down list.
  2. Click ‘Edit’ beside the field name you want to edit. (The Data Fields are listed on the screen in the order that they appear on the case tab)
  3. In the ‘Remove’ Column, uncheck the check box.
  4. Click ‘Save’ to save your change.
  5. Alternatively, click ‘Cancel’ to cancel the change.

To Create a Custom Field

  1. Select the Case Record Tab you want to modify from the pull down list.

Where will it show up on the Case Tab?

The Data Fields are listed on the Data Fields table in the order that they appear on the case tab. It is not possible at this time to provide you with the ability to customize where the custom fields display within the tab. Typically you will find them in the investigation or service section of the tab, and in the outcomes section of the tab.

  1. Click ‘Edit’ beside the field name you want to edit.
  2. Select the Type of Custom Field you want this to be.
  • Pick List, (you will be able to create the list on the pick list page),
  • Check box (again, the list to choose from can be created from the pick list page),
  • Text field (50 characters)
  • Long Text field (unlimited text)
  • Date (formatted to use a data as the data in the field)
  1. Enter data field name you want in the ‘Field Name for my CAC’ column.
  2. Uncheck the ‘Remove’ checkbox to make the field display on the case tab.
  3. Click ‘Save’ to save the change.

To Modify a Custom Field

If you already have been using a field as one type of custom field (for example, as a pick list) and you want to change it to another (to a text field for example), there are some limitations and rules to follow. This is so that your data will not be corrupted when you make the change. Additional information about these types of modifications is provided below. If you need help understanding your options feel free to contact the NCAtrak Help Desk.

  1. Select the Case Record Tab you want to modify from the pull down list.
  2. Click ‘Edit’ beside the field name you want to edit.
  3. Make changes.
  4. Click ‘Save.’
  5. Remember changes to the items displayed in a custom pick list or checkbox list can be made from the Pick List page if desired. (See Pick List page for more help.)

Additional information about changing from one type of custom field to another – NCAtrak will allow you to change from one to another type of field only if you have not entered any data in this data field on your cases. If your team has already entered data into the custom data field on any case record you will see a message telling you to look at this Help File and to contact NCAtrak for further assistance. The steps below will help you prepare for the conversation with the NCAtrak Help Desk.

Step 1 - Find the data already entered:

  1. Go to Reports in the home page main menu bar, and select the Custom Page.
  2. Find the Custom Field Report in the Reports List and click ‘Run’.
  3. If you do not see the report in the reports list, click ‘Show NCAtrak Report Templates,’ find the report and click ‘Copy’. That will place the report in your list of Reports.
  4. The Custom Field Report will show you anything that has been entered into any custom field in your database. Locate the custom field that you are trying to modify.

Step 2 – Determine what you want to do about existing data:

  1. When you just want the data removed. Sometimes the solution is to clean up that data because you really don’t want it.
  1. To clean up the data, go to the case records for each one that has data
  2. Delete the data.
  3. If it is a large amount, contact the Help Desk for assistance.
  1. When you want the data saved but in a different type of custom field check with the Help Desk to see if what you want to do is possible.
  1. Review the entries. Everything in the column will be changed into the new format. Do you see miss-spelled words, different entries that really mean the same thing but are slightly different? Notice the case record number of any that need to be cleaned up. Go to those cases and clean up the data.
  2. Once you have your data ready to convert, contact the NCAtrak Help Desk and request assistance. You may telephone or email. Be ready to identify which custom field you want to change.

News

NCAtrak On-line help

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Description

Types of news and where each type displays

Add a News Story

Edit or Delete a News Story

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Description

The news page under Administration provides a tool for you to use to create news stories to post for your local users.

Types of news and where each type displays

There are two different locations where news and messages are displayed in NCAtrak and four different types of news or messages. News display in both locations; messages display only in the pop-up message window.

Pop-up message window – Displays the first time users log into NCAtrak each day.

  • Local CAC news – This is news created by and for the local CAC and multi-disciplinary team.
  • National news – This is news created by NCA and posted for all users of NCAtrak.
  • Personal messages – These are messages that are relevant to the individual user who is logged into NCAtrak. This type of message may say your password is going to expire or the NCAtrak certificate on the computer is expiring.
  • National messages – These are messages that are relevant to all NCAtrak users and are posted by NCA’s technical partner. These messages often indicate that the system will be down for maintenance or enhancements.

Help & Support – There is a news section under Help & Support on the menu. News stories posted here are VIEW ONLY.

  • Local CAC news – This is news created by and for the local CAC and multi-disciplinary team.
  • National news – This is news created by NCA and posted for all users of NCAtrak.

Add a News Story

  1. From the News page under Administration, select the ‘Date Issued’ to indicate when you want the story to display on the home page.
  2. Select the ‘Date to Remove’ (optional) to indicate when you want to story to be automatically removed from the home page. (To display the calendar, click the down arrow on the pick list.)
  3. Enter the news story in the ‘Story’ text field.
  4. The tool bar in the text field contains formatting options that you can use to modify the text.
  5. Click ‘Save’.

Edit or Delete a News Story

  1. From the News page under Administration, click ‘Edit’ in the table row containing the story you wish to edit.
  2. Make the changes by typing over the data already entered, or by selecting a different date issued or date remove.
  3. Click ‘Save’ to save the changes.
  4. Alternatively click ‘Cancel’ to cancel any changes.
  5. Click ‘Delete’ to remove an existing news story. You will be presented with a dialog box to confirm the deletion. Click ‘Cancel’ to cancel the deletion. Click ‘OK’ to confirm the deletion.

Reports Setup

NCAtrak On-line help

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Description of the Setup Feature

Set Default Report Format for Management, Schedule, and Case Reports

Create a Custom Footer for NCAtrak Reports

Setup an Age Group for use in Custom Report and Queries

Deleting / Editing the Age group table

Use the Age Group in a Custom Report

Help with NCAtrak Menu, Header, & Footer

Description of the Setup Feature

The Setup page in the Reports section of NCAtrak provides designated team members with the ability to setup some features for all reports in the system.

Set Default Report Format for Management, Schedule, and Case Reports

This default setting for how you want the reports to display is effective for all types of NCAtrak reports except Custom Reports. All Custom Reports are displayed in “HTML” format so you can more easily move that information into Excel, Power Point, or Word as desired.

  1. Select the type of report format you want as the default report format. (Remember that you can select any report format at any time from the report screens. This is just the report format that you want to use as the primary format).

Options:

  • PDF – non-editable, finished report format
  • Word – open in Word format, or save to your computer as a Word document so you can edit. A pop-up window will display from your computer asking you if you want to open the file or save the file. You can select either. To save the file, click ‘Save’ and you will then have the chance to identify where you want to save it and what you want to name it.
  • Explorer – a format that you can view without page breaks like any other web page.
  • Click the ‘Save’ button.
  • Log out and log back in. This setting will not change until you log-out of NCAtrak and log back in the next time.

Create a Custom Footer for NCAtrak Reports

  1. In the ‘Report Footer’ box, enter the text you want to be displayed at the bottom of all reports that you create in NCAtrak. For example, “This report is private and confidential.” The space will hold up to 250 characters and up to 2 separate lines.
  2. Click the ‘Save’ button.
  3. Log out and log back in. This setting will not change until you log-out of NCAtrak and log back in the next time.

Setup an Age Group for use in Custom Report and Queries

CACs are often asked to report on the age of children served by grouping the ages. Below are two examples – both reports needing different groups.

VOCA / United Way
0 to 6 / 0 to 2
7 to 12 / 3 to 5
13 to 18 / 6 to 11
18 to 100

Instead of counting by hand, use the Age Group table to create the group for each report.

  1. Type the name of the age group that you want to create in the row with the ‘Add’ link in the action column.
  2. Click ‘Add’ in the action column. The page will change to show you the ‘Age Group Details’ page.
  3. The Age Group Details table has three columns shown in the table below. The Lower Limit defaults to ‘0’. In the Upper Limit Column, the table displays 1 year older as the default.

Action / Lower Limit / Upper Limit
Add / 0 / __1__
  1. Type the upper age limit you want for the first grouping, (in the example below we typed ‘4’).
  2. Click ‘Add’ in the Action Column. The table will display another row for your next age group. The Lower Limit in the new row defaults to one year older than the upper limit of the age in the previous row; and the Upper Limit also displays 1 year older than the new Lower Limit.

Action / Lower Limit / Upper Limit
Delete / 0 / __4___
Add / 5 / ___6__
  1. Repeat the process by entering the desired upper limit, (type over the number)
  2. Click ‘Add’ in the Action Column. The table will display another row for your next age group.
  3. Continue until you have added all of the age grouping you need.

Deleting / Editing the Age group table

The table will try to fill-in the missing ages for you when you attempt to delete or edit a previous row. If you need to re-set the age groups, it is best to start over at the top of the list and work down. It only takes a few seconds to get it the way you need it. When you have finished setting up the different age groupings, Click ‘Save’.

Use the Age Group in a Custom Report

Age groups are available for use in summary queries when you select either the ‘Alleged Victim/Client Information’ or ‘Alleged Offender Information’ Data Field Category.

The actual data field will display like this example: Alleged Victim/Client Information – ______.

The words in the blank space will be the title or name given when the age group was created. If you created the ‘United Way Age Group’ it would look like the sample below:

Sample - Alleged Victim/Client Information – United Way Age Group.