CCR's Advanced Patient Search capability allows a user to perform a patient search using criteria based on fields and attributes that have been configured by the cancer group or for a specific study. Which of these attributes will be available to the user to search on is determined by the values selected when defining the user's session purpose upon starting the application — see Defining the Session Purpose and Restrictions on Searches.

To perform a search based on these study or cancer group-specific attributes, the process is the same as performing any other advanced patient search — see Performing an Advanced Patient Search. The only difference occurs when it comes time to enter the specified criteria, which is done in one or more of the Extended Attributes grids on the Advanced Patient Search window.

To enter a search criterion based on an extended attribute:

1. Find the Extended Attributes grid in the data group that best fits the attribute to be searched on.

For a description of the kinds of fields that belong to each of the data groups that contain Extended Attributes grids — see The Advanced Patient Search Window.

2. Click the + button above that Extended Attributes grid.

The Add Search Attribute window will open displaying a data tree listing all of the customized fields that are available to the user to search on under this data group.

See The Add Search Attribute Window for a description of this window along with instructions on navigating through its fields list data tree.

The fields in the data tree on the Add Search Attribute window will be different for each of the different Extended Attributes grids, so if you do not see the field you are looking for, it might be available in one of the Extended Attributes grids in a different data group. Make sure you are trying to add the search criterion in the correct data group.

3. Select the field that you want to base your search criterion on from the list in the Add Search Attribute window. A Search Value field will appear to the right of the data tree.

If the field you select is a date field, a pair of Search Date fields will appear instead of a single Search Value field allowing you to enter a range of dates as your search criterion.

4. Enter (or select if the field is a drop-down field) the value to be searched for in the Search Value field.

5. Click OK. The new search criterion will be added to the appropriate Extended Attributes grid.

To close the Add Search Attribute window without adding a new search criterion to the grid, click the Cancel button.

Continue to add other search criteria as appropriate. Then, initiate the search by clicking on the Search… button as instructed in Performing an Advanced Patient Search.