The CSV import tool allows you to quickly build patient profiles based on data you can extract from your dispensing system or other patient management softwares.

Step-by-step instructions

Export a CSV file from the source you wish to import
Log into DocSation and navigate to your patient list
Click the gray “CSV upload” button on the top right of your screen
Click “Import CSV File”
Click “browse for a file” and select the file you exported in step 1 or drag the exported file into the blue box
If your exported CSV file came from a dispensing system, let us know which in the dropdown. If not, skip this part.
Click “Continue”
Select which columns from your exported file you would like to import
Match the appropriate field in DocStation to the appropriate column in your exported file. We do our best to automatically match, but make sure to double check our work.
Click “Looks good!” when you have matched all the columns you would like to import

The import process can take awhile depending on the size of the file and concurrent processing, so allow for 24 hours before expecting to see the updates on DocStation. You will receive a confirmation email.

If there are any errors identified in the file, you will receive an email with a link back to your Patient List to review the errors. You can then correct the errors in the file and attempt the upload again.

Requirements for all import files

The import file must be a .csv file
The import file should contain fewer than 250,000 rows and be smaller than 150MB.
A header row is required for your file. During the import process, DocStation will attempt to match column headers to their corresponding DocStation property. Otherwise, you can manually map your column headers to their property value.

Required content

Certain values are required to create a DocStation resource.

Patient: Name, date of birth, gender
Patient Medication: NDC

Required formats

We do our best to figure how your data is formatted, but some properties require a specific format in order to be imported.

Dates: 'YYYY-MM-DD', 'MM-DD-YYYY', 'MM/DD/YYYY', 'M/DD/YYYY'
NDCs: 11-digits with no dashes, 11-digits with dashes in the "5-4-2" format, 10-digit with dashes in the "4-4-2" format, 10-digit with dashes in the "5-3-2" format, 10-digit with dashes in the "5-4-1" format
- Note: NDCs are validated based on the RxNorm library, maintained by the National Library of Medicine. DME and OTC items are typically not included in the RxNorm library and thus cannot be imported into DocStation.
Addresses: must be sectioned into separate cells containing:
- Street address
- City
- State
- Zip code

Sample files

You can test the process using the file below in your DocStation account by importing them, then deleting the newly created test patients.

[test file]

Considerations and answers to FAQs

Existing DocStation patients

If you import a file with information for existing patients, any existing information will be overwritten by new values you've imported. DocStation checks for an existing patient using any of the following:

Patient Identifiers: your dispensing system patient ID, coverage ID, etc.
Patient: Name + DOB + Gender

Note: When a patient profile is duplicated, it is often due to a mismatch in cases across files, e.g. when one file has standard cases and a subsequent file is in all caps. Ensure your files are consistent to prevent duplicate profiles.

Medications and fills

If the import file has more than one line of the same medication, DocStation will import the information in the order it appears in the document. This means if a medication for a patient appears multiple times, the information nearest the bottom of the file will be the information that shows in the patient profile.

DocStation also combines medication data such that separate fills and separate strengths are combined as a single record on the patient profile.

Unmatched columns in the import file

DocStation will discard any unmatched columns. This means that data in an unmatched column will not show in the patient profile.

Have more questions? Reach out to the DocStation team via Chat or at support@docstation.co!