Submitting data to the Register involves:
Four types of data may be submitted to the Register:
Before any other information can be submitted to the Register, an entry for that person must be first created. This contains the information on the Personal Details and Consent Form which must be completed and signed before anybody's details can be entered onto the Register.
From the main menu, select Register a New Person. This will display the data entry form. Each of the fields are described in order below.
When all the data has been entered, click on the Submit button.
Any errors or warnings will be identified after you click on the submit button, and you will be given an opportunity to go back and correct them.
Possible errors include missing data, invalid dates, or incorrect suburb / state / postcode combinations. Warnings highlight unusual entries which may be due to typographical errors, but nevertheless could be correct. You can choose to ignore Warnings if the data is correct, but you must go back to fix any errors.
Once everything is correct, you can click the Save Details button. A message appears to indicate that the data has been saved. The Q Fever Register Number automatically assigned to that person is also reported.
IMPORTANT Make sure you write the Q Fever Register Number in the space provided on the top of the Personal Details and Consent form before sending it to the Register office. This enables Register staff to cross-check the information against that submitted on the Web.
You are then given the option of adding test results, vaccination or disease information, as described in the following sections. Note that it is possible to enter a person's details without entering any test results or vaccination details. You can come back later and put the other information in.
The Register identifies a person using four pieces of information:
Whenever you want to add data about a person, or query the register about that person's Q fever status, you will need these four pieces of information. If the person doesn't know if they are already on the Register, or if they have forgotten their Register Number (and don't have the Q Fever Register Card with them), ask them to call the Register Help-Line to check.
You can submit test results immediately after a person's details have been entered, by clicking the Add Test Result Data button. Alternatively, you can add new screening results at a later date, by choosing the Submit Data button from the main menu. In this case, you will first have to enter the four pieces of information to identify that person.
If test results for the person have already been entered into the Register, you will be shown a warning, listing the dates of the test results. If the data has already been entered, you can press No to quit entering the screening test data. However, if the person has, in fact, been tested again, press Yes to continue entering data.
Screening tests always consist of both a blood test and a skin test, and both results are required before you enter the data. The information about each test consists of the date that test was performed (in numbers, with four digits for the year, eg 12/4/1999), and the test result (either Positive or Negative).
Once entered, click the Submit button to submit the data. You will be informed of any errors such as invalid dates, or, if the data is correct, it will be accepted. The next screen tells you the file reference numbers for the two test results.
IMPORTANT Please write these reference numbers on the original test result documentation before sending it to the Register. This will help Register staff check the data.
You can now return to the main menu, or go on to enter Vaccination data.
You can submit vaccination results immediately after a person's personal details or test results have been entered, by clicking the Add Vaccination Data button. Alternatively, you can add new vaccination data at a later date, by choosing the Submit Data button from the main menu. In this case, you will first have to enter the four pieces of information to identify that person.
If vaccination data has already been entered into the Register, you will be shown a warning, with the date of the vaccination. People should not be vaccinated twice, so this usually indicates that the data has already been entered into the Register. If the date of the vaccination is different, and you can confirm that the person has really been vaccinated twice, you can continue to enter the data.
The information required about vaccination is the date of vaccination and the batch number. The batch number should be entered exactly as it appears on the vaccine bottle. Click the Submit button to submit the data. You will be shown a file reference for the vaccination.
IMPORTANT Please write this reference number on the original vaccination documentation before sending it to the Register. This will help Register staff check the data.
You can submit disease diagnosis information immediately after a person's details have been entered, by clicking the Add Disease Data button. Alternatively, you can add new disease data at a later date, by choosing the Submit Data button from the main menu. In this case, you will first have to enter the four pieces of information to identify that person.
When a person has Q Fever, data may only be entered into the Register when the diagnosis has been confirmed by laboratory testing. Diagnoses made solely on the basis of clinical signs and history are not adequate proof that the person has had Q Fever.
If previous test results (often as a result of participation in a screening program) already exist in the register, you will be warned, and shown the dates of the tests. If you are sure that the test confirming the diagnosis has not be previously entered, click Yes to continue entering the information.
The data required is the date on with the diagnosis was confirmed and the type of test used to confirm the diagnosis (skin or blood). Click Submit when the details have been entered. You will be shown a file reference for the test result.
IMPORTANT Please write this reference number on the original test result documentation before sending it to the Register. This will help Register staff check the data.
Sometimes a site may have a lot of data to submit to the Register. If you use a dial-up connection, typing this data on-line may be slow and expensive. The Register has another way to submit data - batch submission. This means that all the data is typed into a spreadsheet on your local computer (which means you don't have to be connected to the Internet while you are typing the data). When you have finished, you can submit the data simply by copying it from the spreadsheet and pasting it onto the web site. The only requirement is that the format of your spreadsheet data must comply with a standard format. If you want to use batch data submission, follow these steps.
A report showing file reference numbers, errors, and a data summary will be provided. You can download this report in MS Excel format by clicking the Download button.
IMPORTANT Once you have successfully submitted the data to the Register, you must delete the data from the spreadsheet. Under the privacy rules governing the operation of the Register, you are not permitted to keep electronic copies of the Personal Details data, nor individuals' Q Fever Register Numbers.