Diagnosing a New Condition

Last updated: November 4, 2025

Accurately documenting new diagnoses is essential for maintaining comprehensive patient records and ensuring proper clinical care. This article explains how to use the Diagnose command in Canvas Medical to record new conditions, prevent duplicate entries, and create structured clinical documentation.

User's Guide

Adding a New Diagnosis

The Diagnose command creates a clear and structured entry for new patient conditions in the chart.

To add a diagnosis:

  1. Open the patient's chart

  2. Add the Diagnose command to a new or existing note

  3. Complete the command fields. The only required field is the diagnosis.

    • Diagnose: Search for the condition using free text or ICD-10 code

    • Background: Provide detailed history of the condition

    • Approximate Date of Onset: Indicate when the condition began (e.g., "yesterday," "last week," "3 years ago," "2015")

    • Today's Assessment: Summarize clinical reasoning by integrating subjective and objective data from the examination

  4. Click Record to save the diagnosis. The condition will immediately appear in the patient summary as an active entry.

Preventing Duplicate Diagnoses

If the patient has already been diagnosed with a condition in Canvas, the system displays: "This patient has already been diagnosed with this condition" to prevent duplication.

Best Practice: Use the Assess Condition command to update existing diagnoses rather than creating duplicates.

Configuration & Set Up

No special configuration is required. The Diagnose command is available by default in all patient charts.

FAQ & Troubleshooting

Q: How can I add a diagnosis/ICD-10 code that's not in the system?

A: Diagnosis codes cannot be added manually. Canvas updates ICD-10 codes in accordance with CMS on April 1 and October 1 every year.

Q: What if I enter the wrong diagnosis?

A: Use the Change Diagnosis command to update the condition while preserving historical data. If historical data is not needed, enter the diagnose command in error and enter new.

Related Resources

Keywords: diagnose command, new diagnosis, ICD-10, clinical documentation, patient conditions, duplicate diagnosis, active conditions

Categories: Clinical Documentation, Condition Management