Key Concepts

This page explains the terms you'll see throughout Hospital OS. Every definition is written in plain language — no technical jargon.

Places & Structure

Term	What It Means
Centre	A physical hospital location or branch. If you have two branches, you have two centres.
Department	A division within a centre, like Cardiology, Orthopedics, or Laboratory.
Resource	A physical item that can be booked or tracked — rooms, equipment, beds.
Service Counter	A physical service point (like a lab window or pharmacy counter) where walk-in patients are served.

Term	What It Means
Staff Profile	Any person who works at your hospital — doctors, nurses, receptionists, lab technicians.
Staff Type	The role category for a staff member (you define these — receptionist, nurse, lab tech, etc.).
Patient	A person who receives medical services. Each patient gets a unique ID (UHID).
UHID	Unique Hospital Identification number. Every patient gets one automatically when they first register.

Term	What It Means
Service	Something your hospital offers — General Consultation, Blood Test, X-Ray, Physiotherapy.
Service Category	A grouping for services — Consultations, Lab Tests, Imaging, Therapies.
SKU	A specific price entry for a service. It defines the base price, tax, and appointment duration. You can have different SKUs for the same service at different centres.
Package	A bundle of services sold together at a set price — like '5 physiotherapy sessions for a fixed amount'. Packages have a validity period and a maximum number of uses.

Term	What It Means
Slot	An available time block when a doctor can see patients. The system generates these based on the doctor's schedule and settings.
Appointment	A confirmed booking for a patient to see a doctor at a specific time.
Draft	A temporary hold on a slot while the patient completes payment. If payment isn't completed in time, the draft expires and the slot becomes available again.
Visit	Created when a patient actually checks in for their appointment. It's the record of the patient being physically present.
Journey	A patient's ongoing treatment plan that may span multiple visits over time.

Term	What It Means
Walk-in	A patient who arrives without a prior appointment.
Token	A queue number given to walk-in patients. Tokens move through states: waiting, called, being served, and done.
Walk-in Reservation	A percentage of a doctor's slots set aside specifically for walk-in patients.

Term	What It Means
Bill	The invoice generated when a service is provided. It lists what was done, how much it costs, and the payment status.
Deposit	An advance payment made by a patient that can be applied to future bills.
Refund	Money returned to a patient, typically when an appointment is cancelled after payment.

Term	What It Means
Tenant	Your hospital organization in the system. All your centres, staff, and settings belong to your tenant.
Config Hierarchy	Settings can be applied at four levels: hospital-wide, per centre, per department, or per doctor. The most specific level wins.
Slot Duration	How long each appointment lasts (e.g., 15 minutes, 30 minutes).
Buffer Time	A gap between consecutive appointments to give the doctor preparation time.
Booking Limit	Maximum number of appointments a doctor can have per day.

Quick Reference

Bookmark this page! You can come back here anytime you encounter an unfamiliar term in the documentation.

Now that you know the terminology, follow the Quick Start Guide to set up your hospital step by step.

glossaryconceptsterminology