Add files like lab reports, imaging, prior summaries, and clinical letters to a patient's encounter, and all the context you build around a visit sits in one place alongside the patient's health record and completed forms. The Assistant answers questions across whatever you've added, and the documentation you generate draws on all available information.
What an Encounter Holds
Open an encounter and you'll find these sections:
| Section | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Details | The encounter's date, type, status, and custom fields |
| Attachments | Files you've added to this encounter |
| Documentation | Clinical documents you've generated from the encounter |
| Forms | Forms assigned to the patient, their submissions, and the summary generated from each |
| Activity Log | A history of what happened on this encounter |
Adding Files to an Encounter
Add lab reports, imaging results, prior summaries, clinical letters, or any other file relevant to the visit.
- Open the encounter and go to Attachments
- Click Upload files, or drag files onto the encounter
- Select the files you want to add
Each file appears in the list with its filename, source, size, and when it was uploaded. Click a filename to open the original document.
What Happens to a File You Add
A file becomes part of the encounter as soon as you add it. Thrive processes it in the background so its contents are available to the Assistant and to document generation, and the Status column tracks that progress.
Some of what a document contains can also be added to the patient's health record as structured records, such as medications, conditions, and results. Records added this way are marked as AI-extracted and keep a link back to the document they came from, so anyone reviewing the record later can open the source and check the original wording.
For what your team can contribute to a patient's record and what stays read-only, see Viewing Patient Health Records.
Managing Files on an Encounter
The actions menu on each file's row lets you download a copy or remove the file from the encounter.
Importing Many Patients at Once
When you have a stack of documents covering different patients, import them together rather than creating each encounter by hand. See Managing Patients & Encounters for the import workflow and how patients are matched.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| The Assistant doesn't seem to know about a file you added | Check the Status column in Attachments. A file still processing isn't available yet |
| A file's status shows N/A | That file type can't be read. Try a PDF or an image of the document instead |
| A file won't upload | Check the file size and format. If it keeps failing, contact Thrive support |
Related Features
- Using the Encounter Assistant covers asking questions across everything in the encounter
- Generating Clinical Documents covers turning that context into notes and letters
- Managing Patients & Encounters covers creating encounters, bulk import, and archiving