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In this guide, you will build a Recipe for: Active male patients aged 50 or older. It is a simple example, but it introduces the main pattern you will use again and again: choose a field, choose how to compare it, then choose the value.
The screenshots in this guide are cropped to the Recipe area of the dashboard. They show the exact choices to make, without showing patient details.

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Before you start

Open Recipes from the sidebar, then select New Recipe. PracticeMate first asks: What kind of Recipe would you like to create? You can describe the Recipe in plain English, or select Open the full editor instead. This guide uses the full editor so you can see exactly how the Recipe is built. The new Recipe screen asking what kind of Recipe to create, with an option to open the full editor.
New Recipes include Status is Active and Extraction Opt-Out is False by default. Keep both filters for this example.
After opening the full editor, you should see the two default patient filters: The Recipe Builder showing the default patient filters: Status is Active and Extraction Opt-Out is False.

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Add the age filter

1

Select Add Filter

In the Patients section, select Add Filter. A new blank filter row appears under the default filters.
2

Choose the field

In the first box, type age, then select Age (Years).The field chooser filtered to age fields, with Age (Years) selected.
3

Choose the operator

In the second box, choose is greater than or equal to.The operator chooser showing is greater than or equal to.
4

Enter the value

In the value box, enter 50.The Recipe Builder showing Age (Years) is greater than or equal to 50.
This means PracticeMate will include patients who are 50 or older.

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Add the sex filter

1

Add another filter

Select Add Filter again, under the age filter.
2

Choose the field

Select Sex.
3

Choose the operator

Choose is.
4

Choose the value

Select Male.The value chooser showing Male as the selected Sex value.
Your Recipe now reads as a set of patient filters: The Recipe Builder showing active patients who have not opted out, are aged 50 or older, and have Sex set to Male.

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Why the AND connectors matter

The filters are joined with AND, which means a patient must match every line:
  • active
  • not opted out of extraction
  • age 50 or older
  • male
If you changed one of these connectors to OR, the Recipe would become much broader. For this Recipe, leave the connectors as AND. Read the Recipe back before testing:
Find active patients who have not opted out of extraction, are aged 50 or older, and have Sex set to Male.

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Test the Recipe

Select Test in the top right of the builder. PracticeMate will check the Recipe and show how many patients match. If the number looks unexpected, review the filters before saving.
Testing is a quick safety check. It does not change patient records, and it does not save the Recipe.

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Save the Recipe

When the test result looks sensible:
1

Name the Recipe

Select the title at the top of the page and enter Active male patients aged 50+.
2

Save

Select Save.
You have built your first PracticeMate Recipe.
Saving also creates the first version of the Recipe. If you edit and save the Recipe again later, PracticeMate adds another version to its Version history. You can open Version history from the … menu on the Recipes page. It lets you look back at earlier saved versions and restore one if your team needs to return to it.

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What you learned

You used:
  • the default active-patient filters
  • a number field, Age (Years)
  • a list field, Sex
  • the is greater than or equal to operator
  • the is operator
  • AND connectors
  • Test and Save
  • Version history as a way to return to earlier saved work
Next, you will add an ingredient to find patients with three or more visits in the last two years.