Best practices for building a template

If you've already created a draft of a template using our starter guide, Intro to creating a custom template, use this guide to help refine your template so it consistently creates your ideal documentation.

Choosing a template style

Depending on your clinical needs, you can refine your template with some goals in mind: documentation and notes or letters.

1. Notes (section-based)

Use this for standard notes like SOAP or SBAR. You provide the headings, and Tali sorts the medical information into the correct buckets.

• How to write it: Use clear headings. Under each heading, use parentheses ( ) to tell Tali exactly what to include.

Example:

Situation: (Briefly describe the reason for the appointment in point form.)

Assessment: (State the working diagnosis and include a subsection for differential diagnosis.)

2. Letters (text-based)

Use this for "pre-written" blocks of text, like referral letters, where you want Tali to fill in the blanks within a static sentence.

• How to write it: Write the note exactly as you want it to read. Use parentheses ( ) to mark the variable information (names, symptoms, findings) that Tali needs to swap in.

Example:

Thank you for referring (Patient Name) presenting with (primary concern).

Assessment: (Insert diagnosis or findings.)

Plan: (Insert treatment plan.)

Best practices for structure

Tali uses your formatting to understand how to build the note. A clean structure helps the AI avoid merging sections or missing details.

Use parentheses for instructions

This is the most important rule for custom templates.

• Inside ( ): Tali reads this as a command. It will follow the instruction and replace the text.

• Outside ( ): Tali treats this as static text. It will appear in your final note exactly as written.

Be specific with your heading's purpose

Generic instructions lead to generic notes. Give Tali constraints to get the output you want.

• Don't write: (History)

• Do write: (Summarize the history of present illness in a single paragraph, focusing on symptom onset)

Standardize your headings

Use bolding or line breaks to clearly show Tali where a section begins and ends. If the template looks cluttered to you, Tali may also struggle to distinguish the sections.

Example of a well-structured section

Here is an example of how to combine these rules for a "History of Present Illness" section. Notice the clear heading and the specific instruction inside the parentheses.

History of Present Illness (Summarize the patient's chief complaint in a narrative paragraph. Include onset, duration, and severity of symptoms. If the patient mentions pain, include the location and quality.)

Adding voice macros

You can teach Tali to insert specific, complex medical phrasing based on a simple voice command. This is useful for inserting standard physical exams or negatives without reciting the entire list.

To create a macro: In your template instructions, tell Tali what phrase to listen for (the trigger) and what text to replace it with (the output).

Example Instruction:

(If transcript says "lungs clear", replace with: "Lungs clear to auscultation bilaterally. No wheezes, rales, or rhonchi noted. Normal respiratory effort.")