LabKey Server allows you to associate text-based comments with vials, specimens, participants, and participant/visit pairs using a designated column for comments in relevant views and grids. The column name need not be "Comments", but that example is shown here. Comment columns can also be joined into other datasets by customizing the grid view.
Typically, per-participant and per-participant-visit comments are added by editing the comment column in the appropriate dataset directly. The dataset must be editable and you must have edit-level permissions to add comments after import of the dataset. When available, hovering over a row reveals a (pencil) icon at the beginning of the row; click to edit.
The specimen vial and vial group grids contain shortcut routes to the datasets that contain per-participant and per-participant-visit comments. Once the Enable Comments and QC button has been clicked above a specimen/vial grid, admins see two additional items under the Comments and QC drop-down menu. These "Manage" items link to the datasets associated with participant-level and participant-visit-level comments, allowing quick access for editing:
You can view the comment in any specimen or vial view that includes specimens or vials associated with the participant of interest. The comment appears in the "Comment" column with the prefix "Participant," indicating that the comment is a study-wide, per-participant comment.
Comments are added to individual specimens and vials through links available above specimen and vial grid views.
Once added, vial comments appear in the "Comments" column in a comma separated list with any per-participant and per-participant-visit comments described above. All types of comments are preceded with a tag (e.g. "Vial" or "Participant"). Here is a screen shot of comments for two vials that have been assigned both a vial-level and study-wide, participant-level comments.
If you choose "Set Vial Comment or QC State for Selected" again for a single vial that already has vial-level comments, you can edit the comment originally provided.
If you select a number of vials, some of which already have vial-level comments, you will have additional options in the Set vial comments UI. Use the radio buttons to determine what action to perform on vials with existing comments:
To move individual comments:
Since comments can be associated with vials, specimens, participants, or participant/visit pairs, you will need to consider where it makes the most sense to store different categories of comments.
When deciding where to store a comment, consider whether you would like new vials or specimens to contain the comment. If you assign the comment at the vial level, the comment will remain with the individual vial, but will not be added to new vials that come into the system.
To ensure that the comment is added to new vials that come into the system for a particular participant, make sure that the comment is assigned at the participant level. This makes it easy to track persistent participant-specific issues, allergies for example, across all vials without copying and pasting.
All changes to comments are logged in the site audit log. If you are an admin, you can review the log:
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