Learn the different types of merges and transfers that you can do within Instinct EMR and when to use them!
Table of Contents
Merge Patients
You will use the Merge Patients feature when a duplicate patient account has accidentally been created and you need to merge the patient into one client Account.

- Navigate to Business Office > Patient Registration
- At the top of the page, you’ll see a Merge Patients button. Once clicked, you’ll be able to select both patient accounts and then merge them together
- Click Merge Patients and you’re all set!

If needed, once the patients are merged you can reopen the visit to continue using the treatment sheet and invoice.
💡 A patient merge is permanent and cannot be reversed. Always confirm that the merge is occurring in the correct sequence. Patient A will no longer exist in Instinct and all patient data (except for invoices or payments) will now be under Patient B.
Transfer Patient
You will use the Transfer Patient feature to move a patient to another client account in Instinct if a patient changes ownership or is surrendered during a visit.

- Navigate to Business Office > Accounts
- In the top right search bar, search and select the Account you’d like to transfer a patient to
- Once opened, this screen will show all owner details as well as any existing patients within the account. Click Transfer Patient to look up by ID or name to transfer a patient to this account

🚨 Important Note: If a patient is merged or transferred to a new account, any previous payments or invoices related to that patient will not be moved to the new account and will remain on the original account they came from.
Merge Client Accounts
📓 Please Note: Users will not have access to Merge Accounts automatically and a hospital administrator will need to add the admin_account_merge permission to the appropriate user role (or create a new one) in order to allow access to merging account data. If you do not see this permission, please contact us at support@instinct.vet.

You will use the Merge Accounts feature when a duplicate client account has accidentally been created and you need to merge the duplicate client into one client account. All patient and financial data will be moved to the new account.

- Navigate to Business Office > Accounts
- At the top of the page, you’ll see a Merge Accounts button. Once clicked, you’ll be able to select both client accounts and then merge them together
- Click Merge Accounts and you’re all set!

💡 An account merge is permanent and cannot be reversed. Always confirm that the merge is occurring in the correct sequence. Account A will no longer exist in Instinct and all patient and financial data will now be under Account B.
- Account A will NOT merge its Account Alerts or Account Types.
- Account A’s primary contact will become an alternate contact for Account B.
- Account A’s alternate contacts will now be transferred to Account B.
Once merged, you will see a popup in the bottom left of the screen indicating that the merge was successful.

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