To avoid confusion and duplication, what action should be taken prior to registering a new patient in the Composite Health Care System?

• A. Accomplish a "Patient Lookup"
• B. Access On Line User's Manual by entering ??OLUM
• C. Create a medical record using post registration options
• D. Compare patient documentation with a DEERS RIP from MPF

Answer: (A)

The action focuses on preventing duplicate patient records. In the Composite Health Care System, you first perform a patient lookup to search the database for any existing records that match the person you’re about to register. By checking for matches—using identifying details like name, date of birth, and other identifiers—you can determine whether the patient already has a record. If a match exists, you link to that record or verify it’s a new patient; if not, you proceed with creating a new medical record. This step is essential to avoid confusion and ensure all medical history and identifiers stay consolidated under a single patient profile.

The other options don’t directly prevent duplicates: accessing the online manual isn’t part of the registration workflow for duplicate prevention; creating a medical record after registration is the subsequent step; and comparing documentation with a DEERS RIP is a separate identity verification task, not the primary method for checking for existing records before registration.