Controlling records in one window from another (LONG)

[John Canino]

I hope I am posting to the correct forum. Please advise if I should post elsewhere. I am using FMP 7 Developer.

I am reworking a patient management system from 6 dev to 7 dev. Using the new windowing features of 7, I want to be able to create a portal of CURRENT patients as a navigation list. Basically, the user would just click on a name and the record in the main window would jump to the appropriate patient.

A patient is current when the admit date contains a value and the discharge date does not. The relationships are a bit complicated: ONE visit (hospital stay) can have MANY admissions and discharges. The tables used are as follows: Patient (med rec # is primary key (PK)) - this # stays with pt for life; Visits (VisitID (serial) is PK. Patient also has an account # - 1 per hospital stay. Admissions (AdmitID-serial is PK) and Discharge (DCID is PK). Both windows, data and navigational portal, are using the same patient table.

So, date values in both the admit & disch tables determine whether the patient is current. This relationship is what should populate the portal. Once a disch date is entered for a patient, their name comes off the current pt portal.

I have been having two problems in trying to get this to work. 1) only one patient (current record) shows up in the portal at a time; 2)Clicking the name in the portal does not change to that patient in the main data window.

Can anyone offer suggestions? I cannot find specific info in my manuals, and my online searches regarding window control only return info on window size and placement.

Thank you in advance for any assistance.

[aldipalo]

It is relatively easy in 8 thanks to Ray Cologon at nightwing:

http://www.nightwing.com.au/FileMaker/demos8/demo808.html

Perhaps you can get some tips that are usuable on his site? He has several examples similar to what you are looking to accomplish.

HTH

Al