How to Ship Items from an Invoice

SigmaMD ships items straight from a patient invoice using your connected shipping integration. Buying a shipping label opens a four-step wizard that walks you through the package, the sender, the recipient, and the shipping method — and you can run it on a draft invoice, before you issue it.

This article covers one shipment from start to finish. For an invoice that needs more than one box, or for editing and canceling a shipment you already created, see Adding, Editing and Canceling Shipments.

A patient invoice draft with the "Add shipment" button visible below the line items

Start a Shipment

Open a patient invoice that has the items you want to ship.
Click Add shipment below the invoice's line items. The button is only enabled once the invoice has items that aren't already part of another shipment on the same invoice.

The Add Shipment dialog opens on step 1 of 4, with a step tracker at the top so you can see where you are and jump back to a step you already completed.

Step 1: Package Content and Package Details

Step 1 of the Add Shipment wizard, showing the checked items list and the package details fields

The Package Content list shows every item on the invoice that's available to ship — anything already assigned to another shipment on this invoice is left off. All available items are checked by default; uncheck any you're not including in this box.

Under Package Details:

Optionally pick a saved Package template to fill in the box's length, width and height for you. If your practice hasn't set one up yet, use the link next to the field to go to package templates.
Enter Measurements (length, width, height) if you didn't use a template, and the package's Total weight.
Switch between inches/lbs and centimeters/kg with the unit icon next to the section header.

Total weight is required — Next stays disabled until it's filled in.

Step 2: Sender Information

Step 2 of the Add Shipment wizard, Sender Information pre-filled from the practice location

This step is pre-filled from your practice's location — name, address, phone and email. You'd only change it if this shipment should go out from a different location than the one selected, or if a contact detail needs a one-off correction for this shipment.

Step 3: Recipient Information

Step 3 of the Add Shipment wizard, Recipient Information pre-filled from the patient's saved address

This step is pre-filled from the patient's saved address — their name, preferred address, phone and email. Change it when the patient wants this shipment sent to a different saved address, a brand-new address, or you need to add delivery instructions.

Step 4: Label and Shipping

Step 4 of the Add Shipment wizard, showing shipping methods with the cheapest rate preselected

Under Label, choose the Print format for the label and decide whether to include a packing slip.

Under Shipping:

Set the Shipment date. Use the day you're actually handing the package off — labels can expire, so a date in the past won't get you a valid label.
Pick a Shipping method from the rates quoted for this package. The cheapest option is selected for you automatically; pick a different one if you need faster delivery.

Click Confirm to finish.

After You Confirm

The invoice's Shipment section after confirming, showing the shipping charge and the button to view the label

Confirming buys the label right away and adds the shipping rate as a charge on the invoice. Back on the invoice, open the Shipment section and click the label icon to view and print the label — and the packing slip, if you included one.