Choose and Book Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the current status of our Integrated Choose and Book install?
A: Please contact your PCT direct, as this information is provided to them on a weekly basis from EMIS through Connecting for Health (CfH). If your PCT is unable to provide you with this information please contact EMIS Central Operations department on 0845 125 5529.

Q: We do not have the smartcard software installed, what should I do?
A: Please contact your PCT, who will be able to provide you with an install date for your Gem Authenticate Software.

Q: I have forgotten the Password for my smartcard, what should I do?
A: Please contact your Registration Authority (RA) manager - this may be a staff member at your practice or a member of the PCT.

Q: I am having problems logging into the Gem Authenticate software, accessed with my smartcard.
A: The Gemplus software is provided and maintained by your RA manager. This is most likely a member of your PCT, but could also be a staff member at your practice. Please contact the relevant person for assistance.

Q: When logging onto EMIS I get the following message: Spine Authentication Failed – GA Ticket Engine Not Running. Why is this?
A: This is either because your smartcard software is not running, or it is not correctly installed. Please try and reboot your PC and log in again. If you continue to experience this issue, contact your PCT, and advise that there is a problem with your Gem Authenticate software.

Q: When Logging onto EMIS LV, the dialog box asking me to select my role is not displayed?
A: Please contact the EMIS Choose and Book Support team on 0845 122 2333, automated number 61.

Q: When logging onto EMIS LV I get the following message: You are trying to logon with the wrong NPfIT Identification. Spine access has been disabled. Why is this?
A: Please contact the EMIS training helpline for advice on 0845 122 2333 automated number 27.

Q: When logging into EMIS LV the following message is displayed: Connecting to Smart Card but does not go any further. What should I do?
A: Please log off and back on using your smartcard and restart EMIS LV. If this message still occurs, contact the EMIS Spine Support team on 0845 122 2333 automated number 61.

Q: When in an EMIS LV session the following message is displayed: Invalid Card Session. What should I do?
A: Please log off and back on using your smartcard and restart EMIS LV. If this message still occurs, contact the EMIS Spine Support team on 0845 122 2333 automated number 61.

Q: When accessing the Choose and Book webpage the following message is displayed: A System Error Occurred. What should I do?
A: Please contact EMIS Choose and Book Support on 0845 122 2333, automated number 61, and we will escalate this problem to the National Service Desk on behalf of your practice.

Q: The role assigned to my smartcard is incorrect. When accessing the Choose and Book website one of the following messages is displayed: 'Login failed' or 'You do not have permissions to access this resource'. What should I do?
A: Please contact your RA manager; this may be a staff member at your practice or a member of the PCT. The RA manager can confirm that your smartcard is configured to give you the access rights to fulfil your role.

Q: I am having problems with the CAB Save option when trying to save a referral letter. What should I do?
A: Please contact EMIS Group 4 Software Support on 0845 122 2333 automated number 10.

Q: When logging into EMIS LV the NHS Icon is greyed out; what should I do?
A: Check that your PC is configured for CfH functionality:
LV systems:
1. From the main menu, select SC – System Configuration or type SC.
2. Select CH – CfH Configuration, or type CH.
3. Select P – Configure PDS clients, or press P.
4. Use the cursor keys to navigate to the terminal number you want to configure and then press the Spacebar.
5. Press F8 to save any changes.
6. Close EMIS and log back in. If this is still a problem then contact EMIS Support for assistance
PCS systems:
1. From the main menu, select Locations Manager in the Configuration section, or type LM.
2. Select M – Manage Terminals.
3. The Manage Practice Terminals screen is displayed.
4. Right-click the required terminal from the left-hand list.
5. Select Manage Connecting for Health Options from the drop list.
6. Select Connecting for Health Terminal.
7. Click OK.
8. Close EMIS and log back in. If this is still a problem then contact EMIS Support for assistance.

Q: When attempting a Choose and Book referral the following message is displayed: Spine is not active for this patient. What should I do?
A: Check the patient you have selected is registered as a regular patient and has a valid NHS Number on the Registration Details screen. If they do not then you will be unable to complete any Spine functionality for the patient.
Please check the NHS icon is active within the EMIS Frame, if it is not log off and back on using your smartcard and then restart the EMIS application.
If the NHS icon is active and the issue is not specific to any patient, please contact EMIS Spine Support team on 0845 122 2333, automated number 61, for further assistance.

Q: How do we install the CAB Save option within MS Word Integration?
A: Please refer to the following two documents: LV00085 and LV00128.
Access these documents from EMIS LV using the following procedure.
1. From the main menu, select AO – Advanced Options.
2. Select EU – EMIS Updates.
3. Select UI – Update Information.
4. Use the Page Up and Page Down keys to select the required documents from the list.
For further assistance with this install, please contact the EMIS Training Helpline on 0870 122 1133 automated number 27.

Q: When trying to configure another PC for Choose and Book the following message is displayed: 'You have selected more terminals than your current license allows'. What should I do?
A: Each practice has a set amount of licenses that have been purchased by the PCT for Choose and Book. You can contact your PCT to purchase additional licenses or you can unallocated a licence from a terminal and allocate to another. To unallocated a terminal:
1. From the main menu, select SC – System Configuration or type SC.
2. Select CH – CfH Configuration, or type CH.
3. Select C – Configure C&B Clients.
4. Use the cursor keys no navigate to the terminal number you want to unallocate and then press the Spacebar.
5. Press F8 to file.
6. Repeat steps 1 – 5 to allocate a terminal.
Note: You will also need to ensure the PCs are configured for PDS through SC, CH, P before the terminals will be available with SC, CH, C.
Note: The same keystrokes are used when allocating a license to a terminal.