Clinic template

A Cliniko treatment note template for a physio subsequent consult

This subsequent consult template covers a physio follow up visit in four short sections: interval history, a retest of whatever outcome measure the initial assessment recorded, treatment given, and the plan. Retesting the same measure against the same baseline is what turns a string of notes into evidence of progress. Build it under Settings > Treatment note templates, using Cliniko's own question types.

Last checked 25 Sep 2026 against the sources listed at the end of this page.

Free template · Cliniko

Treatment note: subsequent consult: physiotherapy

The template: 17 fields

Section	Field	Type	Notes
Interval history	Change since last visit	Paragraph	In the patient's words where possible: better, worse, or the same, and how.
Interval history	Home exercise programme compliance	Radio	Cliniko type: Multiple choice. Options: Full / Partial / Not done. Follow with a note field if partial or not done.
Interval history	Compliance notes	Paragraph	Barriers to the programme, and what changed for next time.
Interval history	New or changed symptoms	Checkboxes	Options: None / New area of pain / Increased irritability / Possible red flag / Other. A tick here should trigger a fuller note, not just a box.
Interval history	Current trend since initial assessment	Radio	Options: Improving / Static / Worsening.
Reassessment	Pain now, best and worst (NPRS)	Text	Single line text, same format as the initial note, for example 3 / 1 / 6.
Reassessment	Outcome measure retested	Checkboxes	Same option list as the initial assessment template: PSFS / NPRS / Oswestry (ODI) / Neck Disability Index / QuickDASH / LEFS / Other. Tick the one the initial note used.
Reassessment	Retest score	Text	The score for the measure ticked above. Cliniko has no number type, so this is single line text. Compare it against the baseline score recorded in the patient's initial assessment note.
Reassessment	Objective retest	Paragraph	Only the one or two measures that mattered at the initial assessment (a range of movement, a strength grade, a special test), not a full re-examination.
Reassessment	Functional retest	Paragraph	A task tied to the patient's stated goal, for example a squat, a reach, a lift, or a walking distance.
Treatment today	Treatment provided	Paragraph	Techniques, dosage and any progression from last visit.
Treatment today	Response to treatment	Paragraph
Treatment today	New technique consent	Radio	Options: Not applicable, continuing prior consent / New technique explained and consented, see notes. Only used when today introduces something the initial consent did not cover.
Plan	Home exercise programme update	Paragraph	Exercises added, progressed or dropped.
Plan	Advice given	Paragraph
Plan	Discharge readiness	Radio	Options: Continue current plan / Trial discharge / Discharge this visit / Refer on. Feeds straight into the discharge summary template when the answer is Discharge.
Plan	Next review and outcome measure due	Paragraph	Date or interval, and whether the outcome measure gets repeated again at that visit.

Build it in Cliniko

Go to Settings > Treatment note templates, click Add template and name it Physio subsequent consult, so it reads clearly next to the initial assessment template in the list.
Add each section above, then add its questions using Cliniko's six question types: Paragraph text, Single line text, Multiple choice, Checkboxes, Body chart or Date.
Set the Outcome measure retested options to match the initial assessment template exactly, in the same order, so the two templates stay consistent when a practitioner is filling in the subsequent note straight after opening the initial one.
Skip a body chart question unless your clinic wants one on every visit. Most subsequent consult templates run without one and use the objective retest field for anything that changed.
Assign the template to your Subsequent (or Standard) appointment type under the template's settings, so it loads automatically once the initial visit is done.
Write two or three test notes on a test patient, save each as a PDF, and check the retest fields sit close enough to the initial note's fields that a reviewer can compare them without hunting.

AHPRA: The shared Code of conduct expects a health record that shows the reasoning behind continuing, changing or ending treatment. A subsequent note that only records what was done, without a retest against baseline, does not show that reasoning. That is why this template keeps the outcome measure retest even though the rest of the note is short.

A follow up note is not a shorter initial assessment

Practitioners often build a subsequent consult template by copying the initial assessment and deleting sections, which leaves fields nobody fills in twice a week. This template starts from a different question: what does this visit need to prove. It needs to show what changed since last time, whether the same problem is improving against a number, what was done today, and what happens next. Everything else from the initial assessment, full history, a complete objective exam, a fresh red flag screen, belongs in that note, not this one.

Keeping the template short is also what makes it get used properly. A ten minute follow up slot does not leave time for a long form, and a long form that gets rushed produces worse records than a short one that gets completed properly.

Retesting against the initial note's baseline

The reassessment section is built to sit next to the initial assessment's outcome measures section rather than replace it. The checkbox list of measures is deliberately the same list, in the same order, so the practitioner ticks the one the initial note already used and enters the new score under it. Cliniko does not carry a number forward from one note to another automatically, so the practitioner still has to open the initial note to read the baseline, but matching the field layout makes that quick.

This is what turns a set of separate visit notes into a progress record. A funder or insurer reading three notes wants to see one measure tracked across all three, not three different measures picked because they were quicker to score on the day.

Deciding to continue, discharge or refer

The discharge readiness field is the one addition to a standard SOAP style follow up. Physios often decide a patient is ready for discharge partway through a note and then write that decision as a sentence buried in the plan, which is easy to miss on a later read. Making it a structured field means the decision is visible at a glance, and it gives the discharge summary template, built as its own page in this cluster, a clear trigger for when to use it.

Sources

Cliniko treatment note templates are built under Settings > Treatment note templates using the same six question types (Paragraph text, Single line text, Multiple choice, Checkboxes, Body chart, Date) for every template in the account, and each template can be assigned to a specific appointment type so it loads automatically. Cliniko Help, checked 25 Sep 2026.
An Administrator can export any treatment note template as a .json file from Settings > Treatment note templates, so a subsequent consult template built in one Cliniko account can be shared into another. Cliniko Help, checked 25 Sep 2026.
Cliniko's template import feature converts an uploaded JSON, JPG, PNG, WEBP or PDF file into a treatment note template, and warns that unsupported question types are converted to the nearest available type, so an imported template should be checked before use. Cliniko Help, checked 25 Sep 2026.
The Physiotherapy Board of Australia applies the shared Code of conduct for registered health practitioners published by Ahpra and the National Boards. Physiotherapy Board of Australia, checked 25 Sep 2026.
The Code of conduct requires practitioners to keep accurate, up to date health records that are clear enough for another practitioner to continue a patient's care. Australian Physiotherapy Association (InMotion), checked 25 Sep 2026.