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eSHARS

District Administrator Guide

Overview

As a District Administrator, you manage your district’s configuration, users, students, and ensure the billing pipeline flows smoothly from service delivery to Medicaid reimbursement.

Your Responsibilities

AreaWhat You Manage
UsersCreate/manage provider accounts, assign roles, manage campuses
StudentsMaintain student data, ARDs, consent, eligibility
ConfigurationDistrict settings, calendars, service options
ComplianceSA Forms, qualifications, audit responses
Data ImportsBatch imports of students, ARDs, users

First-Time Setup

1. Verify District Configuration

Navigate to Admin → District → Settings:

  • District name and identifiers (TPI, NPI)
  • Contact information
  • EDI configuration (for eligibility/billing)
  • Default settings for visit documentation

2. Set Up School Calendar

Navigate to Admin → Calendar:

  1. Import or create the school year calendar
  2. Mark non-school days (holidays, breaks)
  3. Set summer session dates if applicable

Important: Visits can only be documented on valid school days.

3. Review Campus List

Navigate to Admin → Campuses:

  • Verify all campuses are listed
  • Check campus addresses and contacts
  • Ensure campus-district relationships are correct

User Management

Task 1: Create a New User

Goal: Add a new clinician or staff member

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → Users → Add New User
  2. Enter user details:
    • Name, email, contact info
    • Username (usually email)
  3. Assign Role(s):
    • Clinician, Supervisor, Admin, etc.
    • Roles determine what the user can access
  4. Assign Campus(es):
    • Which campuses can they access?
  5. Assign Qualifications (for clinicians):
    • OT, PT, Speech, Nursing, etc.
    • Determines which services they can document
  6. Set activation date
  7. Save and send welcome email

Task 2: Manage User Qualifications

Goal: Update a provider’s service qualifications

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → Users
  2. Find and select the user
  3. Go to Qualifications tab
  4. Add/remove qualifications as needed
  5. Set effective dates
  6. Save changes

Note: Removing a qualification doesn’t affect past visits, but prevents future visits of that type.

Task 3: Deactivate a User

Goal: Remove system access for departed staff

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → Users
  2. Find the user
  3. Set Deactivation Date
  4. Save

Important: Don’t delete users - deactivate them to preserve audit history.

Task 4: Approve SA Forms

Goal: Review and approve provider signature authorization forms

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → SA Form Management
  2. Review pending SA forms
  3. Verify form completeness
  4. Approve or Reject with feedback
  5. Approved providers can now document visits

Student Management

Task 5: Add a Student

Goal: Register a new student in the system

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → Students → Add Student
  2. Enter demographics:
    • Name, DOB, gender
    • Student ID, TX Student ID
    • Medicaid ID (critical for billing)
  3. Assign to campus
  4. Save the student record
  5. Continue to add:
    • Parental consent
    • ARD/IEP information
    • Service assignments

Goal: Record consent for Medicaid billing

Steps:

  1. Find the student → Consent tab
  2. Click Add Consent
  3. Enter:
    • Consent date (when parent signed)
    • Effective date range
    • Upload consent document (if available)
  4. Save

Critical: No consent = No billing. Visits without consent are flagged as DNQ.

Task 7: Create/Update an ARD

Goal: Enter IEP service allocations

Steps:

  1. Find the student → ARD tab
  2. Click Add ARD or Edit existing
  3. Enter ARD details:
    • ARD date, effective dates
    • School year
  4. For each service:
    • Service type (Speech, OT, PT, etc.)
    • Frequency (e.g., 2x weekly)
    • Duration per session (e.g., 30 minutes)
    • Total minutes allocated
  5. Add goals for each service
  6. Save

ARD Hours Calculation:

Weekly minutes × Weeks in period = Total allocated minutes

Task 8: Assign Student to Provider

Goal: Add student to clinician’s caseload

Steps:

  1. Find the student → Caseload tab
  2. Click Assign Provider
  3. Select the clinician
  4. Select the service type
  5. Set effective dates
  6. Save

Note: Students can have multiple providers for different services.

Data Imports

Task 9: Batch Import Students

Goal: Import multiple students from file

Steps:

  1. Go to Import → Student Import
  2. Download the template file
  3. Fill in student data following the template format
  4. Upload the completed file
  5. Review validation results
  6. Fix any errors and re-upload if needed
  7. Confirm import

Available Import Types:

  • Students (demographics)
  • Student transportation routes
  • Parental consent
  • ARD/Goals
  • Prescriptions
  • Users

Task 10: Review Import Status

Goal: Monitor batch import progress

Steps:

  1. Go to Import → Import History
  2. Find your import batch
  3. Review:
    • Total records processed
    • Successful imports
    • Failed records with error details
  4. Download error report if needed
  5. Fix and re-import failed records

Compliance & Reporting

Task 11: Run Compliance Reports

Key Reports for District Admins:

ReportPurposeFrequency
Students without ConsentFind missing consent formsWeekly
Expiring ARDsARDs ending soonMonthly
DNQ VisitsVisits that can’t be billedWeekly
Provider ActivityVisits by clinicianMonthly
Hours vs AllocationARD utilizationMonthly

Navigation: Reports → Select report type

Task 12: Handle Audit Requests

Goal: Respond to Medicaid audit inquiries

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → Audit Viewer
  2. Search for the requested records
  3. Export documentation:
    • Visit details
    • Student ARD
    • Consent forms
    • Provider qualifications
  4. Generate audit package

Visit Pipeline Monitoring

Understanding the Visit Flow

Clinician Creates → Released → Approved → Eligible → Billed → Paid/Denied

Task 13: Monitor Visit Status

Goal: Track visits through the billing pipeline

Steps:

  1. Go to Admin → Dashboard
  2. Review visit status widgets:
    • Pending release
    • Pending approval
    • Ready for billing
    • DNQ (Do Not Qualify)
  3. Drill down into problem areas
  4. Take action or notify responsible parties

Task 14: Fix DNQ Visits

Goal: Resolve visits that can’t be billed

Common DNQ Reasons:

ReasonResolution
No Medicaid eligibilityVerify Medicaid ID, wait for eligibility check
No parental consentObtain and enter consent
Exceeds ARD hoursReview ARD allocation, get amendment
No active ARDEnter or update ARD
Invalid provider qualificationVerify provider credentials

Steps:

  1. Go to Reports → DNQ Visits
  2. Filter by reason
  3. For each visit, identify the fix
  4. Make corrections to student/provider data
  5. DNQ visits automatically re-evaluate

Best Practices

Data Quality

  • Verify Medicaid IDs when entering students
  • Keep ARDs up to date before they expire
  • Get consent BEFORE services begin

User Management

  • Deactivate users promptly when they leave
  • Review SA Forms before the school year starts
  • Audit user roles annually

Communication

  • Notify clinicians of student data changes
  • Alert supervisors to approval backlogs
  • Coordinate with finance on billing issues
TaskNavigation Path
District SettingsAdmin → District → Settings
User ManagementAdmin → Users
Student ManagementAdmin → Students
SA Form ApprovalsAdmin → SA Form Management
Data ImportsImport → [Import Type]
Import HistoryImport → Import History
CalendarAdmin → Calendar
Campus ManagementAdmin → Campuses
ReportsReports → [Report Type]
Audit ViewerAdmin → Audit Viewer
DashboardAdmin → Dashboard

Escalation to State Admin

Some tasks require State Administrator access:

IssueEscalate When
New Service NeededDistrict needs a service type not in the system
Qualification ChangeNew provider credential type required
Billing Code UpdateTMHP publishes new procedure/modifier codes
Service Not AvailableService exists but district can’t access it
System-Wide SettingsConfiguration affects all districts

Contact your State Administrator or submit a support request.

For state-level configuration, see State Admin Guide

For visit documentation, see Clinician Guide

For approvals, see Supervisor Guide