Last Updated Jul 2011
Just hearing the word spreadsheet is enough to make some folks break out in a cold shudder. The columns, tables, calculations and graphing tools—for healthcare workers accustomed to the hands-on nature of interacting with patients, the administrative aspect of the job can sometimes feel like a hassle that takes away from the ‘real’ work of caring. However, in the healthcare setting spreadsheets provide a valuable tool for organizing and managing large amounts of patient data, and programs such as Microsoft Excel can greatly improve the patient care cycle.
A Word about Excel
Featured alongside Word and Outlook in Microsoft Office, Excel is a computer program designed to help users “analyze, manage and share information”. (MicrosoftStore.com, 2011) For example, healthcare managers may wish to create a databank to organize staff training and continuing education requirements or to facilitate employee scheduling. Excel can also help track patient information such as medical history, medication administration, and therapy hours.
Getting Started
To get started, open the Microsoft Excel application through the Start menu on your PC. If you do not see Excel in the Start menu, simply select Start, Programs, Microsoft Office, and Microsoft Excel. This will open up a blank Excel workbook (a workbook is a collection of worksheets).
Each Excel worksheet is labeled by the tabs at the bottom of the worksheet. You can double click the Worksheet tab (Sheet 1 is the first one) and label it a specific name. Then, you can navigate back and forth among the different spreadsheets in your workbook by clicking on each tab. The Active Cell is always the cell currently selected. When Excel first opens, cell A1 is the Active Cell. The intersection of a numbered row and a lettered column is the cell’s reference point or location.
Page Setup
Before you begin working in your spreadsheet, you should make some decisions about how your spreadsheet will be displayed when printed. To begin setting the properties on your page, click File on the Menu Bar and then select Page Setup. Click each tab to explore the options. You can choose the Page tab to make some choices for page orientation and paper size. Here are some of the tabs you will see:
• Margins: Click the Margins tab to decide on the number of inches between your spreadsheet and all four edges of the paper on which it will print.
• Headers and Footers: These are strings of text that repeat on every page. When you click the Header/Footer tab, click the Custom Header button. You can select different alignments—left, middle, and right. In one of the aligned boxes, type the text you want to appear on every page of your spreadsheet. The same process applies to the Custom Footer for text appearing at the bottom of the page.
• Sheet Setup: Click the Sheet tab to make choices about repeating rows and columns; print quality; and page order. You can also check the box for Gridlines which will place a darker line around every cell to separate the data more clearly.
Customizing Your Worksheet
Excel enables you to quickly populate worksheets with data in a clean and organized manner. When you are ready to begin customizing your worksheet(s), you will notice Excel makes it easy to move around the screen.
If you want to move to the right of the Active Cell, click the Tab key. If you want to move to the left, hold down the Shift key and then press the Tab key. You’ll go back in the opposite direction. The same holds true for moving up and down: the Enter key takes you down a cell and Shift plus the Enter key takes you back up. You can also use your direction arrows to move around the worksheet.
Sometimes you may notice the words you type are too long to display within a single cell; however, if you position your cursor between column headers, it will become a double-headed arrow. Double click and the data you have typed will autofit into the column. You can also drag the column instead of double clicking. Once you have resized your columns, enter the rest of the data. You can resize rows in the same way.
Editing and Saving Data
Editing your data in Excel is a simple process. Simply double click the cell you want to correct and type your changes. If you are writing formulas and make an error, clear the cell by going to Edit/Clear/All on the Menu Bar. When you are ready to save your work, click the Save icon on the toolbar. Your workbook is always called “Book” and a number, as in Book 1, until you save your work and rename it. Remember to always use SAVE AS the first time.
For a more detailed look at using Excel in the healthcare setting—including formula and function basics, spreadsheet formatting, and data outputting—view our comprehensive course Microsoft Excel: The Basics for Healthcare Professionals.
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