When your clinic is connected to NABIDH, every prescription you issue is sent to the Dubai Health Authority. DHA rejects a medication line that is missing a dose, a frequency, a route or a fixed duration. Pabau checks each medication against those rules while you write the prescription, so you can fix a line before you issue it rather than after DHA turns it down.
NOTE: These checks appear only when your clinic has an active NABIDH connection (see NABIDH Guide Part 2). You’ll see a NABIDH badge at the top of the prescription. For the full prescribing steps, see How to Create a Prescription (New Client Card).
Step 1: Add a Medication
- On the client card, click Create (the + button) and choose Prescription. Search for the medication and click it to add it. The Dubai Drug Code tab in the search bar searches the DHA drug list directly.
- Each medication card shows its NABIDH status: NABIDH ✓ when it passes, or NABIDH · 4 issues (for example) when DHA would reject it.
The badge tells you whether the line is ready for NABIDH
Step 2: Fix the Highlighted Fields
The medication opens for editing when you add it. You can reopen it at any time by clicking its card.
- The strip at the top reads Not NABIDH-ready — fix the highlighted fields before saving. It also shows the Dubai Drug Code the order will carry. If Pabau can’t match the medication to one, it says so and a fallback code is sent instead.
- Every field NABIDH needs is outlined in red, with a message underneath. Fill them in:
- Dose must start with a number, such as 500mg. Add a unit, or make sure a Format is set.
- Frequency must be one NABIDH recognises, such as twice a day or at night. Click the field to pick from the suggestions.
- Route, such as by mouth.
- Duration must be a fixed length, such as 5 days.
Red outlines show what NABIDH still needs
Save medication stays greyed out until every highlighted field is fixed.
Step 3: Check the Line Is Ready
- When every field passes, the strip turns green: NABIDH-ready — this medication will sync to the Dubai HIE. (The Dubai HIE is Dubai’s health information exchange, NABIDH.) Click Save medication, and the card shows NABIDH ✓.
A green strip means DHA will accept this line
Step 4: Issue the Prescription
Issue & sign prescription stays greyed out while any medication on the prescription still has NABIDH issues. Once every card shows NABIDH ✓, issue and sign the prescription as usual.
After it’s issued, the prescription is sent to NABIDH with one order for each medication. The prescriber needs their own 8-digit DHA licence number on file (see NABIDH Guide Part 3). A prescription that is still waiting for medical approval isn’t sent: its delivery in the connection’s log asks you to approve it, then retry the delivery.
TIP: Prescriptions are one of only three NABIDH triggers your clinic can switch off, with Letters and Form answers. See NABIDH Guide Part 4.
What's next?
- How to Create a Prescription (New Client Card)
- NABIDH Guide Part 4: Choose Which Events Are Sent to NABIDH
- NABIDH Guide Part 6: NABIDH Error Codes and Delivery Statuses
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