> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.clinikehr.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Ward management

> Create the wards, sub-wards and bed spaces your staff admit patients into, and understand what the ward screen shows once they exist.

export const StillStuck = ({topic}) => <div className="ck-callout ck-callout--note" role="note">
    <p className="ck-callout__body">
      <strong>Still stuck{topic ? ` with ${topic}` : ''}?</strong>{' '}
      Check <a href="/platform/help/troubleshooting">Troubleshooting</a> first —
      it covers the failures we see most often. If that does not resolve it,{' '}
      <a href="/platform/help/contact-support">contact support</a> and include
      your workspace name and the time the problem happened, so we can find the
      matching entry in your audit log.
    </p>
  </div>;

export const TaskHeader = ({before, time, after}) => <div className="ck-task">
    {before ? <div className="ck-task__cell">
        <div className="ck-task__title">Before you start</div>
        <p className="ck-task__body">{before}</p>
      </div> : null}

    {time ? <div className="ck-task__cell">
        <div className="ck-task__title">Takes about</div>
        <p className="ck-task__body">{time}</p>
      </div> : null}

    {after ? <div className="ck-task__cell">
        <div className="ck-task__title">When you're done</div>
        <p className="ck-task__body">{after}</p>
      </div> : null}
  </div>;

export const Path = ({steps = []}) => <span className="ck-path">
    {steps.map((s, i) => <span key={i} className="ck-path__step">
        {i > 0 ? <span className="ck-path__sep" aria-hidden="true">
            ›
          </span> : null}
        {s}
      </span>)}
  </span>;

export const Availability = ({editions = ['all'], plans, roles, note}) => {
  const list = editions.includes('all') ? ['clinic', 'pharmacy', 'lims'] : editions;
  return <div className="ck-avail" role="note" aria-label="Feature availability">
      <span className="ck-avail__label">Available in</span>

      {list.map(e => <span key={e} className={`ck-pill ck-pill--${e}`}>
          {EDITION_LABELS[e] || e}
        </span>)}

      {plans ? <span className="ck-avail__label">Plan</span> : null}
      {plans ? <span className="ck-pill ck-pill--plan">{plans}</span> : null}

      {roles ? <span className="ck-avail__label">Who</span> : null}
      {roles ? <span className="ck-pill ck-pill--role">{roles}</span> : null}

      {note ? <span className="ck-avail__note">{note}</span> : null}
    </div>;
};

<Availability editions={['clinic']} plans="Enterprise" roles="Owner, manager or accountant" note="Owner to add, edit or delete · needs the In-patient care area" />

**Ward Management** is where the inpatient side of the hospital is drawn: "Manage your clinic wards, sub-wards, and bed spaces." Nothing on the ward screen works until this tab has been filled in, because a bed has to exist before anyone can be admitted to it.

<Path steps={['Sidebar', 'Settings', 'Departments settings', 'Ward Management']} />

<TaskHeader before="Owner access, the In-patient care area switched on in Facility, and a list of your real wards and beds" time="20 minutes for a first ward" after="Staff can admit a patient to a named bed" />

## What this tab controls

Three levels, three stacked cards. A ward holds sub-wards; a sub-ward holds beds. The second and third cards appear only once you select a row above them.

| Control                             | What it does                                                                       | Default   |
| ----------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------- |
| **Add Ward**                        | Opens **Add New Ward**. Owner-only                                                 | —         |
| **Ward Name**                       | At least 2 characters                                                              | —         |
| **Description** · **Location**      | Free text, both optional                                                           | Empty     |
| **Status**                          | **Open** or **Closed**                                                             | Open      |
| **Add Sub-ward**                    | Opens **Add New Sub-ward** inside the selected ward                                | —         |
| **Sub-ward Name** · **Description** | Name at least 2 characters                                                         | —         |
| **Type**                            | **Single**, **General**, **Double**, **Room**, **VIP**, **Suite** or **Penthouse** | General   |
| **Capacity**                        | "Maximum number of beds in this sub-ward". Minimum 1                               | 1         |
| **Add Bed Space**                   | Opens **Add New Bed Space** inside the selected sub-ward                           | —         |
| **Bed Space Number**                | The number staff will quote. Required                                              | —         |
| **Bed Space Name**                  | At least 2 characters                                                              | —         |
| **Type**                            | **Cot**, **Bed** or **Bunk**                                                       | Bed       |
| **Status**                          | **Available**, **Occupied**, **Reserved** or **Under Maintenance**                 | Available |

The sub-ward table also shows **Occupancy** — a bar and a count of occupied against capacity — which is read from the beds themselves, not typed in.

## Set it up

<Steps>
  <Step title="Confirm In-patient care is on">
    The tab needs the **In-patient care** area, which is on by default. If **Ward Management** is missing from the rail, turn the area on in [Facility](/hospital/settings/facility).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add a ward">
    Select **Add Ward**, enter the **Ward Name**, and add a location if it helps staff find it. Leave **Status** on **Open**. You get "Ward added successfully".
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select the ward and add sub-wards">
    Select the ward's actions menu and choose **Add Sub-ward**, or open the ward and use the **Add Sub-ward** button on the card that appears. Set the **Type** and the **Capacity** — the capacity is what the occupancy bar measures against, so make it the real bed count.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add the bed spaces">
    Select the sub-ward, then **Add Bed Space**. Give each bed its **Bed Space Number** and **Bed Space Name**, choose **Cot**, **Bed** or **Bunk**, and leave **Status** on **Available**. Add one row per physical bed — this is the list the ward screen draws.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Check the occupancy line">
    Back on the sub-ward table, the occupancy bar should read 0 out of your capacity. If the count of beds you added does not match the capacity you set, one of the two is wrong.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  Deleting a ward or sub-ward is permanent and takes what is underneath it. Delete a sub-ward and its bed spaces go with it, along with the numbering staff quote to each other on handover. A ward that is temporarily out of use should be set to **Closed** instead, and a bed under repair to **Under Maintenance**.
</Warning>

## What changes once you save

| What you changed           | What you'll notice                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Added a ward               | It becomes selectable on the [wards](/hospital/inpatient/admissions) screen. Staff must pick a ward **and** then a sub-ward before any beds are shown — until they do, the screen says "Please select a ward first."                                                                                                      |
| Added bed spaces           | They appear on the ward's bed grid, ready for admission. The grid is a grid of **cards**, not a table with columns: each card is one bed, and **Patient**, **Admitted**, **Diagnosis**, **Attending Doctor**, **Notes** and **Last Updated** all live inside the **Bed \{number} Details** dialog you open from the card. |
| Nothing configured         | Staff see "No wards available" and "Please contact your administrator". That message means this tab is empty, not that they lack permission.                                                                                                                                                                              |
| Changed a bed's **Status** | The grid reflects it straight away. A bed set to **Under Maintenance** or **Reserved** is not offered for a new admission.                                                                                                                                                                                                |
| Changed **Capacity**       | Only the occupancy bar moves. It does not create or remove beds — those are the rows you add by hand.                                                                                                                                                                                                                     |

Admissions already in progress are unaffected by renaming a ward or sub-ward; the patient stays in the same bed record.

## Check it worked

Open **Wards** from the sidebar and choose your new ward, then a sub-ward. The bed cards should appear, one per bed space you created, all showing as available. Open one and confirm the **Bed \{number} Details** dialog names the bed you expect. Then go back to Settings and check the occupancy bar on the sub-ward reads the number of beds you added.

## Common issues

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Staff see &#x22;No wards available — Please contact your administrator&#x22;">
    No wards exist yet, or none are **Open**. Add a ward here, or reopen the closed one; the message is about configuration, not their access.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="The ward screen says &#x22;Please select a ward first.&#x22;">
    Beds only load once both a ward and a sub-ward are chosen. Pick the ward, then the sub-ward inside it.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="I added beds but the grid is empty">
    Check the beds went into the sub-ward that is selected on the ward screen. Beds belong to a sub-ward, so beds added under a different one will not appear.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="There is no Add Ward button">
    Adding, editing and deleting are owner-only. A manager or accountant sees the tables and nothing else.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="&#x22;Database permission issue detected&#x22;">
    The ward could not be created and the dialog closes with your entries kept. Contact your administrator, or ask an owner to create the ward for you, then try again.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="The occupancy bar disagrees with the beds I can see">
    The bar compares occupied beds with the **Capacity** you typed on the sub-ward, which is independent of how many bed rows exist. Set the capacity to the real number of beds.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

Building a hospital from scratch? [Set up wards and beds](/hospital/get-started/wards-and-beds) covers the same ground in order.

<StillStuck topic="ward setup" />