A tour of the patron attribute form

A tour of the patron attribute form



This document will outline how to create a patron attribute type.
For more information on the functions of patron attribute types, please check our Help Centre.
Go to KOHA Administration > Patrons and Circulation > Patron Attribute Types > New Attribute Type.



This will bring you to a new page with a form to define the new attribute. 


Content of the patron attribute form

The two required fields on the form are the Patron Attribute Code, which should be in keeping with coding conventions already on your system and Description, which is the name of the field as it will appear in the patron registration form. 

All, some or none of the other options can be checked depending on how the attribute should function. 

Repeatable

Selecting this option will allow the attribute to appear multiple times on the add and edit patron forms, also allowing different values to be entered each time. Once this option is ticked and saved it cannot be edited again, so it is important to decide when the attribute is being created if it should be repeatable or not.

It is not possible to tick this option and the next Unique Identifier option on the same attribute. An attribute can either be repeatable or unique, but not both.


Unique Identifier 

Selecting this option will mean the attribute must be unique to the individual patron record it is being applied to. The same attribute content cannot be assigned to the more than one patron account.

It is no possible to tick this option and the previous Repeatable option on the same attribute. An attribute can either be repeatable or unique, but not both.
If an attribute is flagged as a unique identifier and is already in use by another patron, another patron will not be able to be assigned the same attribute. Instead a warning will appear, preventing the patron account being saved until the unique identifier is changed:

Display in OPAC

Selecting this option will cause the attribute to appear in patron record on the OPAC, so the patron themselves can see the content of the attribute.


Editable in OPAC

If this option is selected then patrons will be able to edit the attribute on their own account if they are logged into the OPAC. This option only works if the Display in OPAC option is also enabled.

Searchable 

If this option is selected then the attribute will be searchable on the staff side when using the Search patrons option. This option will only work for attributes using free text boxes, not attributes linked to authorised values.

Mandatory

If this option is selected then the attribute will need to be defined when creating a new patron account or editing an existing patron account. If the attribute is not filled in on the create or edit patron form then it will not be possible to save the form off.


If the attribute on the form is blank, the following message will display:

Display in patron's brief information

If this option is selected then the attribute will display on the details page on the patron account.


Authorized values category

This is a dropdown menu which allows the attribute to be linked to an already existing authorised value. Doing this will cause the attribute field on the patron add form to appear with a dropdown menu of predefined options, taken from the authorised value it is linked to, rather than a blank box which appears in the attribute is not linked to any authorised value.
For more information on authorised values, please check our Help Centre.
Attribute with an authoried value attached:

Attribute without an authoried value attached:

Library limitation

This allows the attribute to be limited to patrons associated with a particular library branch or branches. When using this option one or more branches can be selected. To select one branch, click on it and it will highlight in blue. To select multiple branches that are side by side, click them holding the shift key on the keyboard. To select multuple branches not side by side, click them holding the control key on the keyboard.

​

Category

This option allows the attribute to be limited to a specific patron category or categories. Only one patron category can be selected from this dropdown.

Class

This option allows you to group Patron Attributes together under a common heading for ease of  navigation. These headings are defined under the authorised value PA_CLASS.  

Once you are satisfied with how the attribute type is configured, hit Save and the created attribute will appear in the attribute types table.

VersionDateDetailAuthor
1.031/03/22Doc. CreatedHolly Cooper















































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