Build a Claude Project for De-Identified Case Note Summaries

Before you touch Claude, settle this: your organization's case management system almost certainly has rules about where client data can and can't go, and a general-purpose AI chatbot is not automatically an approved destination. Check your data-handling policy or ask your supervisor. If the answer is "de-identified summaries only," this guide is built around that. If your policy prohibits pasting client data into any outside tool at all, even de-identified, stop here and use this guide's format as a template for the manual summary instead.

1. Log into claude.ai.
2. In the left sidebar, click Projects.
3. Click New project (usually near the top of the panel).
4. Name it something you'll recognize weekly, like "Case Note Summaries."
5. In the "What are you trying to achieve" or similar setup field, write one sentence describing the purpose: summarizing de-identified case notes for a weekly staffing meeting.

What you should see: A new, empty project with a Custom Instructions field and a Files panel.

This is the step that matters most. Click into the Project's Custom Instructions (sometimes labeled Project Knowledge or Instructions) and write something close to this:

You are helping a nonprofit program manager summarize case notes for a weekly internal staffing meeting. Every note I paste in has already had client names, addresses, and other direct identifiers removed by me before pasting. Do not attempt to guess or reconstruct anyone's identity from context clues. If a pasted note still contains what looks like a full name, phone number, or address, stop and tell me before summarizing, so I can remove it. Summarize by theme: common needs, any urgent or safety-related flags, and suggested follow-ups. Never invent a detail that isn't in the notes I provide.

Save the instructions.

Before your real staffing week, test the Project with a made-up note so you're not learning the rules under deadline pressure. Paste a fake note like: "Client (initials only: J.R.) missed second appointment this month, reported transportation issues, requested bus pass info." Confirm Claude follows your summary format and doesn't ask for more identifying detail than you gave it.

What you should see: A short, themed summary that respects the de-identification rule you set. Troubleshooting: If Claude's summary reads generic or misses an obvious flag (like "missed second appointment"), your instructions may need to be more specific about what counts as urgent. Add an example to the Custom Instructions and try again.

Before every real use, strip names, addresses, phone numbers, and anything else that could identify a specific person. Replace names with initials or a case number your team already uses internally. This step happens outside Claude, in your notes document, not inside the chat.

1. Open the Project and start a new chat inside it (this keeps your Custom Instructions active).
2. Paste in the week's de-identified notes.
3. Ask for the summary in your preferred format.

Example prompt to copy-paste:

Here are this week's de-identified case notes, one per client (initials only). Summarize into three sections: common needs across clients, any urgent or safety flags that need follow-up before tomorrow's meeting, and suggested next steps for each flagged case.

Read the summary against the original notes, quickly. Confirm nothing was invented and nothing urgent got buried. This is a habit, not a formality: a missed flag in a case note summary can mean a client falls through the cracks.

What you should see: A one-page summary ready to read from or hand out at the staffing meeting.