diff --git a/DEPLOY.md b/DEPLOY.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..27fff20
--- /dev/null
+++ b/DEPLOY.md
@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+# Curio HMS — Production deploy checklist
+
+Target: [https://curio.applaude.net/dashboard.html](https://curio.applaude.net/dashboard.html)
+
+## Pre-deploy (local)
+
+- [ ] Confirm dashboard files are saved as **UTF-8** (no `₹` / `ðŸ` in source).
+- [ ] Smoke-test locally:
+  ```powershell
+  cd c:\Users\sunde\proxmox\curaflow-hms
+  node backend/server.js
+  ```
+  Open `http://localhost:3000/dashboard.html` — sidebar must not overlap the queue table; emojis and ₹ must render correctly.
+- [ ] Bump cache-bust query strings if you changed static assets (`dashboard.css?v=`, `dashboard.js?v=` in `dashboard.html`).
+
+## Deploy (CI → registry → Kubernetes)
+
+This repo builds on **push** via `.gitea/workflows/build.yaml` (Kaniko → `192.168.8.250:5000/curio:latest`).
+
+1. **Commit and push** all changes (including `backend/server.js` UTF-8 headers and dashboard UI fixes).
+2. **Wait for the Gitea Actions build** to finish successfully.
+3. **Roll out Kubernetes** (pick one):
+   ```bash
+   # Restart pods to pull :latest
+   kubectl rollout restart deployment/curio-app -n curio
+
+   # Or patch redeploy annotation (see k8s/app.yaml)
+   kubectl apply -f k8s/app.yaml -n curio
+   kubectl rollout status deployment/curio-app -n curio
+   ```
+4. **Confirm pods are new**:
+   ```bash
+   kubectl get pods -n curio -l app=curio-app
+   kubectl logs -n curio -l app=curio-app --tail=50
+   ```
+
+## Post-deploy verification
+
+Open production in a **private/incognito** window (avoids stale cache).
+
+| Check | Expected |
+|-------|----------|
+| Nav labels | 👥 Queue, 💊 Pharmacy (not `ðŸ` / `₹`) |
+| Sidebar layout | Sidebar on the left; main content not covered |
+| Overview stats | `↑ 4 since last hour` (not `â†'`) |
+| Doctor workspace | Log in as Doctor → **Queue** → **Start Recording** visible |
+| Response headers | DevTools → Network → `dashboard.html` → `Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8` |
+| Recording | Chrome/Edge, allow microphone; button toggles to **Pause Scribe** |
+
+### Quick header check (PowerShell)
+
+```powershell
+(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://curio.applaude.net/dashboard.html" -Method Head).Headers["Content-Type"]
+```
+
+Should include `charset=utf-8`.
+
+### Doctor role (for Zen / recording UI)
+
+In browser console on production:
+
+```javascript
+localStorage.setItem('userRole', 'DOCTOR');
+location.reload();
+```
+
+Then open **Queue** — clinical workspace with SOAP notes and **Start Recording**.
+
+## If encoding is still broken after deploy
+
+1. **Files on disk** — Re-save `dashboard.html` (and other HTML) as UTF-8 in the editor; redeploy.
+2. **Reverse proxy** — Ensure nginx/ingress does not force `charset=iso-8859-1` on static files.
+3. **CDN/cache** — Purge edge cache for `*.html`, `*.css`, `*.js`.
+4. **Hard refresh** — `Ctrl+Shift+R` on the dashboard.
+
+## Rollback
+
+```bash
+# If you tag images per release, redeploy the previous tag instead of :latest
+kubectl set image deployment/curio-app curio=192.168.8.250:5000/curio:<previous-tag> -n curio
+kubectl rollout status deployment/curio-app -n curio
+```
+
+## Files that must ship for the dashboard UX fix
+
+- `dashboard.html`
+- `dashboard.css`
+- `dashboard.js`
+- `globals.css`
+- `settings.css`
+- `backend/server.js` (UTF-8 `Content-Type` headers)
diff --git a/backend/server.js b/backend/server.js
index 4d0a0c5..8361b64 100644
--- a/backend/server.js
+++ b/backend/server.js
@@ -8,38 +8,48 @@ const app = express();
 const port = 3000;
 
 app.use(express.json());
+
+const staticRoot = path.join(__dirname, '../');
+
+/** UTF-8 Content-Type for text assets (fixes emoji/₹ mojibake when proxy omits charset). */
+function setUtf8ContentType(res, filePath) {
+    if (filePath.endsWith('.html')) {
+        res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'text/html; charset=utf-8');
+    } else if (filePath.endsWith('.css')) {
+        res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'text/css; charset=utf-8');
+    } else if (filePath.endsWith('.js')) {
+        res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'application/javascript; charset=utf-8');
+    } else if (filePath.endsWith('.json')) {
+        res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'application/json; charset=utf-8');
+    }
+}
+
+function setNoCacheHeaders(res) {
+    res.setHeader('Cache-Control', 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate');
+    res.setHeader('Pragma', 'no-cache');
+    res.setHeader('Expires', '0');
+}
+
+function sendHtmlPage(res, filename) {
+    setNoCacheHeaders(res);
+    res.setHeader('Content-Type', 'text/html; charset=utf-8');
+    res.sendFile(path.join(staticRoot, filename));
+}
+
 // Serve static files
-app.use(express.static(path.join(__dirname, '../'), {
-    setHeaders: (res, path) => {
-        if (path.endsWith('.html')) {
-            res.setHeader('Cache-Control', 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate');
-            res.setHeader('Pragma', 'no-cache');
-            res.setHeader('Expires', '0');
+app.use(express.static(staticRoot, {
+    setHeaders: (res, filePath) => {
+        setUtf8ContentType(res, filePath);
+        if (filePath.endsWith('.html')) {
+            setNoCacheHeaders(res);
         }
     }
 }));
 
 // Primary Routes
-app.get('/', (req, res) => {
-    res.setHeader('Cache-Control', 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate');
-    res.setHeader('Pragma', 'no-cache');
-    res.setHeader('Expires', '0');
-    res.sendFile(path.join(__dirname, '../login.html'));
-});
-
-app.get('/admin', (req, res) => {
-    res.setHeader('Cache-Control', 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate');
-    res.setHeader('Pragma', 'no-cache');
-    res.setHeader('Expires', '0');
-    res.sendFile(path.join(__dirname, '../admin.html'));
-});
-
-app.get('/dashboard', (req, res) => {
-    res.setHeader('Cache-Control', 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate, proxy-revalidate');
-    res.setHeader('Pragma', 'no-cache');
-    res.setHeader('Expires', '0');
-    res.sendFile(path.join(__dirname, '../dashboard.html'));
-});
+app.get('/', (req, res) => sendHtmlPage(res, 'login.html'));
+app.get('/admin', (req, res) => sendHtmlPage(res, 'admin.html'));
+app.get('/dashboard', (req, res) => sendHtmlPage(res, 'dashboard.html'));
 
 // Multi-tenant Config API
 app.get('/api/config/:tenantId', (req, res) => {