Schedule Builder

How to use the DuxWare Schedule Templates

DuxWare Appointment Scheduler can be configured in two ways. One is using the Default Schedule and the second is Weekly Templates or a combination of both may be utilized.
Weekly Template configuration enables provider schedules to handle  “special” or variable scheduling situations while the Default Schedule handles providers with a fixed schedule.

The Schedule Builder page is broken into three sections. The Default Schedule Setup section, the Schedule Template Setup and the Existing Schedules list at the bottom. Existing Schedules list contains all of the providers that have schedules in DuxWare. It also indicates (in parenthesis) the type of schedule the provider has defined. (Default) indicates that there is a Default Schedule in use by the provider and (Weekly) indicates that there is a Weekly Template in use by the provider. (Default, Weekly) means that there is a combination of both types in use for the provider.

Default Schedule –  this is the schedule configuration that will be used if no weekly templates have been defined for the provider for the week being viewed. The default schedule is good for providers who stick to the same schedule each week and can manage their day or week by using schedule blocks to block out particular times and days.

Weekly Schedule - providers that require variable schedules or have specific days or weeks where they may want to use a particular template can be configured using the Weekly Schedule Templates. The provider can have a different schedule for every week of the year using this configuration, however, in most cases providers stick to regular intervals.

Note: When building the provider schedule for multiple locations, it helps to look at the schedule from the Location point of view rather than the Physician point of view. For instance if the provider sees patients at this location only on the last Friday of the month you will build a weekly template that has only Friday and name it something that you can recognize as the last Friday of the month like "Friday Only". That way you can insert it into the week where the provider sees pateints on the last friday of the month.

To build a Default Schedule, select the physician and location from the drop down boxes in the Default Schedule Setup box and hit Load Default Schedule. The Default Schedule will load if it exists, if not use the controls on the page to create the Default Schedule. To create the default schedule, choose the start time and end time (NOTE: the end time should be 5 minutes after the actual end time to include in the schedule, end at 5:05 PM to create a 5:00 PM slot in the schedule). Next choose the Days by checking each day that will be created with the selected times. The Increment block allows you to build the schedule with incremental time slots such as 1 slot every 15 minutes. Use the dropdown to choose the increment. Next indicate the number of slots per time increment. The number 2 would indicate that the provider schedule will have 2 slots per time increment. The next two dropdown boxes will modify the blank slots to pre-determine the type of the appointment as well as the category. The Categories are created in the Category Setup page listed under Appointments - Schedule Setup - Category Setup. Choose the type of appointment slot (i.e. New, Established, Surgery) and finally the Category of the slot (i.e. Consult, BP check, Complete Eye, etc.). Both Appointment Types and Categories may be colorized for easy identification on the scheduler. If pre-determined slots are not required in the provider schedule, the Type and Category drop down should read Any which means that any type of patient may be scheduled in the slot. Once the selections have been made click the Add button at the top of the page which will build the Default Schedule at the bottom of the page. Individual time slots can be modified from the preview section by clicking on the slot. The Type, Category, number of slots can be changed as well as the slot Deleted or Blocked.

Once the Default Schedule is correct in the Preview section click the Save Changes button at the bottom of the page. The schedule will not be saved until Save Changes is clicked. To make changes to the Default Schedule, simply bring it up in the Preview and make the necessary changes with the controls on the page.

To build a Weekly Template Schedulethe Weekly Templates must first be created. Under the Schedule Template Setup section, available weekly templates can be viewed from the drop down box labeled Template. To create a Template click Create Template to name the new Templage and hit Save. Next use the controls on the page to create the Template in the same manner used to create the Default Schedule. The difference is that the Weekly Template being created can be used for a single or multiple weeks during the year where the Default Template is repeated for every week of the year. Continue adding the Weekly Templates until each is created.

To assign the Weekly Templates to the provider choose the physician and location in the Default Schedule Setup box and click Weekly Schedule. The weeks of the year as well as the week number for the next 12 months will be listed on the page. The Current Template column on the right lists the template or Default schedule currently in place for that provider at that location. To change or add a weekly template choose one from the drop down under the column labeled New Template for the week being configured. Notice that templates can be re-used and assigned to multiple weeks for any provider. Once the Weekly Templates have been selected, click Save to save your selections.