>>> Navigation and On Line Help: 

1. How do I find the on-line manual and look something up?
   Just click on the Help button at the bottom left of any screen. This takes you to another page with link options including the Quickstart Manual and the call scheduler’s Checklist. Use the manual for looking up how the program works or some specific task. Use the Checklist as a quick reference guide as you prepare to begin your first call schedule.
   
   
2. How do I see what each Icon means?
   Just run the cursor over each Icon to see a small explanation window describing in a word or two what the icon is or does. Also, the opening screen has links in a schematic to detailed explanations of each icon and what each submenu function does.
   

>>> Scheduling Questions: [top]

1. When I use Manually Schedule, how do I keep assignments even?
   You might be using manually schedule for any of several reasons. If you are using it just to enter a previous hand-made schedule, then it will count your assignments automatically for you and display them in the Tally Box (Report Icon, Current Tally). If you have a discrepancy at any point during Manually Scheduling, just use the Tally Box as a guide to help you even out the assignments. This is one of Call Scheduler’s™ most useful capabilities. If you are swapping, or making other editions to your schedule using Manually Schedule, you can minimize the Tally Box to the bottom Windows task bar, then bring it up to review any time you want to refer to it for guidance. Alternatively, you can just click on the Refresh Tally Button of the bottom icon bar to see the latest tally at any time. Then, click on the “X” in the upper right of the screen to make it disappear when finished.
   
   
2. What if a new Doctor joins the Call Group? How do I include them in the scheduling?
   First, add the Doctor to your Doctor List to add them to your Call Group and tell the program all the essential Basic Information about the new Doctor. Then, determine the new Doctor’s start date for call scheduling, and figure how many of each Day Type assignment you want to give her for the remainder of the current scheduling period. Figure how many total assignments and how many assignments per calendar month you want to give her. Then, go to Manually Schedule, Manual Edit in the month of the starting date. Pull up the Tally Box (Refresh Tally Button), then minimize it to the Windows bottom task bar for later reference. Then, using the Tally Box as your guide, start scheduling in the usual Day Type (Holidays first, etc.) order for the new Doctor, successively doing each of the Day Types for the remainder of the Scheduling Period until you have finished scheduling the correct total of new assignments. The Tallies of the veteran members of the Call Group should be as equal as possible when you finish. Click on the minimized Tally Box to see it as you work. The new Doctor’s Tallies and her total number of assignments should be as you planned. If not make any fine adjustments until finished.
   
   
3. What if a Doctor leaves the Group? How do I re-assign the on call days?
   First, use Unschedule (Scheduling Icon, Manually Schedule, Unschedule) to unschedule the departing Doctor’s assignments starting from the departure date through the end of the current Call Period, for all Jobs. Then, pull up the Tally Box by clicking on the Refresh Tally Button, then minimize it to the Windows bottom task bar for future reference. Then, use the Scheduling Assistant (Scheduling Icon, Scheduling Assistant) to begin scheduling each of the Day Types until they are all done. Review and Revise the results after each Day Type is scheduled using Manually Schedule, Manual Edit before you go on to schedule each succeeding Day Type. Check the Tally Box by clicking on it from the bottom task bar to guide your revisions if necessary after each Day Type. When you are finished, your Tallies should be as expected.
   
   
4. Can I schedule a Doctor at less than their fair share of assignments?
   Yes, you can set the per cent of call responsibility for each Doctor, for each Job. Use the Doctor List (Settings Icon, Provider List). >From the Provider List, click on the edit cell, for the appropriate Provider. For each of the Jobs listed, place the appropriate per cent of call in each of the appropriate chart cells. If you put in 100%, this means that for that Job, this Doctor takes 100% of his or her fair share (equal to all the other doctors). If you put in 50%, this indicates your intent to schedule him or her at one half the frequency of the full call doctors for this Job. Just fill in the per cents of call for each Job for the Doctor in question, then click the Save or Next Button to activate the new call Load Factors.
   
   
5. How do I tell the program which days to schedule for one Job (usually a Secondary Job) that requires assignments based upon who is on call for another Job (a Primary or a Secondary Job)?
   The Days to Schedule feature allows you to tell the Scheduling Assistant which days to schedule for a particular Job where call is required for reasons other than the dates being certain Day Types. The most common reason for this is the original Job Doctor lacks a certain skill (like OB or Invasive), causing the need for scheduling a backup person for the needed skill.

   • The easiest way is to make a Rule (Scheduling Icon, Scheduling Assistant, Rules) that defines when call is needed for the Secondary Job in question. This will automatically tell the Assistant when call is required for the Secondary Job for any subsequently scheduled Call Period.
   • To manually pick the Days to Schedule go to Scheduling Icon, Manual Scheduling, Month or Complete View. Choose the correct date, click on the date-number, and choose the desired person or persons for as from the speed-entry dropdown list. This can also be accomplished in the Year View. 

6. How do I schedule for just one or more Day Types at a time for a Job?
   Use the Scheduling Assistant feature. Go to Scheduling Icon, Scheduling Assistant, Days to Schedule, Day Type, choose the appropriate Job, start and end dates, the Day Type(s) you want to designate as needing to be scheduled, then click on the Next Button. This marks the appropriate dates as Days to Schedule for the Assistant. The Assistant will only schedule dates that you first define. 
   
   
7. How do I split up call assignments for one Job for our 2-day Weekends?
   If you normally assign both Saturday and Sunday together (defined your Scheduling Assistant rules), but for some reason another Doctor needs to be assigned one of the two days of Weekend call, take the following steps. Go to Scheduling Icon, Manually Schedule, Month or Complete View, then, Manually swap the appropriate Doctor into the day of the Weekend that he or she needs using the speed-entry dropdown list (click on the Day-Date). This leaves the original Doctor in place on the other day. In this mode, the program ignores your SA rule that the two weekend days (Sat and Sun) must be scheduled together. If you delete the Provider you want to change, then enter the Provider you want, the program will follow any rules you have created in Scheduling Assistant Rules

>>> System Requirements:  [top]

1. Minimum System Requirements:

• Processor speed: 166Mhs
• RAM Memory: 64 MB
• Monitor: 15" color (at 800x600 or better)
• Modem 28.8KB/sec or faster with phone line connection
• A working Internet connection
• Access to a printer, black and white or color
• Hard drive with at least 10MB free disc space
• Internet browser software such as Netscape Navigator (version 6.0 or newer), or Microsoft Internet Explorer (version 5.0 or newer). Go to www.netscape.com or to www.microsoft.com respectively to download a copy of your choice.
• Adobe Acrobat (version 4.0 or newer). Go to www.adobe.com to download a copy.
• Cookies and Java Script enabled browsers.
  

>>> Setup Questions:  [top]

1. How do I prevent a Doctor from being on call on their regular day off?
   If you skipped this data input, you can easily do this from the Doctor List. Go to the Doctor List (Settings Icon, Provider List). For the appropriate Doctor, click on the Edit button. At the next screen choose Recurring Days Off.. Then, click on the appropriate selections for the day(s) of the week you want to be that Doctor’s Regular Day(s) Off in the Regular Day Off box. Click the Save or Next Button when done. 
   
   
2. We have two Doctors in our group who are married and do not want to be on call for different Call Jobs on the same day. How do I do this?
   This is easy to do by making appropriate selections in the Provider Profile. Go to the Provider List (Settings, Provider Profile). Click on Edit next to the Provider name to open that Provider's Profile, scroll to Restricted CoWorkers, and make the appropriate selections as needed.
   
   
3. How do I enter vacation days off call?
   To enter days off call for a given Doctor, go to the Day Off Scheduler (Scheduling, Day Off Scheduler, Month View), and select the Range button. Select the days you want, click Next, select the Day Off Type, then select the Provider. The calender will refresh with the updated information in it. The Day Off Month View will let you easily see all the Day Off Types for all the Providers at once.
   
   
4. What should I do if I choose a vacation day (v) off for a day that I previously also marked as a Recurring Day (d) Off Call?
   If this happens, we suggest that you “undo” one of the designations. To do this Switch to that day off type, with the correct Doctor and month, then, click on the date number of the date in question, and it will disappear. This “undoes” the day off designation for this day off type, and the Days Off Tally changes appropriately. 
   
   
5. How do I notify all the hospitals, doctors, clinics and other Data Targets of any schedule changes?
   You can do this in several ways. The easiest way is to have them all be on-line (Internet connected) so that they can always see only your very latest schedule. Whenever you make a schedule change, it is immediately available at your Whiteboard Web address (Whiteboard Icon). Alternatively you can print any schedule (or other report) you choose, then fax, post or mail it to all the Data Targets in the usual ways.   [top]