How to restrict a practitioner's availability using ''Appointment Type Custom Sessions" Follow

The Custom Sessions feature allows you to restrict parts of a practitioner's session from being available for certain appointment types. The custom session time will be available exclusively for the appointment type you created the custom session for, and any appointment types with overlapping custom sessions.

You can use this to quickly take availability offline (e.g. if a doctor calls in sick but still working remotely) or to better manage practitioners working from certain locations (e.g telehealth only appointments if a practitioner is working from home).

This guide will show you how to set up a custom session for an appointment type that will restrict other appointment types from being booked online during that session time via Practice Admin.

This feature works with integrated and non-integrated practices, and isn’t restricted to any PMS.

How to create a new practitioner session

Custom sessions can be created and edited from within Practice Admin, under the ‘Manage Practitioners’ tab. Once a session is created, it overrides all other availability and this is the only appointment type able to be booked at the selected times. If you wish for more than one appointment type to be available (for example, telehealth video and telehealth phone, you can do that by creating two separate sessions at the same time for each of those appointment types).

1. Log on to Practice Admin and select 'Manage practitioners' and select the practitioner you want to set up the session for by click ‘Edit Appointment Types’.

2. Scroll down to the ‘Appointment Types’ section on the page. All the currently set up appointments allocated to that specific practitioner should be visible.

3. Find the appointment type you want to add a session for and have it be the only available appointment type, and click 'Add'. Please note: patients will still see all appointment types in the booking form, but when they click on a type that isn't included within that custom session it will redirect the patient to select a time outside of the custom session that can accomodate it.

4. A pop up will appear with details for the session where you can set the start date, adjust the duration (in 24 hour time), choose how frequently this will repeat (daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly), add an end date (or keep indefinitely).

5. If you want to create another session on a different schedule for the same appointment type, you can click add session to see another set up screen.

6. Once you have finished, click 'Save'. You will need to fill in all the relevant fields to be able to save and leave the page.

Note: If you want to restrict availability over a 2 day period (late night to early morning), you will need to create two sessions: one that ends at 12am for day one, and one that ends at your required time and starts at 12am on day two.

How to stack sessions to restrict them to more than one appointment type available.

Healthengine’s Appointment type custom session feature allows you to restrict times where you only take certain appointment types, and these can be stacked to ensure patients can book multiple appointment types that are only available at restricted times, such as telehealth when a practitioner works from home.

This can be done by creating duplicate appointment sessions for different appointment types. The times and dates don’t need to be identical for this feature, for example, telehealth video from 8am to 10am and telehealth phone from 9am-11am.

1. Within the ‘Manage Practitioners’ page in Practice Admin, select the practitioner you want to set up sessions for and scroll down to the ‘Appointment Types’ section.

2. Find the appointment type you want to add a session for and have it be the only available appointment type, and click 'Add'. 

3. A pop up will appear with details for the session where you can set the start date, adjust the duration (in 24 hour time), choose how frequently this will repeat (daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly), add an end date (or keep indefinitely).

4. Once you have finished, click 'Save'.

5. Repeat the process for any other appointment types you want available at the same time and save each setting.

If you have any issues, or require any assistance please contact Healthengine support via live chat, email or phone.