Quick Reference:

Schedule Builder Template Fields

athenaClinicals

The following fields appear in Schedule Builder when you add a scheduling template for group sessions, edit a template, modify a copied template, or edit a template draft.

Template Color, Name, and Description

Field/Option	Description
Color	Optional. Select a color to help scheduling staff identify specific appointments more quickly. You can modify the color when adding a template, editing a template, a editing copy of a template, or editing a template draft.
Template Name	For behavioral health group session templates, we recommend including the word ‘group’ in the name to further identify it. You can modify a template's name when adding a template, editing a template, editing a copy of a template, or editing a template draft.
Description	Optional. You can enter a description when adding a template, editing a template, editing a copy of a template, or editing a template draft.

Apply to

Define the group, department, and a provider or other resources for the scheduling template. See descriptions for limitations.

Field/Option	Description
Filter by provider group	When adding a scheduling template, select the provider's group. When modifying a copy of a template or template draft, you can also modify the group selected. However, you cannot change the provider's group when editing a template actively in use.
Department	When adding a scheduling template, select the provider's department. When modifying a copy of a template or template draft, you can also modify the department selected. However, you cannot change the provider's department when editing a template actively in use.
Physician/Resource	When adding a scheduling template, select the provider or resource. When modifying a copy of a template or template draft, you can also modify the provider selected. However, you cannot change the provider when editing a template actively in use.
Group session template	Click to enable group scheduling. This setting is available to behavioral health organizations only and allows staff to schedule multiple patients for the same time slot (group session scheduling). Once you've saved and applied the group session template to a provider's schedule, you cannot change this setting. You also cannot change this setting when editing an active group session template, when editing a group session template draft, or when editing a copy of a group session template. If you need an individual session template, create a new scheduling template and leave the Group session toggle off.

Apply on

Define calendar dates for a scheduling template. You can configure these options when adding or editing a template, when editing a template draft, or when modifying a copy of a template.

Important
If you change the dates of occurrence for a template that's actively in use, this can cause already scheduled appointments to require rescheduling. Consider carefully before making these changes and evaluate the benefits of copying or adding a new template instead. If you decide to change these properties in an active template anyway, any displaced appointments will appear in the Appointments to Reschedule worklist for rescheduling.

Field/Option	Description
Pre-calculated dates	Optional. Select from predefined options to quickly define a date range. For example, if you select 'Next Month,' Schedule Builder automatically enters the first day of the following month as the start date and the last day of the following month as the expiration date.
Start on	Enter a start date in MM-DD-YYYY format.
Expire on	Applies to individual session templates only. Behavioral health group session templates do not expire but will no longer appear on a provider’s calendar beyond the date ranges you define. Enter an ending date in MM-DD-YYYY format.
Schedule on holidays	Optional. Enable if the provider holds sessions on holidays. If left deselected, Schedule Builder won't add time slots from the template to a provider's schedule on holidays.
Frequency	Select how often the appointment occurs. Options vary depending on the frequency selected. For example, if you select Weekly, options appear to select the days of the week for sessions to occur.

Build Schedule

Define appointment times for your scheduling template. You can configure these options when adding or editing a template, when editing a template draft, or when modifying a copy of a template.

Important
If you change the appointment type or start/end times for a template that's actively in use, this can cause already scheduled appointments to require rescheduling. Consider carefully before making these changes and evaluate the benefits of adding a new template instead. If you decide to change these properties in an active template anyway, any displaced appointments will appear under Claims > Workflow Dashboard in the Appts to Resched column.

Field/Option	Description
Drag & Drop	Available for individual session templates only. For group session templates, use Type & Select. Click this tab to drag-and-drop appointment types onto a provider’s schedule.
Type & Select	Click this tab to select an appointment type to apply. Configure options in this tab to define start and end times for appointments and set appointments as opened or closed sessions. For group session templates, define the group’s Capacity from this tab (available for behavioral health group session templates only).
Select appointment type	Select an appointment type to apply to the template. Once selected, Schedule Builder applies the length of time defined in the appointment type to the template. For example, if you select an appointment type for a 60-minute session, the template will be for a 60-minute time slot.
Capacity For behavioral health organizations that offer group sessions only	Required for group scheduling templates. Enter the maximum number of patients your staff can schedule for the group session, up to 50 participants. IMPORTANT: When editing a template, you can modify a group session's capacity, but you can only make this value greater than the original capacity defined. This ensures that patient appointments already booked for a group session aren't inadvertently canceled.
Open session	Optional; enabled by default. An open session indicates to users that they can schedule patients at any point within a series of sessions. If deselected, it indicates that patients should be scheduled prior to the first session (that it's a closed session). Closed session slots include a 'C' icon to indicate the provider's preference only. The system won't prevent users from scheduling patients for the session after the session or session series has begun.
Start time	Required. Enter a starting time. When you define a start time for a session, the scheduling template appears in the preview pane to the right. Adjust the template settings as needed. If the time slots added overlap other time slots in your template, you will not be able to save and apply the template until overlaps are corrected. Adjust the starting times in your template to remove overlaps.
Repeat until	Indicates the ending time for time slots added to the template. When you enter a Start time and select an Appointment type, Schedule Builder automatically calculates the end time based on the duration of the appointment type. For example, if you select 9:00 AM as the Start time and select an Appointment type with a duration of 60 minutes, Schedule Builder enters 10:00 AM in Repeat until. If desired, you can enter back-to-back time slots for the Appointment type by manually entering an extended length of time in this field. Using the previous example, if you enter 12:00 PM in this field, additional one-hour time slots will appear directly after the initial slot you created.
Add time range	Optional. Click to create multiple time slots for the same appointment type within the provider's schedule. As you define start times, the additional time slots appear in the schedule. Note: If you’re creating a series of back-to-back time slots for the same appointment type, we recommend manually adjusting the ending time in Repeat until to create additional slots. Use Add time range to create time slots for the same Appointment type that aren’t back-to-back.
Add appointment type	Optional. Click to add additional appointment types to the provider's schedule. In the added section, select the appointment type and configure the appointment details. You can continue to add appointment types to further define a scheduling template for a provider.

Save and Delete Options

After configuring Schedule Builder template properties, select from options at the bottom of the form to save or discard your changes. Options vary depending on whether you’re adding a new template, editing an existing template, editing a draft template, or modifying a template copy.

Field/Option	Description
Save and Apply	Saves your changes and applies them to the provider's schedule. Applied templates are 'live,' and appear in a provider's schedule for patient bookings. Available in Create New Template, Edit Template, Edit Draft, and Copy Template.
Save as Draft	Saves your changes as a draft. The template won't appear in the provider's schedule for patient bookings until you Save and Apply. Available in Create New Template, Edit Draft, and Copy Template.
Close	Closes Schedule Builder and returns you to the Schedule Builder Dashboard without saving your changes. Available in Create New Template, Edit Template, Edit Draft, and Copy Template.
Copy and Edit Template	Select this option to save your changes as a copy of the original template. Available in Edit Template and Edit Draft. Note: Consider using this option when editing templates that are already applied to a provider's schedule and that have active client bookings. Saving your changes as a copy can reduce instances of rescheduling patient bookings displaced because of schedule updates.
Rollback and Save Template as Draft	Removes the applied template from the provider’s schedule and saves the previously applied template as a draft. Available in Edit Template only.
Rollback and Delete Template	Removes the applied template from the provider’s schedule and permanently deletes it. Appears in Edit Template only. IMPORTANT: This option removes the template's time slots from the provider's schedule, including time slots that may have patient bookings. These bookings will appear on the Claims > Workflow Dashboard page in the Appts to Resched column.
Delete Draft Template	Permanently deletes the draft template. Appears in Edit Draft only.
Merge Slots	Available for individual schedule templates only. When confirming your changes, click Merge Slots to prevent Schedule Builder from applying templates in slots that already have patient appointments scheduled. IMPORTANT: The merge feature only retains previously scheduled patient appointments if they have the same start time as the new or updated template you’re applying. If the start time for a patient’s appointment differs from your template and there is a scheduling conflict, Schedule Builder applies your template’s time slots and the patient’s appointment appears under Claims > Workflow Dashboard in the Appts to Resched column for rescheduling. For rescheduling guidance, see Appointment Rescheduling.