Initial Training Workbook - SoftDent Scheduler

Initial Training Workbook

SoftDent Scheduler

Your Guide to a Successful Transition

carestreamdental.com

800.944.6365

NG941-05

SoftDent Scheduler

Initial Training Workbook

Notice

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All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Manual Name: SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook

Part Number: NG941

Revision Number: 05

Print Date: March 2021

The names of persons and the data reflected in this guide are fictitious and are not intended to represent any real individual, event, or condition. Any resemblance or similarity of the

names of persons or data reflected in this guide to any actual person’s name or any event or condition is purely coincidental and unintended.

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) iii of iv

Contents

Lesson 1—Getting Started

Setting Up the Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Setting Up the Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Defining Office Hours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Viewing and Changing Hours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Defining Office Holidays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Creating Daily Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Creating Non-Working Time Slots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Using Ideal Day Scheduling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Setting Up Scheduling Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Applying Ideal Day Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Defining Provider Hours. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Viewing and Changing Hours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Defining Production Goals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Lesson 2—Navigating the Scheduler

Using the Search Field. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Displaying Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Day View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Full Day View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Weekly View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Real Time Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Navigation Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Scheduler View Items . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Using Keyboard Shortcuts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Links to Features in the Practice Management Software. . . . . . . . . . 13

Lesson 3—Customizing Views and Setting Up Treatment

Categories

Using the Overlays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Configuring the Overlays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Creating Custom Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Creating Global Custom Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Setting Up Treatment Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Using the Privacy Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Printing the Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Printing Routing Slips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Lesson 4—Managing Appointments

Adding a New Patient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Scheduling Doctor and Assistant Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Viewing Production Goals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Using the Appointment Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Confirming Appointments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Cancelling Appointments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Rescheduling Appointments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Checking a Patient In and Out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Managing Patient Recare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Using the Auto Scheduler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Creating Notes and Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Scheduling Family or Group Appointments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

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Lesson 5—Generating Lists

Generating Confirmation Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Generating Pending Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Generating Short Call Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Index

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Lesson 1

Getting Started

The Scheduler is designed to bring you the functionality you need

to manage your appointments. Information and options are

displayed in a progressive manner, which means one level of

information flows into the next level.

Using the Scheduler, you can perform the following appointment-

related functions:

• Scheduling

• Editing details

• Confirming

• Cancelling

• Rescheduling

See the Scheduler online help for more information.

Setting Up the Columns

The Scheduler's primary interface is the Day View, which contains

columns that represent a provider or specific chair or operatory

within an office or location.

To set up columns:

1 In the Scheduler, select Settings > Office Settings. The

Preferences window is displayed.

2 In the Locations list, select the office you are setting up.

3 Select a base time unit and region for the location.

4 If you want appointment failures to be recorded, select Auto

Fail.

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Click Configure Chairs. The Operatories List is displayed.

6 To create a chair or column, click Add and type a name.

7 In the Active fields, select the chair or column you want to

display in the Day View.

8 To change the order, hold the cursor under the Order button

until arrows are displayed. Click an up or down arrow.

9 Click OK.

Setting Up the Schedule

On the Schedule Planning tab, set these options for your office:

• Default Office Hours

• Holidays

• Daily Templates

• Provider’s Default Hours

Defining Office Hours

To define or change the default office hours:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning. The Schedule

Planning tab is displayed.

2 In the Calendar view for field, select the office location.

3 Click Default Office Hours and Edit. The Default Office

Hours panel is displayed.

4 Enter or change the hours for each day of the week. Select

Closed for the days that the office is closed.

5 Click Save.

Note

If you deactivate a

chair, you remove it

from all views in the

Scheduler.

Note

A legend at the bottom

of the screen explains

the colors used for

particular days.

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Viewing and Changing Hours

To view the office hour settings for a particular day, click Selected

Day Details and select a day on the schedule.

To change the settings:

• Edit day—Edit the hours.

• Go to—Jump directly to the day in the Day View.

• Close the day—Show the office as closed for the day.

• Remove the template—Remove the daily template from

the day.

Defining Office Holidays

To define holidays for an office:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning. The Schedule

Planning tab is displayed.

2 In the Calendar view for field, select the office location.

3 Click Holidays. The Holidays panel is displayed.

4 In the Name field, type the name of the holiday.

5 In the Hours field, select All Day.

Deselect All Day and designate the hours the office opens

and closes.

6 To use the same template every year, select one:

• Repeat yearly by day of the month

• Repeat yearly by date

7 Select the day in the calendar and click Apply to selected

days.

Creating Daily Templates

You can create multiple templates that are different from the

default office hours.

You can also use daily templates to apply ideal day settings that

block out times and columns for specific types of appointments or

for non-working time. See “Using Ideal Day Scheduling” for more

information.

Daily templates specify time ranges only and must be applied to

selected days on the calendar.

To create a daily template:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning. The Schedule

Planning tab is displayed.

2 In the Calendar view for field, select the office location.

Tip

A black triangle in the

corner of a day

indicates

appointments are

scheduled; a red

exclamation point

indicates a scheduling

conflict.

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Click Daily Templates. The Daily Templates panel is

displayed.

4 To create a new template, click New, name the template,

define the hours, and click Save.

5 To edit an existing template, select the template, click Edit,

make the changes, and click Save.

Creating Non-Working Time Slots

You can designate blocks of time as non-working time. To create a

non-working time slot:

1 Select a template.

2 Click Edit.

3 Click Non-working Time.

4 Click Create non-working time.

5 Click and drag in the time slots you want to block. The Block

Time window is displayed.

6 Type a description.

7 Click Save.

Using Ideal Day Scheduling

Use the Ideal Day feature to set up blocks of time for specific

types of appointments. By creating scheduling classes, you can

use colors to display the best times to schedule specific types of

work, depending on the availability and preferences of the

providers in your practice.

When you try to schedule an appointment in a block of time

allocated for a different appointment type, a message is displayed

reminding you of the conflict.

To implement Ideal Day scheduling:

• Set up scheduling classes

• Apply the classes to the schedule

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Setting Up Scheduling Classes

To set up Ideal Day scheduling classes:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning.

2 Click Daily Templates and:

• Click New.

• Select a template and click Edit.

3 Click Ideal Day Classes. The Ideal Day Classes panel is

displayed.

4 To create a class, click New. The Ideal Day Settings window

is displayed.

5 Enter a name and description.

6 In the Treatment section, click to add code ranges or specific

codes and types.

7 In the Color section, use the arrow to select the color for the

class.

8 Click OK.

To edit an Ideal Day class:

1 In the Ideal Day Classes panel, select a class.

2 Click Edit.

3 Make the changes.

4 Click OK.

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Applying Ideal Day Classes

To apply Ideal Day scheduling classes to a day profile, or to paint

the day:

1 In the Ideal Day Classes panel, select the class.

2 Click and drag the class on a time slot in a column. The class

is displayed in the appropriate color.

3 To move or resize the class, select it and drag it again.

Defining Provider Hours

Use the Scheduler Planning tab to set up working hours and to

assign chairs for each provider.

When you define working hours for a provider, you save the

schedule as a template. You can select from multiple templates

when you want to change a provider's regular schedule.

To define the working hours for a provider:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning. The Schedule

Planning tab is displayed.

2 In the Calendar view for field, select the provider. The

Provider panel is displayed.

3 Click Edit next to the day you want to add or change.

4 Set the hours and select the chair number. If the provider

wants non-working time during the day, such as a lunch hour,

end the first working time block and then click Add to begin

another time block.

5 Click Save.

Viewing and Changing Hours

To view the office hour settings for a particular provider, click

Selected Day Details and select a day on the schedule.

To change the settings:

• Go to—Jump directly to the day in the Day View.

• I’m off!—Designate the day as a day off.

• Edit—Modify the hour and chair settings for the day.

• Reset—Use the default settings for the day.

Note

To delete a class,

select it and press

Delete.

Note

Providers can be

assigned to more than

one chair on any day.

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Defining Production Goals

You can define monthly financial targets for a given location and

for individual producers. You can track progress toward these

goals and consider them when scheduling appointments.

To assist in scheduling decisions, the percentage of a target is

displayed for the producers in the Calendar and the Day View.

Goals are tracked by booked production in gray bars and net

production in green bars. The Scheduler pulls data for the graph

from the procedures scheduled for each producer and from the

production amounts posted in the software.

On the Schedule Planning tab, you can click the Production

Activity Overlay to view the progress that is being made by your

office and your providers towards their goals.

To define production goals:

1 Select Settings > Production Goals. The Production Goals

window is displayed.

2 Select the location for which you are setting goals.

3 Select the target year and month for which you are defining,

editing, or viewing goals.

4 Enter a target net value dollar amount for the month.

5 Assign a target for each producer. If you enter an amount, the

percentage of the target is calculated for you. If you enter a

percentage, the target dollar amount for the provider is

displayed.

6 Click OK.

Production Activity

Overlay

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Skill Sharpeners

Exercise 1—Set Up a Provider Column

A new doctor has joined your staff and has been entered in the

practice management software. You want to add a column for him

in the Scheduler. To set up a provider column:

1 Select Settings > Office Settings. The Preferences window

is displayed.

2 In the Locations list, select your office.

3 In the Base Time Unit (Minutes) field, select 15.

4 In the Region field, select USA.

5 Click Configure Chairs. The Operatories List is displayed.

6 Click Add and name the chair with the new doctor’s name.

7 Click OK.

Exercise 2—Define Office and Provider Hours

You want to define the hours for one doctor and two hygienists,

but before you can define provider hours, you must define the

office hours for the location in which they work.

To define office and provider hours:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning. The Schedule

Planning tab is displayed.

2 In the Calendar view for field, select the office location.

3 Click Default Office Hours and Edit. The Default Office

Hours panel is displayed.

4 Click Add, if necessary, and set the following hours:

• 8:00 AM as the beginning time for each day

• 12:00 PM as the beginning of the lunch break

• 1:00 PM as the end of the lunch break

• 6:00 PM as the closing time for Monday through

Thursday

• 5:00 PM as the closing time for Friday

• Saturday and Sunday to Closed.

5 Click Save.

6 In the Calendar view for field, select a doctor’s name. The

Provider’s Default Hours panel is displayed.

7 Click Edit and change the hours and chair for the provider.

If the provider is scheduled to be off on a day, click Edit and

select the day; then change the hours and chair.

8 Click Save.

9 Repeat these steps to define the working hours for two

hygienists.

Exercise 3—Set Up an Ideal Day

You decide to set up blocks of time each day for fillings. To use the

Ideal Day feature, you must set up a scheduling class and then

apply the class.

To set up a scheduling class:

1 Select Settings > Schedule Planning.

2 Click Daily Templates and click New.

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3 Click Ideal Day Classes. The Ideal Day Classes panel is

displayed.

4 Click New. The Ideal Day Settings window is displayed.

5 In the Name field, type Radiographs.

6 In the Description field, type All types of radiographs.

7 In the Treatment section, click specific codes and types and

type 00200.00 in the field.

8 In the Color section, click the arrow and select the Pastel 9.

9 Click OK.

To apply the class to the schedule:

1 In the Ideal Day Classes panel, select a class.

2 Click and drag in a time slot on a column.

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Lesson 2

Navigating the Scheduler

To move around in the software, use click-and-drag. To select an

item or option, click the mouse. To display the next logical option

or choice, click and hold the mouse over some features. To select

multiple items, press Shift and click the mouse.

Using the Search Field

The Search field is located in the upper-right section of the

Scheduler window and the appointment card.

To use the Search field, type at least three characters in the field.

Search results include a patient's name, nickname, address,

phone number, birth date, and e-mail address.

To display more information and choices for a patient, click one of

the following items in the search results:

• Go to Patient

• Next scheduled appointment

• Show History

• Book Recare

• Auto Scheduler

Displaying Dates

To display dates, you can change views, scroll forward or

backward, and use the real time bar or calendar.

Day View

The current date is displayed by default. This is called the Day

View. Use the arrows next to the date to scroll forward or

backward one day.

You can view a single day or an entire week, and you can select

multiple days to view at once.

Full Day View

Use the Full Day View icon to toggle your Day View from a portion

of the day's schedule with details on the appointment tiles to a full

day's schedule without details on the appointment tiles.

Weekly View

Use the Weekly View icon to display the entire work week for a

displayed date. Select the icon again to return to today's date.

Day View

Full Day View

Weekly View

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Real Time Bar

The real time bar lets you know where you are in relation to your

next appointment.

Calendar

To display the calendar with the current month and the following

two months, click the Calendar icon by the date. On the calendar,

you can:

• Double-click a single date to go to that date in the

appointment book.

• Shift + click two dates to select a range of dates in the

appointment book.

• Ctrl + click individual dates to select multiple dates in the

appointment book.

Navigation Buttons

Click the Today button to return to the current date.

Use the following buttons to move forward in time:

• +1 Week

• +2 Weeks

• +1 Month

• +3 Months

• +4 Months

• +6 Months

Scheduler View Items

The following list explains the Scheduler symbols and colors:

• Circle around a day—Current day

• Slashes—Past days that are view-only

• Blue and pink—Days the office staff is working

• Dark blue—Day that uses a template

• Pink—A unique day that is not on a shared plan

• Light gray—Days the office is closed

Using Keyboard Shortcuts

You can use the keyboard shortcuts, or hot keys, to navigate the

Scheduler software. To display a list of hot keys:

1 Click the Help (?) button and select Hot Keys.

2 Click Main View or Appointment Card to expand or close the

list of keyboard shortcuts.

Calendar

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Links to Features in the Practice

Management Software

An Options panel on the left side of the Scheduler window

provides links to the practice management software and other

modules and features.

To access the features, click the Open Panel arrow.

To close the panel, click the Close Panel arrow.

Open Panel

Close Panel

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Skill Sharpener

Exercise 1—Practice Moving Around in the Scheduler

Experiment with each of these procedures:

• Click the right arrow next to the current date.

• Double-click an appointment tile. Click the X to close the

appointment card.

• Click the Calendar icon and hold the Ctrl key as you

select multiple dates. Double-click a date to view details.

• Type the first three letters of a patient’s last name in the

Search field. Select the patient and click Show History.

• Click the Day View icon and then the Weekly View icon.

• Press Alt + P to view the Pending List.

• Click the Location tab to return to the schedule.

• Scroll to the bottom of the window and click +1 Month to

view time slots one month from the current date.

• Click Today to return to the current date.

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Lesson 3

Customizing Views and Setting Up Treatment Categories

You can adjust the Scheduler window to display what you need to

see. You can:

• Create as many columns or tabs as you need to organize

your workflow.

• Use the overlay icons to display what you need to see on

the appointment tiles.

• Set up Ideal Day scheduling and treatment categories to

further customize how appointments are scheduled and

displayed on the Day View.

• Turn the privacy setting on or off.

Using the Overlays

Overlays focus the view on specific information and enable you to

perform a task or access information quickly.

For example, when you click the Confirmation Overlay icon, the

day's appointments that need to be confirmed are displayed

brightly, while confirmed appointments are shaded.

The following overlays are available in the Scheduler window:

• Confirmation—Highlights appointments that need to be

confirmed by shading those already confirmed.

• Production Goals—Displays indicators of a provider's or

location's progress toward production goal targets.

• Admin—Displays information on the tile, such as the

patient's age and scheduled procedures for the

appointment.

• Clinician—Displays clinical information on the tile, such as

medical alerts and scheduled procedures for the

appointment.

• Default—Displays your personalized view of the

Scheduler window.

• Provider Working Time—Displays the providers working

in each chair each day.

Configuring the Overlays

You can customize the appearance of appointment tiles in the

Default, Admin, and Clinician overlays. The configuration of the

Default overlay is user-specific and can be customized at every

workstation. The configuration of the Admin and Clinician

overlays is global for the office, and you must have permission to

change the settings.

To configure the Default, Admin, and Clinician overlays:

1 Click Settings > Configure Overlay.

Note

When an overlay is

active, a blue border is

displayed around the

icon on the toolbar.

Confirmation

Overlay

Production

Goals Overlay

Admin

Overlay

Clinician

Overlay

Default

Overlay

Provider

Working

Time

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The Overlay Designer window is displayed.

2 Select Default Overlay, Admin Overlay, or Clinical Overlay.

3 Select the content you want to display on the appointment

tiles.

4 Click the up and down arrows to select the order in which the

content is displayed.

5 Select the icons you want to display on the appointment tiles.

6 Click the left and right arrows to change the order in which

the icons are displayed.

7 Change the display width of the chairs, if necessary.

8 Preview the configuration, and click Apply or Save.

Creating Custom Views

You can customize the Scheduler window to display scheduling

resources in a combination that suits your needs.

Each custom view is user-specific, but one person can have

multiple personal views. After you name a view, you can save,

close, and access it any time until you delete it.

To create a personal view:

1 In any view, click and hold a column heading.

2 Drag the cursor to the tab area at the top until the outline of a

new tab is displayed.

3 Release the mouse. The tab is displayed with the name New

View.

4 Double-click the name until a rename field is enabled.

5 Rename the tab, and then click off the tab.

Creating Global Custom Views

You can create global views that can be used by more than one

user in your office.

To create global custom views:

1 Select Settings > Global Custom Views. The Global

Custom Views window is displayed.

2 Next to Schedule Views, click the plus sign.

3 Type a name for the new view and press Enter. The new view

is highlighted.

Important

The location tab is

always displayed first,

and a global custom

view cannot be

selected as the main

tab for the Day View.

Note

You can use the arrow

to disable or rename a

view. Use the

Show

Disabled

option to

display disabled views.

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 17 of 20

4 Under Chairs/Operatories, use the arrow to select a chair

you want to display in the new view. To select additional

chairs, click Add.

5 Click Apply or Save.

6 To display the custom view:

• On the Day View, click the triangle on the Location tab. A

list displays locations and global custom views.

• Select a view.

Setting Up Treatment Categories

Use treatment categories to group procedure codes into

categories and display appointment tiles in a specific color for

each category. You can then determine the type of appointment by

glancing at the Day View, without having to open the appointment

card.

The category color is displayed as a solid bar on the right side of

the tile for a scheduled appointment. If more than one category is

used for an appointment, the category for the included procedure

with the longest default time period is displayed.

To set up treatment categories:

1 Select Settings > Treatment Categories. The Treatment

Categories window is displayed.

2 In the Categories section, click +.

3 Enter a name and description for the new category.

4 In the Treatment section, click to add code ranges or specific

codes and types. Each code or range becomes an item in the

list. Continue adding until the category includes all the

appropriate codes.

5 In the Color section, select the color for the category.

6 Click OK. The category is added to the list.

Note

A procedure code can

be associated with only

one category.

Note

If you add a code or

range in error, click the

red

to delete it.

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Using the Privacy Display

To help you protect your patients' privacy and comply with HIPAA

standards, you can choose to display a patient's first name and

last initial on an appointment tile. The privacy setting is used also

on the flyout and the appointment card.

The active privacy setting is displayed on the Settings menu:

Privacy On or Privacy Off. Click the option to change it.

Printing the Schedule

To print the Day View:

1 Click the Print Scheduler icon, or select File > Print. The

Print Preview window is displayed.

2 Set these options:

• Pages to print

• # of copies

• Print in black and white?

• Printing to

• Orientation

• Page Margins

• Font Size

• Time Unit Scale

3 Select from these options:

• Maximize page space?

• Print appointment notes?

• Include Header and Footer?

• Include Day Notes

4 Click Print.

Printing Routing Slips

Offices typically print routing slips the night before or the day of an

office visit. To print a routing slip, select an appointment in the

Scheduler and then select the Routing Slip option in the practice

management software.

For information about printing a routing slip automatically for each

patient that is scheduled for an appointment on the current day,

see the online help.

Print Scheduler

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 19 of 20

Skill Sharpeners

Exercise 1—Create a Personal View

You want to create views for staff members at your office. To

create personal views:

1 Click the Office Location tab and the Day View icon.

2 Select the column heading of a doctor and drag the heading

to the tab area. Release the mouse.

3 Double-click New Name until a rename field is enabled.

4 Type the doctor’s name, and then click off the tab.

5 Repeat these steps for other staff members.

Exercise 2—Set Up a Treatment Category

To see the treatments scheduled for patients, you decide to set up

a category for the most common treatments. To set up the

categories:

1 Select Settings > Treatment Categories. The Treatment

Categories window is displayed.

2 Click the plus sign in the Categories section. Entry fields for a

new category are displayed.

3 In the Name field, type Exam.

4 In the Description field, type Examination and evaluation.

5 In the Treatment section, click code ranges and type

00110.00 in the first field and 00180.00 in the second field.

6 In the Color field, click the arrow and select Pastel 3 for the

category.

7 Click OK.

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SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 21 of 32

Lesson 4

Managing Appointments

The Scheduler enables you to perform appointment-related tasks

from where you are working in the software.

To begin making an appointment:

• Click the New Appointment button on the main toolbar.

A new blank appointment card is displayed.

• Use the Search field to select a patient, and then

click-and-drag the patient to the Day View. The patient tile

hovers there while you select a time. Click the plus sign

on the time slot, and the appointment card is displayed

with the patient's information.

• Use your cursor to select a time slot in the Day View; click

the plus sign to open a new blank appointment card; and

select the patient from the appointment card's Search

field.

• Select a patient from the Pending List or the Short Call

List and click Rebook. The appointment appears in

reschedule mode hovering over the Day View.

Appointments are displayed in the Day View as tiles.

Click once on a tile to display a flyout—a small panel with more

information and options.

Click twice on a tile to open an appointment card.

New Appointment

22 of 32 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

The color and amount of information displayed on the tiles

depends on the privacy setting, the number and width of the

columns, how many appointments are booked in the same time

slot for a column, the status of the patient, and the overlay, if any,

you have selected for viewing.

Appointment tiles can also display mini icons to alert you to the

following information:

• New patient

• Medical alert

• Note attached

• Lab case pending

• Confirmed

• Group appointment

The colored blocks on the right edge of the tile represent time

units for the appointment as they relate to provider time. Use the

following guidelines:

• White—Unbooked

• Color—Booked

• Red—Overbooked

Adding a New Patient

If you are scheduling an appointment for a patient who is not in the

system, you can add the new patient's basic information in the

Scheduler window and then schedule the appointment. The

patient's basic information is saved, and the detailed information,

such as insurance, medical history, and so forth, can be entered in

the appropriate locations in the practice management software.

To add a new patient in the Scheduler:

1 Click the New Appointment button. A blank appointment

card is displayed.

2 Use the Patient Search field to confirm that the patient

record does not already exist.

3 Click Add New Patient.

New Appointment

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 23 of 32

The New Patient Information window is displayed.

4 Enter the patient's name and date of birth. The name is

automatically entered into the Responsible Party field.

5 If the patient is the responsible party, leave the Create new

option selected. If the responsible party for the patient already

exists, select Add to existing, and use the Search field to

select the person.

6 Enter the patient's contact information. If one number is

designated as the preferred method of contact, it is

highlighted in the following places:

• Flyout panel

• Search results

• Confirmation, Pending, and Short Call Lists

• Appointment card

7 Click Save.

Scheduling Doctor and Assistant Time

The Scheduler uses a time summary indicator to display how

blocks of a provider's time are allocated to a specific appointment.

Because a provider can be assigned to more than one

appointment at a time, the indicator shows where the provider's

time is available, booked, or over-booked.

Blocks filled with the tile’s main color indicate the doctor’s time is

committed. Red blocks indicate the doctor’s time is overbooked.

When the blocks to the right of the solid bar are empty, the

doctor’s time is uncommitted.

When scheduling an appointment, you can display the time

summary indicator by dragging an appointment tile over the

column in hover mode. If that provider has been assigned to the

appointment, the time units are indicated with colored blocks.

The breakdown of clinical resources for an appointment is defined

in the Breakdown field in the Appointment Details section of the

appointment card.

Viewing Production Goals

When the Production Goal overlay is turned on, you can hover on

the title in a provider's column to see a summary of the provider's

net production toward assigned production goals. This feature is

useful when deciding which provider to book for a particular time

slot.

Note

If e-mail is the preferred

type of contact, it is

displayed on the flyout,

but not the

appointment tile.

24 of 32 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

Using the Appointment Card

Use the appointment card to add, edit, or view the details of a

patient’s appointment, including procedures and estimated

payment details. You can also use the appointment card to check

a patient in and out.

At the bottom of the card, you can access the appointment log,

save changes, and rebook or cancel an appointment.

To use the appointment card:

1 In the Patient Information section, you can view this

information:

• Name

• Age

• Image

• Contact information

• Responsible party

• Medical alerts

• Missed appointment information

2 In the Procedures section:

• Click + Add Procedure to select procedures from the

list. Begin typing a number in the field to access the list.

• Use the Tooth and Surface columns to enter the location

of the procedure, when applicable.

• Click Estimated Payment Details to display the

estimated amounts that insurance and the patient must

pay.

• To delete a procedure, select it and click the red X.

3 In the Appointment Details section, use these options:

• Confirmed—Select Yes to confirm; No if not confirmed.

• Check In—Select when the patient arrives in the waiting

room.

• Seated—Select when the patient has been seated in the

chair.

• Complete—Select when the patient’s treatment is

completed.

• Check Out—Select to access the patient's ledger, accept

payment, and check the patient out.

• Cancel—Select to cancel changes and close the card.

• Doctor—View or change the patient’s doctor.

• Hygienist—View or change the patient’s hygienist.

• Assistant—View or change the doctor’s assistant.

• Short Call—Select No, if the patient is not interested;

select Anytime, Morning, or Afternoon, if the patient can

reschedule the appointment on short notice.

• Time Units—Enter or change the number of time units

allotted for the appointment.

• Breakdown—Enter or change these producers required

for the appointment:

• D—Doctor

• H—Hygienist

• A—Assistant

• B—Both

• Lab Case—Select None, Pending, or Received.

Note

When you perform

many functions, notes

are created

automatically in the

Notes

section. You can

also enter notes

manually.

Note

When procedure

codes are associated

with office codes, the

office codes are

displayed.

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 25 of 32

4 Use the Pending Appointments section to view a list of the

patient's cancelled, broken, or failed appointments.

Appointments that were created and saved, but not

scheduled, are also displayed.

5 Use the Treatment Plan section to display the patient's

treatment plan and a list of procedures. Click a procedure

from the list to add it to the appointment.

6 Use the Images section to display a side panel of images.

Confirming Appointments

Depending on where you are in the software, you can confirm an

appointment in these ways:

• Day view—When you click an appointment, the

appointment flyout is displayed. Click Confirm. You can

click the Confirmation overlay to highlight unconfirmed

appointments.

• Confirmation List—When you generate a Confirmation

List, place your cursor over the appointment you want to

confirm. The Rebook, Cancel, and Confirm buttons

become active. Click Confirm.

• Patient search—When you use the Search field to find a

patient, the patient's scheduled appointments are listed in

the flyout. Click the triangle to expand the options, and

then click Confirm.

• Appointment card—The Confirmed status is displayed

under Appointment Details. Click Yes.

Cancelling Appointments

When you click Cancel for an appointment, you are prompted to

enter a cancel type and a reason for the cancellation. These types

of cancellations are available:

• Cancel

• Break

• Fail

• Delete

A cancelled appointment becomes a pending appointment and

can be accessed from the patient search results and rescheduled

without having to recreate the details.

The cancellation details are automatically added to the Notes

section of the appointment card and to the Appointment Audit

Log.

You can cancel an appointment from these locations:

• Day view—When you click an appointment, the

appointment flyout is displayed. Click Cancel. The panel

expands for you to select a cancel type and enter a

reason. Click Cancel Appointment.

• Patient search—When you use the Search field, the

patient's scheduled appointments are listed in the flyout.

Click the triangle to expand the options, and then click

Cancel. The panel expands for you to select a cancel type

and enter a reason. Click Cancel Appointment.

Note

Select

Delete

if you

make an appointment

in error and you do not

want it to be tracked in

the Pending List or as

part of the patient's

appointment history.

Note

When you confirm an

appointment, a note is

created automatically in

the appointment

record.

Note

To close the

appointment card

without saving edits,

click

Cancel

26 of 32 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

Rescheduling Appointments

When you begin to reschedule an existing appointment or

schedule an unbooked appointment, the appointment tile turns

pink and hovers above the Day View. When you find the date and

time you want, click-and-drag the tile to the new time slot.

To reschedule an appointment, you can click Rebook on the

appointment tile, card, or flyout, or in the Confirmation, Pending, or

Short Call Lists. You can also reschedule directly from the Day

View.

To reschedule an appointment from the Day View:

1 Click and hold your mouse over the appointment tile. The

appointment tile turns pink and hovers in reschedule mode.

2 Use the calendar to select another date. The date is displayed

with the appointment tile still hovering.

3 Drag the appointment to the time you want and release your

mouse.

Checking a Patient In and Out

You can check a patient in, seat the patient, mark the appointment

as completed, and check the patient out from the appointment

card and from the appointment tile in the Day View.

To check a patient in and out from the Day View:

1 Click the appointment tile and select Check In from the panel.

The tile fills with the category color.

2 When you seat the patient, click the appointment tile and

select Seated. A border surrounds the colored tile.

3 When the procedures for the appointment are complete, click

the appointment tile and select Completed. The tile becomes

a pale color.

4 To check the patient out, click the appointment tile and select

Check Out. The patient's ledger is displayed.

5 Click Post, and the appointment tile is grayed out.

Note

If you have checked a

patient in by mistake,

open the appointment

card and click

Undo

next to the

Check In

button.

Note

When you check the

patient out from an

open appointment

card, the charges are

posted automatically,

and you do not have to

click

Post

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 27 of 32

Managing Patient Recare

The Scheduler tracks dates and provides links to help you manage

patient recare appointments. A recare due date is automatically

set for six months from a patient’s last recare appointment. When

a patient's recare status is Due, Overdue, or Scheduled, the

status is displayed in patient search results.

When the status is Due or Overdue, click Book recare to

schedule an appointment.

When the status is Scheduled, the appointment is included with

the list of scheduled appointments.

Using the Auto Scheduler

The Auto Scheduler enables you to search for open spaces in the

schedule based on specific criteria. You can access this function

from the icon below the Search field, from the patient search

results, or from the appointment card.

When you access the Auto Scheduler from an existing

appointment, the criteria from the appointment are used for the

search.

When you specify a patient, any criteria entered for the patient,

such as provider preference or mornings only, is filtered into the

search.

To use the Auto Scheduler:

1 Click the Auto Scheduler button. The Auto Scheduler

window is displayed, showing the patient's name, or you are

prompted to use the Search field to select a patient.

2 Use the Date and Time fields to select a date or time range to

search.

3 If the patient has a preferred doctor, hygienist, or assistant,

select them in the appropriate fields. If the patient has no

preference, leave the fields blank.

4 If your practice uses Ideal Day scheduling, use this field to

select the appropriate scheduling class for the appointment.

5 To search for specific days, deselect the other days.

6 Enter the number of time units for the appointment and the

appointment breakdown.

7 Click Search. A list of time slots matching the criteria is

displayed.

8 To preview an appointment in the Day View, click it once. To

open an appointment card, click it twice.

9 Schedule the appointment.

Note

When you attempt to

schedule a recare

appointment before the

due date, a message is

displayed. This feature

helps prevent denial of

insurance claims.

Auto Scheduler

Note

Patient preferences

can be changed to

expand the search.

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Creating Notes and Messages

You can create the following notes to share with users on other

workstations about the day's schedule, specific appointments and

patients, or other information:

• Notes—Specific to the dates for which they are entered.

• Messages—Attached to a patient's record in another part

of the software, such as the chart or ledger.

To create a note:

1 Click Day Notes. The Notes & Messages panel is displayed.

2 Click + New Note. A text box is displayed for the current date.

3 Enter the note text and press Enter. The note is displayed in

the panel with the date, time, and author of the note.

Scheduling Family or Group Appointments

The Scheduler enables you to put family members into groups for

the purpose of scheduling appointments for multiple patients at

the same time.

You can create a group by clicking the Add to Group link in the

patient search results. When you create an appointment for one

member of the group, appointment tiles are created in hover mode

for the other members. This keeps the appointments together so

you can find a date and time to schedule all of them.

To create appointments for a group:

1 In a new appointment card, use the Search field to find a

patient.

2 Click Add to Group. The Group Booking panel is displayed.

3 Use the search field to locate other patients for the group, and

click Add to Group. The Group Booking panel displays the

patients in the group, and names the group for the last name

of the first patient.

4 Move your cursor over the names in the list to activate the

options.

5 Click the arrow next to the patient you want to designate as

the group contact, and select Group Contact. The group

contact icon is displayed by the patient's name.

6 Do not close the appointment card.

Note

You can display a note

in multiple locations.

Note

Appointments that are

part of a group display

the

Group Booking

icon on the

appointment tiles.

Group Booking

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 29 of 32

To book appointments for members of the group:

1 With the first group member's appointment card open, add

procedures and appointment details.

2 Click Book It! An appointment tile is created for each member

of the group, suspended in hover mode, enabling you to

search for a date with time slots available to schedule them at

the same time.

3 After you book the appointments, double-click them to open

the appointment cards that require more detail.

30 of 32 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

Skill Sharpeners

Exercise 1—Schedule an Appointment for a New Patient

A new patient calls your office and asks to make an appointment

for a cleaning. You check to make sure the patient is not in the

system, then add the patient, and schedule the appointment.

To add the new patient:

1 Click the New Appointment button. A blank appointment

card is displayed.

2 Enter the patient's name and date of birth. The name is

automatically entered into the Responsible Party field.

3 If the patient is the responsible party, leave the Create new

option selected. If the responsible party for the patient already

exists, select Add to existing, and use the Search field to

select the person.

4 Enter the patient's contact information.

5 Click Save.

To schedule the appointment:

1 In the Procedure field, click + and type cleaning. Select the

procedure.

2 In the Doctor and Hygienist fields, select the staff members.

3 In the Notes field, type any notes.

4 Click Book It!

5 Click the Weekly View icon and use the arrow keys to find an

available hygienist time slot.

6 Click-and-drag the floating appointment to the time slot.

7 Close the appointment card.

Exercise 2—Confirm an Appointment

To confirm the appointment you made earlier:

1 In the Search field, type three letters of the patient’s last

name.

2 Open the patient’s appointment card. In the Appointment

Details section, the confirmation status is displayed.

3 Click Yes.

Exercise 3—Reschedule an Appointment

A patient calls the office and tells you that he must reschedule an

appointment. To reschedule:

1 In the Day View, find the patient’s appointment.

2 Click and hold your mouse over the appointment tile. The

appointment tile turns pink and hovers in reschedule mode.

3 Use the calendar to select another date. The date is displayed

with the appointment tile still hovering.

4 Drag the appointment to the time you want and release the

mouse.

Exercise 4—Check a Patient In and Out

A patient arrives at the office. Check him in, track his progress,

and check him out.

To check the patient in and out:

1 In the Day View, find the patient’s appointment and click the

tile.

2 Select Check In.

3 When you seat the patient, click the appointment tile and

select Seated.

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 31 of 32

4 When the procedures for the appointment are complete, click

the appointment tile and select Completed.

5 To check the patient out, click the appointment tile and select

Check Out. The patient's ledger is displayed.

6 Click Post.

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SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 33 of 36

Lesson 5

Generating Lists

You can generate these lists from the Tasks tab:

• Confirmation

• Pending

• Short Call

Generating Confirmation Lists

The Confirmation List is a list of patients with scheduled

appointments that have not been confirmed, beginning with the

appointment closest to the current date and time. From the list,

you can click an appointment to view details and contact

information or to add a note. You can also select one of the Left

Message options to show information about a message if you did

not reach a patient.

When you select an appointment from the list, the Rebook,

Cancel, and Confirm buttons become active. If you select one of

these options, an entry in the Note field is created.

To generate a Confirmation List:

1 Click the Tasks tab.

2 Click the Confirmation List icon. A list of unconfirmed

appointments is displayed.

3 Use the Filter options to refine the list:

• Location—Use the arrow to select an office location.

• Provider—Use the arrow to select a provider.

• Production Value—Move the slider to select a production

value to include.

• Duration—Move the slider to select an appointment

duration length to include.

• Days From Today—Move the slider to select the number

of days from today for appointments to include.

Generating Pending Lists

The Pending List is a list of patients with appointments that were

cancelled, broken, missed, or defined but not yet scheduled. From

the list, you can click an appointment to view details and contact

information or to add a note. To reschedule an appointment, click

Rebook.

To generate a Pending List:

1 Click the Tasks tab.

2 Click the Pending List icon. A list of patients with

appointments with a status of Cancelled, Broken, Failed, or

Unbooked is displayed.

All four types are included by default. To exclude a type of

missed appointment, deselect it from the Include section.

3 Use the Filter options to refine the list:

• Location—Use the arrow to select an office location.

• Provider—Use the arrow to select a provider.

Pending List

Confirmation List

34 of 36 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

• Include—Select whether to include appointments that

were cancelled, broken, failed, or unbooked.

• On Pending List—Move the slider to the right to include

all appointments on the Pending List.

• Order By (Oldest First)—Select Days Pending or

Scheduled Date.

• Production Value—Move the slider to select a production

value to include.

• Duration—Move the slider to select an appointment

duration length to include.

Generating Short Call Lists

The Short Call List is a list of patients with scheduled

appointments who might be available to fill an earlier time slot.

From the list, you can click an appointment to view details and

contact information or to add a note. To reschedule an

appointment, click Rebook.

To generate a Short Call List:

1 Click the Tasks tab.

2 Click the Short Call List icon. A list of patients with

non-cancelled appointments whose short call status is not set

to No is displayed.

3 Use the Filter options to refine the list:

• Availability—Select Anytime, Morning, or Afternoon.

• Location—Use the arrow to select an office location.

• Provider—Use the arrow to select a provider.

• Production Value—Move the slider to select a production

value to include.

• Duration—Move the slider to select an appointment

duration length to include.

• Days from Today—Move the slider to select the number

of days to include from the current date.

• Lab case received—Select this option to include

appointments for which lab cases have been received.

Short Call List

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 35 of 36

Skill Sharpeners

Exercise 1—Generate a Pending List

You want to see how many appointments have been cancelled in

the last year. To generate the list:

1 Click the Task tab and the Pending List icon.

2 In the Location field, select your location.

3 In the Provider field, select All.

4 In the Include field, select only the Cancelled option.

5 In the Production Value field, move the slider to the left to

include all appointments.

6 In the Duration field, move the slider to the right to include all

appointments.

7 In the Days Before Today field, move the slider to the middle.

The list is displayed.

Exercise 2—Generate a Confirmation List

You want to see how many appointments have been confirmed for

all providers for the next ten days. To generate the list:

1 Click the Task tab and the Confirmation List icon.

2 In the Location field, select your location.

3 In the Provider field, select All.

4 In the Production Value field, move the slider to the left to

include all appointments.

5 In the Duration field, move the slider to the right to include all

appointments.

6 In the Days From Today field, move the slider to 10. The list is

displayed.

Exercise 3—Generate a Short Call List

A patient cancels a 3:00 appointment two weeks from today, and

you want to fill the time slot. To see how many patients are

available for an afternoon appointment in the next two weeks,

generate a short call list. To generate the list:

1 Click the Task tab and the Short Call List icon.

2 In the Availability field, select Afternoon.

3 In the Location field, select your location.

4 In the Provider field, select the name of the provider who was

originally scheduled.

5 In the Production Value field, move the slider to the left to

include all appointments.

6 In the Duration field, move the slider to the right to indicate

the amount of time available for the appointment.

7 In the Days from Today field, move the slider to 10. The list is

displayed.

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SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 37 of 40

Index

adding patients 22

Admin overlay

alerts

appointment card

adding procedures

details

opening

treatment plans

using

appointment log

appointments

cancelling

confirming

family or group

rebooking

rescheduling

scheduling

assistant time, scheduling

Auto Scheduler icon

buttons, navigation 12

Calendar icon 12

calendar, using

cancelling appointments

chairs, configuring

checking patients in and out

classes, scheduling

clinical resources, breakdown

Clinician overlay

colors

configuring overlays

Confirmation List

Confirmation overlay

confirming appointments

contacts, preferred

custom views, creating

customizing views

dates, displaying 11

day profile

Day View, using

Default overlay

doctor time

family appointments 28

family members, scheduling

financial targets

flyouts

Full Day View icon

global custom views, creating 16

group appointments

Group Booking icon

HIPAA standards, complying with 18

holidays, setting

hot keys

hours, setting

2, 6

38 of 40 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

Ideal Day feature 4

images

keyboard shortcuts, using 12

lists

Confirmation

Pending

Short Call

messages 28

navigation buttons 12

New Appointment icon

notes

office holidays, setting 3

office hours, defining

office settings

Options panel

overlays

Admin

Clinician

Confirmation

Default

Production Goals

Provider Working Time

painting the schedule 6

patients

adding

checking in

checking out

recare

searching

tracking

Pending List

personal view, creating

preferences

office hours

setting

preferred contact

Print Scheduler icon

printing routing slips

printing the schedule

privacy settings

production goals

setting

viewing

Production Goals overlay

provider hours, setting

provider time

Provider Working Time overlay

real time bar 12

rebooking appointments

recare, managing

rescheduling appointments

routing slips, printing

schedule, printing 18

scheduling appointments

with Auto Scheduler

scheduling classes, setting up

Search field

11, 21

searching the Scheduler

Short Call List

symbols

SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05) 39 of 40

Tasks tab 33, 34

tiles

time off

time summary indicator

timeline

tracking patients

treatment categories

vacation time 6

views

custom

customizing

global

personal

15, 16

printing

Weekly View icon 11

Weekly View, using

40 of 40 SoftDent Scheduler Initial Training Workbook (NG941-05)

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