Dispatch Calendar Guide

The Dispatch Calendar provides a calendar view of scheduled calls and allows for quicker insight to availability when scheduling new transports. The Calendar works in tandem with the Dispatch Call Queue and acts to supplement the Call Queue for better management of future transports and scheduling availability.

Calendar Views

The Dispatch Calendar is set up to provide the user a number of different display formats all with configurable display settings and filters. The display formats are referred to as the Calendar Views. The current view that you have selected will be highlighted in Blue.

The Hour View provides users with an hour-by-hour breakdown of transports within that time block.
The Day View is the most common of the views and can be used for daily dispatching just like the Dispatch Call Queue. It shows all calls for the date of service being viewed. This is usually the default Calendar View.
To see every call scheduled during a week, users can use the Week View.
To see calls scheduled throughout the month, use the Month View. The month view is limited to only displaying 2 calls per day, but provides an ellipsis (...) icon to allow the user to navigate directly to that day to review more calls for that date of service.

Users can configure a default Calendar View that will automatically be shown when accessing the Calendar by selecting one in Dispatch Setup > Configuration Switches Setup.

The Calendar Views are able to be accessed from the Menu in the image at the top of this section, but they can also be accessed from these alternative selections:

Clicking any of the numeric days within the Month view will redirect the user to that week in the Week view.
Clicking any of the days at the top of the Week view will redirect the user to that day in the Day view.
Clicking any of the hours along the side of the Day view will redirect the user to that hour in the Hour view.

Note: The Dispatch Calendar does not normally display cancelled calls. Users must configure the Calendar to do so with the Calendar View Option "Show Cancelled Records" if desired.

Calendar View Options: These configurations allow for the Calendar to display records that do not normally display.

Show Cancelled Records: Enabling this option will display cancelled calls. Cancelled calls do not normally display on the Calendar.
Show Scheduled Alerts: Enabling this option lets the user see any potential scheduling conflicts that may arise from future Dispatch Scheduled Calls records that are not yet scheduled via that utility. These records will display in red once this Calendar View Option is enabled.

Specific Unit Filter: Select a unit in this dropdown to filter the Calendar for only the calls assigned to that unit.

Specific Patient Filter: Select a patient in this dropdown to filter the Calendar for only the calls associated with that patient.

Specific Unit Filter: Select a profile in this dropdown to filter the Calendar for only the calls with that profile.

Shift Assignments / Dispatch Scheduled Calls / Dispatch Call Queue Buttons: These buttons are available on the Calendar screen in order to quickly access other parts of the Dispatch module.

Refresh Button: The Calendar does not automatically refresh like the Dispatch Call Queue. Select the Refresh button periodically to ensure you are always looking at the latest and greatest information.

The Calendar feature shares the same color legend as the Dispatch Call Queue.

New/Unassigned calls will display as blue records on the Calendar. These are calls that have just been created, or just haven't been assigned to a unit yet.
Assigned calls/units will display with a purple color on the Calendar. Calls that are assigned a unit will display in the purple color, and so will the unit assigned to that call within the Units Sidebar.
Out calls will display as red records on the Calendar. These calls are actively being carried-out. To move a call to Out status, enter an Enroute Date/Time for that call.
Completed calls have a Completed Date/Time entered. These calls can typically be Finished using the Finish button unless further data entry is required.

Unavailable is a status that is strictly for units in the Units Sidebar. To make a unit unavailable, select the Edit button circled above. This will create a popup where a user can complete some information about the unavailability. Unavailable calls will count down until the unit becomes available again and display in a yellow color.
Available is a status that again is only for units in the Units Sidebar. Units showing in the green color are available to be assigned to a call at present time.

Note: The statuses for units reflect the current day and should not be considered when viewing the Calendar in the Week or Month view.

Calls in the Calendar show information on their records in this format:

Patient Last Name / Pick Up Location / Duration (Enroute to Completed, or Estimated Duration) / Unit - Call Sign

When hovering the mouse over a call in the Calendar, more information is available:

Profile, Trip Number, Date of Service

Patient Name (in Last Name, First Name format)

Transport Locations (Pick Up Location to Taken To Location)

Pick Up and Appointment Dates/Times

Assigned Unit

Click any call to view/edit more information.

Today Button: Returns the user to the current date in the Day View of the Calendar.

Next/Previous Buttons: Moves the Calendar Display to the next or previous Hour/Day/Week/Month depending on the current Calendar View.

Date Range Identifier: This summarizes the dates being viewed in the calendar.

Calendar Call Creation

Users in the Calendar have multiple ways to create calls. First is the dedicated Create button in the top-left of the Calendar:

Users can also click anywhere on the Calendar grid where a call is not currently scheduled to create a call. Creating a call this way will automatically assign a Pick Up Time based on where you clicked.

New Record Prompt: Call Summary Information Tab

When creating a new call in the Calendar, users have the ability to enter minimal information quickly within the Call Summary Information section. This short form data entry screen allows for quicker data entry than even the Quick Intake Page.

Service Date: This populates automatically based on the current date if using the Create Button. This populates with the date of service that you clicked if clicking on a blank spot in the Calendar.

Profile: Select a profile for this call. What populates automatically here is the first profile in alphabetical order and may need changed depending on the call type.

Patient Care / Incident / Response Numbers: These fields populate based on the trip numbering settings in Configuration Switches Setup. They will be disabled as shown in the image above if your trip numbering settings are configured to be automatic. If they are configured to be manual, then these fields allow for entry of the trip numbers associated with this call.

Patient Lookup: Type the name of the patient in Last Name, First Name format in order to search the accounts database for an existing patient. This is the same functionality of the Existing Patient section of the Dispatch Portal.

If an existing patient account is found, their information will be populated once the call is created.
If no existing patient account is found, a new patient account will be created using the name left in this field once the call is created.
Leaving this field blank results in a call without patient information.

Pick Up Location Section/Taken To Location Section: Enter the name of the Pick Up Location to populate a location from Facilities Setup. Alternatively, use the Facility Button dropdown to browse through the location categories from setup. Otherwise, select the 'Residence' Button to automatically populate an existing patient's residence location, or select 'Scene', 'Site of Transfer', or 'Other' to enter a custom address location depending on the most appropriate kind of location name for the encounter.

Pickup Date/Time: Select the date/time the patient must be picked up at. This is a built-in requirement for Scheduled-type profiles.

Appointment Time: Enter a time for the patient's appointment, if applicable for the type of call.

Return Pick Up Date/Time: Enter a date/time for the patient's return pick up, if applicable for the type of call.

Estimated Duration

Entering an estimated duration is very important for the Dispatch Calendar. Calls typically span the length of the transport on the Calendar (from the Enroute Date/Time to the Completed Date/Time), but only once these date/time fields are entered will the Calendar actually reflect the length of that transport/encounter.

Before entering those date/time intervals, calls in the Calendar only take up enough space on the Calendar to display their information. Entering an Estimated Duration allows for the record to span the length of its estimated duration prior to those dates/times being entered. Once the Enroute and Completed Date/Times are entered (or automatically populated from an associated AIM ePCR via the 'Import PCR Date/Times to Dispatch Date/Times that are empty' configuration switch in Configuration Switches Setup) the call will reflect its actual duration.

It is best practice that if you are using the Calendar frequently to always estimate a duration for the transport in order to visually interpret how long that unit will be in the field.

Cancel Button: Cancels adding a new call and returns the user to the Calendar, saving nothing.

Create With More Details Button: Selecting this button saves the data that the user has entered in the Call Summary Information tab thus far, then directs the user to either the Quick Intake Page, or the Incident Page, depending on the setting for that profile, so that the user can enter more details for this call outside of the minimum data in the Call Summary Information Tab.

Profiles can be configured to either open to the Quick Intake Page with the configurable option in Profiles Setup, or if not, calls will automatically open to the Incident Page by default.

Save Button: Saves the call to the Calendar, then returns the user to the Calendar screen.

New Record Prompt: Recurrence Tab

The Recurrence Tab is optionally used in order to create additional calls that stem off this original encounter. There are three options in the Recurrence Tab, configured by selecting the Recurrence Option field:

Does Not Repeat: This is the default option for the Recurrence Option. If selected, only one call is created when the New Record prompt is saved. All other fields are disabled in the Recurrence Tab while this option is selected as they are not applicable.
Return Trip: When selected, a return trip will automatically be created using the data from the Call Summary Information Tab...
1. The first trip's Return Pick Up Date/Time becomes the return trip's Pick Up Date/Time and completes that requirement automatically.
2. The return trip will share the same trip number as the first trip, only with the next alphabetical character in sequence added to the end of the trip number. If no alphabetical character is present in the first trip's trip number, then 'A' will be assigned to the return trip's trip number. This setting is configurable; if the user's agency frequently does return trips, 'A' can be automatically assigned to the end of every trip number automatically so that when return trips are created, they will automatically add 'B' to the end of the trip number. This can be configured in Configuration Switches Setup.
3. The locations of the first trip will transfer to the return, but they will be reversed. The Picked Up Location of the first trip becomes the Taken To Location of the return trip. The Taken To Location of the first trip becomes the Picked Up Location of the return trip.
4. Return Trips display a special icon in the Calendar to show they are return trips:
5. Once saved, both the first and the return trips are added to the Calendar.
Add to Scheduled Alerts: When this option is selected, additional fields in the Recurrence Tab will become enabled. Combined with all the data from the Call Summary Information Tab, users will be able to save the first call, then automatically create a Dispatch Scheduled Calls record in order to easily schedule future transports at the click of a button.

Schedule Name: Enter a name for this series of routine transports.

Pick Up Time: Enter a Pick Up Date/Time, if you have not done so already. If entered back on the Call Summary Information Tab, it will already be completed on the Recurrence Tab.

Appointment Time: Enter an Appointment Date/Time, if you have not done so already. If entered back on the Call Summary Information Tab, it will already be completed on the Recurrence Tab.

Day(s) of the Week: Select the date(s) that these routine transports could potentially occur on. A Scheduled Alert will appear in the Dispatch Portal on those days between the Start/End dates, detailed below.

Start/End Dates: This is the start of the series of routine transports, as well as the end date for these routine transports - combined this is the timeframe in which these routine transports will potentially be scheduled within. These dates are be entered, at most, for a year before the user will need to revise them in Dispatch Scheduled Calls.

Once the record has been saved, the call will be created on the Calendar, and an associated record containing all of the data entered for the first call will be added automatically to Dispatch Scheduled Calls.

Calendar Call Management

As stated at the beginning of this guide, the Calendar feature shares most of the Call Management options present in the Dispatch Call Queue. This allows for users to easily use the Calendar to manage their ongoing transports, by way of being able to quickly update data such as dates/times, unit assignment, rescheduling and more.

Clicking on an existing Calendar record will take the user to a new prompt titled Edit Record. In this Edit Record pop up, a user can do the following actions:

Rescheduling: Changing the date of service / pick up time / appointment time is very easy within this pop up.
Corrections: Updates to the profile, trip numbers, patient account, transport locations, or duration can be made within the Call Summary Information Tab.
Finish/Cancel: Users are able to Finish the call (which logs the current date/time as the Completed Date/Time) or Cancel the call (which logs the current date/time as the Canceled Date/Time) from within this popup. Note that in order to Finish a call, all mandatory fields must be completed. This sometimes requires the user visit the call itself (accessed by the Edit More Details Button) to view the requirements during validation process if an error is received.
Times/Mileage Tab: Users can visit the Time/Mileage Tab to record date/time intervals, delays or odometer readings during the course of dispatching the encounter.

To complete the updates in the Edit Record prompt, select the Save button, or alternatively select Edit More Details to update additional information not present in either the Call Summary Information or Times/Mileages Tabs.

Mini Calendar

The Mini Calendar is meant to provide a quick reference to the currently-selected date in the Calendar vs the current date itself.

Blue highlight indicates the current date selected (in the image above, the user is currently reviewing April 23rd).
Blue outline indicates the current date itself. This is further stated below the Mini Calendar and serves as a frame of reference if the user is browsing the Calendar for a future month or year.

The Mini Calendar can also be collapsed by clicking the minimize arrow in the top right-corner (circled in red). This provides more room for the Units Sidebar below it to display for easier management of unit status.

Units Sidebar

The Units Sidebar allows users to track the statuses of their currently-assigned units and the designated crew for those units as well. A unit must be configured in Shift Assignments Setup to display as an available unit in the Units Sidebar.

Users can also assign or reassign units to calls by clicking and dragging a unit from the Units Sidebar to the call they'd like to assign or reassign the unit to.

The Edit button on each unit quickly allows the user to mark a unit unavailable if needed.