Refer to Key Concepts for a detailed explanation of Schedules.  Appointment Types and Booking Rules will be covered in a separate document. Schedules are a licensed feature in the Pomelo Platform. You will need to reach out to your Pomelo Health Customer Success Specialist to inquire about adding any new schedules to your clinic's Platform. 


1.  Once you have discussed adding a new schedule to your Pomelo Platform with your Pomelo Health Customer Success Specialist, and the schedule has been created, you can then make any necessary configurations to the new schedule.


2. Open the new schedule in the Schedules tab.


3.  Expand the Schedule Settings bar:

  • Public and Internal Name will appear from the previous screen, you can edit the Public Name if you would like your patient's to see a different name than the Internal Name.
  • The Description field is not mandatory.
  • Input Minimum Increment and use a divisible base number.  eg. If the provider has 15 minute regular appointments and 30 minute physical appointments, then input 15 in the field.
  • Choose the Default Location, if applicable, from the drop down menu.
  • Default Timezone can stay untouched, unless this provider is working from a different location in another Timezone.
  • The Default Advanced Check-In is the patient's appointment time minus the value entered in this field.  This time will appear in the Reminder notification that is sent to the patient to prevent late arrivals.
  • Checking the Auto Revive Availabilities box will create a new availability in the same time slot if an appointment is cancelled in the EMR or online.
  • The Calendar Start and End Time will control the time range that will be displayed on the calendar for this schedule.



Continued...

  • Type in any special Confirmation Email Content if applicable.  The confirmation email is sent immediately after an e-booking has been approved.  Note:  The Confirmation Email is only sent prior to the set Reminder schedule. eg. If a reminder is scheduled to be sent 2 days prior to an appointment, and the patient e-books 1 day before, then a Reminder will be sent instead of the Confirmation. 
  • Type in any special Declined Request Email Content if applicable. The declined request email is sent when the clinic staff have rejected an appointment booking. This is applicable for clinics that require E-booking triage (i.e. confirming/rejecting appointment requests).
  • The Max allowable upcoming appointments value is set to 4 by default. It is recommended that this remains untouched, unless your clinic experiences patients abusing the booking system.



Continued...

  • Enter Cancel Alert message if appropriate. eg.  You will be subject to a fee if you cancel this appointment. Note: Although the patient will be shown this alert when attempting to cancel an appointment, they will not be barred from cancelling the appointment. However, it is always better to be notified of a cancellation than to have a no-show. 
  • Enter the number of hours in the Cancel Alert Hours field that will show the Cancel Alert message to the patient when the patient attempts to cancel their upcoming appointment.  ie. If you would like to deter cancellation within 48 hours of the appointment, then input 48 in this field.
  • Checking the Require reason for cancellation box will make it mandatory for the patient to input a reason for their appointment cancellation. 



4. Link to EMR:

  • Pick the appropriate EMR in the drop down menu.



  • For External ID of this schedule, click on the indicated options button to Select EMR Resource (see below).
  • Check on the appropriate schedule name to select the proper EMR resource and then click Close.


  • The Can Sync box must be checked to enable Portal and EMR schedule replication.


5. Appointment Reminders

  • The Send Reminders box must be checked to enable notifications, informing patients of upcoming appointments.
  • By checking the Send Reminders to Unregistered Patients you allow patients who have not registered, but who have had their email collected, to receive notifications. 
  • Checking the Send SMS Opt-In Reminders prompts the patient to agree to receive SMS reminders prior to being shown the appointment reminder. This is applicable to clinics who offer the SMS add-on. SMS reminders are a licensed feature which will need to be activated by your Pomelo Health or Telus Staff. Please contact Telus sales for more information.
  • In the Appointment Reminder Instructions the content of the email reminder can be customized. 


 

  • The + Add Reminder button will allow you to add additional reminders/notifications that the patient will receive at different intervals. e.g. You can add a 7 day email reminder and/or an SMS reminder that is sent 1 day before the appointment
    • First use the Add Reminder button
    • Under Reminder Type choose whether this will be a reminder that does not require patient confirmation or one that requires the patient's confirmation. Please note that if a patient confirms an appointment, any subsequent reminder attempts that have been set will not be sent. 
    • Set how many days in advance of the appointment you would like the patient to receive the reminder, under Advanced Days
    • Finally choose the method/methods of reminder under Reminder Attempt #



6. Auto Publish Availabilities