How to Add an Away

  • Updated

Block time on a practitioner's schedule to prevent appointments from being booked while they are unavailable. Use the Away feature for temporary schedule changes such as breaks, meetings, vacations, and sick days. 

 

When to Use This

Use this article when you need to block time on a practitioner's schedule for:

  • Breaks 
  • Meetings 
  • Vacation 
  • Sick days
  • Training sessions
  • Charting/EMR Time 

For permanent schedule changes, update the practitioner's Availability instead. 

 

What You Need 

  • Access to the schedule
  • The practitioner must already exist in the system

 

Permission 

  • User Type access to Manage Scheduling Aways 

Contact your clinic administrator if you do not have the required access.

 

Adding an Away

  1. Navigate to the schedule 
  2. Click the icon beside the practitioner's name 
  3. Select New Away 

 

 

  1. The Scheduling / Away window will open 

 

  1. Enter the Away details as needed

 

Type
  • Select the label you want to display for the blocked time on the schedule
  • To create a custom label, select Other and enter the desired text in the Reason field
Reason 
  • This field only appears when Other is selected as the Type
  • Enter a custom label to display on the schedule
Recurring
  • Select No to create a one-time Away
  • To learn how to create a recurring Away, see the related section below
Time
  • Select All Day to block the entire day, or choose a start and end time to create a partial-day Away.
Colour
  • The default colour is purple
  • You can select a different colour if desired
Employee
  • Select the practitioner whose schedule the Away will apply to
  • If you create the Away directly from the schedule, this field is populated automatically
From
  • Select the date the Away will begin
To
  • Select the date the Away will end 
Notes
  • Add any internal notes related to the Away
  • Notes do not appear on the schedule but remain visible when viewing the Away details
  • For the Away types Other, Unavailable, Notice, and End of Day, notes are permanent once the Away has been created. Review them carefully before saving, as they cannot be edited or deleted unless the Away itself is removed

 

  1. Click Save 

 

Result 

The blocked time appears on the schedule and prevents appointments from being booked during the selected period.

 

 

Creating a Recurring Away 

If a practitioner will be unavailable on a recurring basis for a temporary period, such as monthly meetings, biweekly training sessions, or dedicated charting time, you can create a recurring Away. 

Follow the steps under Adding an Away, but make the following changes:

In the Scheduling / Away window: 

  1. Set Recurring to Yes
  2. Select a Frequency:
    • Daily
    • Weekly
    • Biweekly
    • Monthly
    • Yearly
  3. Enter the start and end dates

The Away is automatically created according to the selected recurrence pattern until the end date is reached.

 

Avoid Common Issues

  • Use an Away for temporary schedule changes only
  • Update practitioner Availability for permanent changes to working hours
  • Review notes carefully before saving, as some Away types do not allow notes to be edited later
  • Confirm that the correct practitioner is selected before creating the Away

 

Troubleshooting

I don't see the option to create an Away 

  • Your user role may not have permission to create Aways
  • Contact your clinic administrator if you do not have the required access 

I can't edit or remove my notes

  • Notes for the Other, Unavailable, Notice, and End of Day Away types cannot be modified after the Away is saved
  • To change the notes, delete the Away and create a new one

 

I created the Away with the wrong details

  • Open the Away from the schedule and update the information if editing is available
  • If the required fields cannot be changed, remove the Away and create a new one

 

Related Articles 

How to Add a Practitioner's Availability 

 

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