Overview
The Practitioner Hours settings allow you to configure when practitioners are available to see patients and establish specific time blocks for different appointment types. This comprehensive scheduling system ensures your diary accurately reflects each practitioner's availability.
Global Color Settings
At the top of the page, you can customize the standard color codes used throughout the system:
- Closed background color: Indicates times when the practitioner isn't working
- Lunch background color: Highlights lunch break periods
- New patient background color: Designates slots reserved for new patient appointments
Click "Save colors" to apply these color preferences across the system.
Working Hours Configuration
This section allows you to set each practitioner's regular weekly schedule:
- Set standard working hours for each day of the week
- Specify start and finish times (e.g., 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM)
- Mark days when the practitioner is not working by checking the "Not working" checkbox
Lunch Break Settings
Define when lunch breaks occur for each practitioner:
- Set start and finish times for lunch (e.g., 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM)
- Check "No lunch" for days when no lunch break is scheduled
- These periods will be blocked out in the diary and unavailable for appointments
- The system automatically applies the lunch background color to these periods
New Patient Times
Reserve specific time slots for new patient appointments:
- Configure morning (AM) and afternoon (PM) slots for new patients
- Set the start time for each session (e.g., 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM)
- Specify the duration for these appointments (default is 60 minutes)
- Check "No NP times" to indicate days when new patients aren't scheduled
- These settings affect both the diary display and online booking availability
Base Times (Online Booking)
Define base times from which the system will cluster book in your online booking system:
- Set specific AM and PM times
- Ensure these times fall within the practitioner's working hours to avoid booking being placed outside the working hours
- Configure different availability for each day of the week
- Check "No Base times" for periods when cluster online booking should be disabled. The system will default to making all appointments available for online booking.
Other Recurring Color Codings
Create additional color-coded time blocks for other purposes:
- Click "Create new color coding" to add custom time periods
- Use this for special clinic sessions or appointment types
- No current color codings are saved in the image above
Remember to click "Save edits" after making changes to preserve your configuration.