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Shifts

Introduction

In Empeon's Advanced Scheduling Module, "Shifts" serve as the foundation for how schedules are created and assigned. Each Shift is configured to define the specific days and timeframes it can be scheduled, the employees eligible to work the shift, and any budgetary or census requirements tied to the shift.

When creating Shifts, it important to first create Position Groups because each Shift requires a Position Group to be assigned. A Position Group determines which employees, based on their position, are eligible to be assigned the shift. This is the only aspect of the Shift that requires pre-configuration.

To view and maintain Shifts, navigate to the Scheduling section of the Company tab and select the Shifts Card.

Within the Shifts Card, the system will automatically default to the Position Groups section. To view and maintain existing Shifts or set up new ones, make sure to toggle to the Shifts section.

For each Shift, the "Employee Count" column displays the total number of times the Shift has been assigned, whether through a Shift Schedule Pattern or manually within the Schedule's Employee View or Daily View.

A 'pencil' icon allows for the ability to Edit the Shift, while a three-dot menu provides options to View, Delete, Deactivate, Duplicate and Copy to another company. Please note that a Shift can only be deleted if it has yet to be assigned otherwise it will need to be deactivated.

Duplicating a Shift will initiate the set up of a new Shift but configured to match the settings of the Shift being duplicated. This feature can be helpful if a new Shift needs to be structured similarly to an existing Shift but with a few minor tweaks. 

To add a new Shift, click the blue button labeled "+ New Shift" in the top right corner of the screen. A pop-up will appear with several settings. The top portion of the screen focuses on defining the shift name and type, along with the days and times the shift will be observed.

  • Code - Enter a unique code for the shift (up to 10 characters).
  • Color - This is an optional feature that offers the ability to color code Shifts in order to to visually distinguish them on the schedule.
  • Description - Though this is an optional field, a description helps further define the Shift and who may be eligible for it.
  • Shift Category - Establish whether the Shift is considered the Day, Evening or Night shift.
  • Start/End Time - Establish the Start and End times for the Shift.
  • Lunch - Enter the duration for all unpaid breaks and lunches, that employees assigned to this Shift should clock out for. This duration will automatically be deducted from the total hours worked during the Shift.
  • Applicable to Position Group - Assign a Position Group to determine which employees, based on their assigned Positions within the group, are eligible for this Shift.
  • Applicable to Days - Establish which days out of the week this Shift can be scheduled on. Select all that apply.

Budget

The remaining portion of this screen includes settings for Budget, Additional Filters, and Additional Settings.

Advanced Schedules, Budget, Additional Filters and Settings

A Budget sets a threshold for the minimum number of employees needed to staff a Shift, ensuring that there is adequate coverage. There are two Budget Types available for establishing a budget within a Shift:

  • HPPD - This type is designed for facilities that require HPPD reporting. It references the daily Census that is being tracked, which is a section within the Schedule where daily patient headcount is recorded on an ongoing basis. This method is ideal for facilities with fluctuating census levels, as it ensures staffing levels will automatically adjust based on patient volume. 

    When setting up the HPPD budget type, an additional field for the HPPD Budget for Shift will become available. In this field, the number of staff hours required per patient is entered. The system will then reference the daily census and calculate the amount of staff needed to support the patient headcount, ensuring the staffing budget aligns with the required hours per patient.

    For example, if the HPPD Budget For Shift is 2 hours (the number of staff hours required per patient), and the Census for the day is 40 patients, the system will calculate 80 hours of coverage is required. For an Shift that is 8 hours, the system will calculate the budget to be 10 employees for that day (80 total hours divided by 8 hours shifts).

  • Budget - This budget type can still reference census tracking if needed, however it can be set up to also ignore the census and simply apply a standard budget to the Shift. This method requires defining the Budget Hours, which reflect the total number of hours needed to cover the shift. 

    For example, if the Shift is 8 hours and three employees are needed to cover it, 24 hours would be entered here, as this represents the total staff hours required to cover the shift across all employees working it. 

    If breaks and/or lunches are included in the Shift, those hours should be deducted when entering the total. For example, if the shift includes a 30-minute lunch break, the total shift length would be 7.5 hours so if three employees are needed to cover the shift, the total hours entered would then be 22.5 hours (3 employees X 7.5 hours).

    • Max Census - This is an additional field that can be used to set up tiers of budgets within the Shift to account for the census being tracked. Consider the following example for an 8 hour Shift:

      Tier 1: Budget Hours: 24, Max Census: 48
      Tier 2: Budget Hours: 32, Max Census: 64
      Tier 3: Budget Hours: 40, Max Census: 80
      Tier 4: Budget Hours: 48, No Max Census

      With these budget tiers set up, if the daily census is 48 patients or fewer, Tier 1 will be applied as the budget. If the daily census is between 49 and 64 patients, Tier 2 will be applied. If the daily census is between 65 and 80 patients, Tier 3 will be applied, and if the census is 81 or more patients, Tier 4 will be applied.

      Utilizing the Max Census field is an effective way to link the budget to the census if needed. To set up budget tiers, utilize the "blue plus" button in the top right corner of the Budget section.

Advanced Schedules Budget Tiers

Additional Filters

Depending on the Job Info categories being used, this section offers options to filter by Job Info, in order to further refine the employees that should be eligible for the shift. This is most commonly used with Floor/Units in order to differentiate which Floor/Unit the Shift should be applied to. 

Advanced Schedules Additional Filters Floor Units

While Additional Filters can be used to refine the eligibility toward a Shift, they can also be used for informational purposes given that there are additional settings within Scheduling Rules where these filters can be ignored.

For example, a Location assigned to a Shift is displayed on the Shift so that employees will know which location to report to. Within Scheduling Rules, the filtering by location can then be turned off so that the assignment of the Shift is not restricted by location.

Additional Settings

The "Next Shift Overlap Threshold" is the only setting within this section and it determines the amount of time, in minutes, that one shift can overlap with the next scheduled shift. This overlap ensures that there is no gap in coverage between shifts, allowing for a smooth transition of staff from shift to shift.

Once all fields within the Shift have been attended to, click the blue "Save" button to make the Shift available to be assigned. The settings configured within the Shift itself set the overall framework for how the Shift can be applied. However, please refer to Empeon's article Scheduling Rules to review some of the additional settings and parameters that can impact how a Shift might be assigned and enforced.