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EPSKED Configuration - Main Menu
Introduction to EPSKED
  Welcome to EPSKED!  Please take a moment to review this introductory screen.

  EPSKED, the emergency physician scheduling program, is designed to help you
create emergency physician work schedules.  Context-sensitive help screens
(such as the one you are reading now) are available for nearly all of the
program screens, and provide detailed descriptions and examples of EPSKED's
features.

  As a convention used throughout EPSKED, keyboard commands for each screen
are shown enclosed in angled brackets.  For example, you can view the program
screen that a help screen is discussing by pressing <Alt>, the key labeled
"Alt" on your keyboard.  (Press and hold down the <Alt> key now to view the
Main Menu program screen.  Return to this help screen by releasing the <Alt>
key.)

  You can move backward and forward through the pages of a Help Screen by
pressing the <PgDn> and <PgUp> keys.  (Try it now.  Press the <PgDn> key to
advance to the next page of the Main Menu help screen, then press <PgUp> to
return to this help screen.)

  Now press <PgDn> again to continue.
             **** Copyright (c) 1995 - ByteBloc Software ****
 01-2
  Avoid being bogged down trying to understand every detail of the help screen
explanations!  Most help screens are loosely divided into four sections:
   ■ An introductory overview of the associated program screen
   ■ A description of the program screen display
   ■ An explanation of the commands that you can give EPSKED
   ■ A detailed explanation of the features and uses of the information
     entered in the program screen, including examples

  The first time you reach a new program screen, EPSKED automatically displays
the associated help screen.  We suggest you read the introductory overview,
then skim the more detailed help screens, paying particular attention to
highlighted items, so that you have an idea of their contents.

  When you finish reviewing the help screen, press <Esc> to return to the
program screen.

  Experiment with making entries.  Each program screen continuously displays
condensed instructions and, when needed, displays warning or error messages to
help you.  Press <F1> at any time to again read the introductory screen, to
read details necessary to answer a specific question, or to review one of the
many examples.

  Ready to start?  Please press the <PgDn> key.
 01-3
Overview of the EPSKED configuration program
  In order to customize (configure) EPSKED to your schedule, you will enter
information in logical steps that answer six questions:

    ╔════════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]════════════════════════╗
    ║ ■ What are your shifts?                                              ║
    ║ ■ How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
    ║ ■ Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
    ║ ■ What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
    ║ ■ What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
    ║ ■ Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
    ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

  Each of these configuration steps corresponds to a selection from the Main
Menu screen.  If you have previously entered configuration information,
individual configuration options may be selected and modifications made to
adapt EPSKED to any changes you may make in your schedule (such as addition of
new shifts or new physicians).

  If you are performing your initial configuration of EPSKED (no
configuration information has previously been entered), press the <A> key
to do "All selections" in order, as prompted on the menu.
 01-4
  The following configuration options are available from the Main Menu screen:
<A>  All selections
   Do All selections <N> through <P> below in order.
   You should select this option for your initial configuration of EPSKED.
<N>  Names and hours of your shifts
   Inform EPSKED about the shifts used by your schedule.
<R>  Relations between shifts
   Describe how your shifts relate to each other (you don't want to work a
   morning shift after just having worked the previous night.)
<D>  Define Day Types
   Indicate which of the shifts you established in option <N> above are used
   on which days of the week.
<F>  Format printout/display of schedule
   Specify the appearance (format) of your schedule when it is printed on
   paper or displayed on the computer screen.
<S>  Summary categories definition
   Identify categories of statistical information you want calculated for your
   schedules, such as the total hours worked by each physician.
<P>  Physician information
   Advise EPSKED of your physicians' names and scheduling requests.
<X>  Exit back to the scheduling program
   Exit the configuration program and load the scheduling program.  (A command
   not documented on the program screen: press <*> to exit directly to DOS.)
02
CONFIGURATION - Shift Names and Hours Entry
Overview of the Shift Names and Hours Entry screen
  Use the Shift Names and Hours Entry screen to inform EPSKED about the shifts
in your schedule.  This is the first step in EPSKED configuration:
   ╔════════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]════════════════════════╗
   ║  What are your shifts?                                              ║
   ║ ■ How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
   ║ ■ Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
   ║ ■ What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
   ║ ■ What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
   ║ ■ Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
   ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
  Five pieces of information are required for each shift:
 ■ Shift Name - Each shift name can be up to ten characters in length, though
   if your schedule uses more than six shifts per day, you may want to limit
   it to five characters (see details under Shift Name - Details below).
   BACKUP is a special name.
 ■ Length in Hours - Easy -- a 9am to 5pm shift would be 8 hours in length.
 ■ Weekend Shift If On Friday?...Sunday? - If a physician works a shift on a
   Friday or Sunday, should he be credited with working a weekend shift?
 ■ Scheduling Priority - rank shifts by their scheduling importance
 ■ Shift Off Prior To A Day Off - see details from that help screen
  To speed data entry, typical values are automatically provided after a shift
name is entered.  Keep the values or change them as required by your schedule.
 02-2
Screen Description
  The names of all entered shifts are shown in a column starting at the top
left of the screen.  (Remember, press the <Alt> key now to view the program
screen being discussed.)  Information for each shift is displayed to the right
of its name on the same line.  All information is displayed in light colored
characters on a dark background except for the position where information is
currently being entered.  This position (the "data entry site") is highlighted
in reverse video (dark letters on a light colored background), and may have a
flashing cursor present.
  Any Shift Name and Length in Hours information entered prior to the current
access of this screen is displayed with a bright red border (bright white if
you are using a monochrome display screen).  This enhancement is a reminder
that this information should not normally be changed, since this would affect
the recall of any schedules you have previously created (see below).
  The general screen commands are shown in a box at the center of the screen,
and are explained below.
  The three lines at the bottom of the screen contain instructions specific to
the current data entry site and should be self explanatory.  Messages
explaining any errors detected during data entry as well as any caution or
warning messages will also temporarily appear in this area.  The messages may
make specific recommendations or request that you press the <!> to confirm an
action.  To erase the messages and continue, simply press any key as directed.
 02-3
General Screen Commands
  The following commands are accessible from any data entry position.
<Esc> - to next screen
  Press the key labeled "Esc" to select this option ("Esc" is an abbreviation
for "Escape").  If you pressed <A> at the Main Menu to select the do "All
selections" option you will proceed to a screen where you enter information
about the relationships between your shifts, otherwise you are returned to the
Main Menu.
<Home> - to Main Menu
  Press the key labeled "Home" to select this option.  You will be returned
directly to the Main Menu.
<All Arrows> - move hilite
  "Arrows" refers to the four directional arrow keys.  (If you are using an
old style keyboard, you may not have dedicated arrow keys. You will, instead,
have arrows on the numeric key pad at the far right of your keyboard, on keys
numbered 2, 4, 6, and 8.  Make sure the number lock <NumLock> on your keyboard
is turned off, then use these keys as your arrow keys.)  The arrow keys are
used to move to a new data entry site as indicated by movement of the area of
reverse video highlighting.  Your intended movement may sometimes be diverted
by the program to allow confirmation of an automatic data entry or prevent
admission of improper data.  (The arrow keys are used in a similar fashion in
many screens in the EPSKED program.  Please be sure you understand their
function.)
 02-4
Shift Name  - Details
  Enter the names of all shifts used in your schedule in the column starting
at the top left of the program screen.  You can configure a maximum of sixteen
shifts.  A shift name can be up to ten characters in length, with all letters
automatically capitalized as they are entered.  Some sample names are shown in
the instruction box at the bottom of the program screen.

  Once you have typed in the name, press the <Enter> key to proceed.  To
assist data entry, the program automatically makes an initial "best guess" for
the other configuration information needed for that shift.  You can modify
these entries as needed.

  Shift name entry should be uncomplicated, with a few considerations:
 ■ Caveat #1: If you are using double coverage for a shift, the two shifts
   must have different names.  For example, if two physicians work your
   daytime shift, you need to create two separately named shifts, such as DAY
   1 and DAY 2, or 9-5 and 9_5.
 ■ Caveat #2: BACKUP is a specially treated shift name, and if you utilize it
   you will receive a warning message advising you to review this help screen.
   BACKUP shifts are configured with a length of zero hours and are not
   counted in worked shift summary statistics except when you specifically
   request BACKUP summary information.  More details about this feature are
   available when you create the summary categories you want.
 02-5
 ■ Caveat #3: Once you exit the Shift Names and Hours screen, you cannot later
   return and completely delete any of the shifts you have already created.
   You may, however, change a name at any time (for example, to  [UNUSED] )
   and you need not use all the shifts you create.  If you do change a shift
   name, a message warns you that "all saved schedules using this shifts are
   affected".  Previously saved schedules using the shift print normally, but
   summary information is inaccurate if you also change the summary categories
   that include the shift.  (Example: You change a shift name from DAY to
   NIGHT, add it to a PM SHIFTS summary category and remove it from an AM
   SHIFTS category.  Summary and cumulative summary statistics now credit
   physicians who worked old DAY shifts with having worked PM SHIFTS.  It's
   okay to make the change if this does not matter.)
 ■ Caveat #4: If you have a sizable schedule -- more than about six shifts a
   day -- you may want to limit the length of the shift name to five
   characters.  This allows you to take advantage of an option offered later
   in configuration: when customizing the appearance of your printed schedule
   you may optionally print the shift name to the left of the name of the
   physician scheduled for each shift.  Due to space limitations, only the
   first five letters of a shift name is printed using this option and the
   schedule must be printed using smaller print (a condensed font.)  To help
   you decide whether you might want to use the "print shift name left"
   option, appearances of a single printed day in a sample schedule with and
   without the option are shown on the next screen.
 02-6
     This day might be part of a schedule incorporating an emergency
     department (names shown in UPPERCASE letters), an urgent care clinic
     (names shown with their First Letter Capitalized) and an On Call shift
     (name shown in lowercase letters).  The left sample would utilize a
     printed "Schedule Key", which is printed on all schedules, to clarify the
     shift times and usually would suffice.  The right sample requires
     printing with smaller sized letters and prints only the first five
     letters of the shift name, but further clarifies shift times when needed.
                ═╪══════════╪═              ═╪════════════════╪═
                 │  - 11 -  │                │    - 11 -      │
                 │COOPER    │                │07-17 COOPER    │
                 │SMITH     │                │15-01 SMITH     │
                 │JONES     │                │23-07 JONES     │
                 │  .....   │                │      .....     │
                 │Clarke    │                │08-16 Clarke    │
                 │Samuelson │                │16-24 Samuelson │
                 │  .....   │                │      .....     │
                 │friedman  │                │ call friedman  │
                ═╪══════════╪═              ═╪════════════════╪═
     You are not deciding to use one option or the other at this time.  For
     now, use this information to decide the length of your shift names -- if
     you think you may use the "print shift name left" option, limit your
     shift names to five characters in length.
03
CONFIGURATION - Shift Relations Entry
Overview of the Shift Relations Entry screen
  The Shift Relations Entry screen is used to inform EPSKED about how your
shifts relate to each other. This is the second step in customizing
(configuring) EPSKED for your schedule:
   ╔════════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]════════════════════════╗
   ║ √ What are your shifts?                                              ║
   ║  How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
   ║ ■ Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
   ║ ■ What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
   ║ ■ What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
   ║ ■ Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
   ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
  EPSKED tracks relationships between each scheduled shift and all other
shifts in the schedule for the same day and for the two days following the
scheduled shift.  From the Shift Relations screen you will classify the
desirability of working those subsequent shifts into one of four categories:
you would PREFER to work it, you would DISLIKE working it, you would be OKAY
to work it, or it CONFLICTS (you cannot work it).  For example: You are
scheduled for a night shift.  The morning shift on the following day would
have a CONFLICTS relationship to the night shift.
  Since preferences vary among physicians, you can create up to nine different
sets of shift relationships.  Information entered here is a key part of
EPSKED's ability to adapt to a wide variety of schedules.
 03-2
Shift Relations Entry  -  Screen Description
  The relationships between one Worked Shift and all other shifts that could
be worked on the same day and both of the following two days are shown.  The
screen appears complex due to the large number of displayed prompts, so...
direct your attention initially to the working part of the display -- the
top portion of the screen.  (Press <Alt> now to view the program screen.)
  The top line of the program screens reads:
  After working a  *****  shift, how do you feel about working these shifts
The "*****" represents the name of the Worked Shift, displayed in the top line
of the screen in bright white letters on a red background, for which you are
entering relationships
  The second line of the program screen contains the headings for three
columns.  The left most column details the preferences for working each of the
shifts used by your schedule ON THE SAME DAY as the Worked Shift.  The middle
column gives preferences for working each of the shifts used by your schedule
ONE DAY LATER after working the Worked Shift, and the far right column details
the preferences for working each shift TWO DAYS LATER.
  The displayed relationships are both labeled and color coded (red for
Conflicts, yellow for Dislike, white for Okay, and green for Prefer).  Yellow
is a difficult color for some monitors to display.  If you have trouble with
this, try adjusting the monitor's contrast control.
  EPSKED initially sets all shift relationships to Conflicts for shifts the
same day as the Worked Shift, and Okay for shifts the days after.
 03-3
Screen Description  -  Shift Relations Entry (continued)
  Most entries you make on this screen will be in the ONE DAY AFTER column.
The ON THE SAME DAY column is useful if you have a physician who prefers (or
is at least willing) to work two shifts back to back in a day, and you will
probably use the TWO DAYS LATER column only to ensure that a physician has two
days off following a night shift.
  The current data entry site (where shift relationships are entered as
described below) is displayed in reverse video with a flashing    pointing to
the shift relationship that is to be modified.
  Vertically displayed to the left of the three columns of relationship
entries is the name of the current relationship model.  Nine separate shift
relation models can be created, allowing shift sequences to be individualized
by physician.  EPSKED initially creates a single model assigned the name
*STANDARD*.
  At the left middle of the screen is a lettered Shift Reference listing of
all of your shifts.  Refer to this listing when you need to enter preferences
for a different Worked Shift than the one currently displayed at the top of
the screen.  (The commands for doing this are shown on the screen and further
explained below.)
  The general screen commands and screen title are shown in the white boxes to
the right of the Shift Reference listing and are explained below.
  The bottom five lines of the screen display instructions specific to the
current data entry site (the current shift relationship being entered).
 03-4
General Screen Commands  -  Shift Relations Entry
  The following commands are similar to those on other screens:
<Esc> - to next screen
<Home> - to Main Menu
<All Arrows> - move hilite
  (Press the left arrow key while the data entry site is in the ON THE SAME
DAY entry column to display a window allowing you to change the name of the
current relationship model.)

  The following commands are specific to this screen:
<Tab> - do next shift #
  Press the <Tab> key to perform this command.  (This key is usually on the
left hand side of the keyboard, labeled as "Tab" or simply with a horizontal
arrow with the tip touching a vertical line (--▌) .)  Pressing <Tab> will
change the Worked Shift to the next shift alphabetically shown in the Shift
Reference listing.
  HINT: When first entering shift relationships, use the Tab key to change the
Base Shift after entering relationships for the current Base Shift, and
continue to do so until returning to the original Base Shift.  This way you
avoid inadvertently skipping shift relations entry for any of the shifts.
 03-5
General Screen Commands  -  Shift Relations Entry (continued)
<Ctrl+Letter> - of next shift to do
  This command option allows you to randomly access Worked Shifts rather than
advancing sequentially through them using the "Tab" key.  Press and hold down
the <Ctrl> key, then press the letter key corresponding to the letter of the
next Worked Shift for which you want to enter shift relationships.  (This
letter is the one shown next to the desired shift in the Shift Reference
listing.)
<=> - set ALL preferences the same as another shift (more prompts)
  This option is designed to save you time when entering preferences for a
Worked Shift that has relationships identical or similar to another shift for
which relationships have already been entered.  (EXAMPLE: double coverage
shifts must have different names, but identical relationships to the other
shifts and to themselves.)
  Pressing the <=> key changes the last three lines of the screen to a new
prompt.  This prompt requests that you press the number of the shift that you
want the preferences for the current Worked Shift set the same as.  Press the
appropriate letter key, then confirm the change by pressing <!> (or press any
other key if you do not wish to make the change).  You will then be returned
to the regular screen display with changes made as requested.
  (Note: The use of the <!> response is used throughout EPSKED to confirm
commands or requests that are unusual or may result in changes in large
amounts of information.  Always think before pressing the <!> key!)
 03-6
General Screen Commands  -  Shift Relations Entry (continued)
<P> <O> <D> <C> (letter commands)
  The four letter commands shown in the screen instruction section in the
bottom five lines are used to enter the actual shift relations.  Pressing <P>
sets a Prefer relation, <O> sets an Okay shift relation, <D> sets a Dislike
shift relation, and <C> sets a CONFLICTS shift relation.
  Examples of shift relationship entries:
 ■ If your NIGHT shift is the current Worked Shift (shown in the top line of
   the screen) and you are highlighting your DAY shift in the ONE DAY LATER
   column, you should press the <C> key to establish a CONFLICTS relationship
   (working the DAY shift ONE DAY LATER clearly CONFLICTS with having just
   worked the NIGHT before).
 ■ A 24 hour "07-07" shift is the current Worked Shift.  Your physicians
   require at least one day off after working the shift, but preferably two.
   Use the <Arrow> keys and the <C> key to set all shifts in the ONE DAY LATER
   column to CONFLICTS and the <D> key to set all shifts in the TWO DAYS LATER
   column to Dislike.
 ■ Your schedule uses DAY, SWING, and NIGHT shifts each day.  Your physicians
   want to work several of one type of shift in a row, then require two days
   off before starting a new type of shift.  If the DAY shift is the current
   Worked Shift you should set all shifts in both the ONE DAY LATER and the
   TWO DAYS LATER columns to CONFLICTS except for the DAY shift, which you
   would set to Prefer.
 03-7
General Screen Commands  -  Shift Relations Entry (continued)
Displayed below the screen title are four commands affecting entire models:
<+> - add new model
  EPSKED initially creates a single shift relations model assigned the name
*STANDARD*.  Eight additional models can be created, allowing shift sequences
to be individualized by physician.  To create a new model, press <+>, type a
name for the new model you are creating, then press <Enter>.  EPSKED copies
the shift relations from the *STANDARD* model (or whatever you may have
renamed the original model) to the newly created model, then allows you to
enter modified relationships, as described above, which are specific to the
newly created model.  (When you tell EPSKED about your physicians, you will
select a relationship model for each physician.)
<-> - delete model
  Press <-> to delete a shift relationship model.  Before deleting a model you
must make sure no physicians are requesting it.  (Select <P> from the Main
Menu, then <S> from the Physician Information menu to review physician
Relationship Model requests.)
<F2> - view other model
  Press <F2> to sequentially display all shift relations models you have
created.
<@> - copy a model
  Press <@> if you want to copy all of the shift relations entered into one
shift relations model to another.
04
CONFIGURATION - Define Day Types
Overview of the Define Day Types Screen
  The Define Day Types screen is used to inform EPSKED about which shifts are
normally scheduled on which days of the week.  This is the third step in
customizing (configuring) EPSKED for your schedule:
   ╔════════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]════════════════════════╗
   ║ √ What are your shifts?                                              ║
   ║ √ How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
   ║  Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
   ║ ■ What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
   ║ ■ What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
   ║ ■ Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
   ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
  Many emergency departments schedule different numbers and types of shifts
for different days of the week.  For example, some shifts may be used on
weekends but not on weekdays, or perhaps one daily schedule of shifts is used
on Friday through Monday but different shifts on Tuesday through Thursday.
These varying daily schedules are usually used on different types of days
(referred to from now on as "Day Types") to allow daily physician coverage to
match expected variations in patient volume or scheduling preferences.
  "Day Type" is the general name for a category of days (e.g., Weekdays) all
of which have the same scheduled shifts.
  Using the Define Day Types screen you can create many as twelve different
Day Types.
 04-2
Define Day Types  -  Screen Description
  Four Day Type columns, numbered Day Type 1 through Day Type 4 (or 5 through
8, or 9 through 12 if you have configured additional Day Types) are displayed
at the top of the screen, one for each of the four Day Types that can be
displayed at a time out of the maximum of twelve Day Types can be configured.
To the left of the columns are three labels -- "Day Type Name", "Days used",
and "Shifts used" -- identifying the lines in each column.
  The line immediately below the Day Type number (to the right of Day Type
Name label) in each Day Type column is used to display the designated name for
that Day Type.  The first time the Define Day Types program screen is entered,
EPSKED automatically creates a Day Type named "All Days".  You may elect to
keep this name, or change it as described below.
  The second line below the Day Type number (to the right of the "Days used"
label) is the sequence of letters "SuMoTuWeThFrSa", composed of the first two
letters of each of the names of the seven days of the week.  The days of the
week that each Day Type is usually used are emphasized by displaying both
letters of the used days of the week in uppercase letters while other days are
displayed with the first letter uppercase and the second lowercase.  For
example: a Sat-Sun Day Type, normally used on Saturdays and Sundays, should be
configured to have "SUMoTuWeThFrSA" (SU and SA are in uppercase letters)
displayed in the Days Used line.
  All of the days of the week are initially assigned to the "All Days" Day
Type automatically created by EPSKED the first time you enter the screen.
 04-3
Define Day Types  -  Screen Description (continued)
  The remaining lines in each Day Type column (to the right of and below the
"Shifts used" label) are used to display the names of the shifts that are used
in that particular Day Type.  A maximum of twelve shifts can be assigned to
each Day Type (representing the maximum of twelve shifts per day that can be
scheduled by EPSKED).

  As in other screens, the site of current data entry in the Day Type columns
is highlighted in reverse video and may have a flashing cursor displayed.


  The remainder of the screen outside the four Day Type columns displays
command prompts or reference information:
 ■ The Shift Reference listing at the left center of the screen and the
   general screen prompts in the middle are similar to other screens.
 ■ The last three lines of the screen are used to display instructions which
   vary depending on what information is currently being modified (Day Type
   name designation, days of the week the Day Type is usually used, or
   selection of shifts used by that Day Type).  They are also used (similar to
   other screens) to display caution or error messages as needed.
 04-4
Define Day Type - Screen Commands
  The following familiar commands are accessible from any data entry position:
<Tab> - (move hilite) to next Day Type
<All Arrows> - move hilite
<Esc> - to next screen
<Home> - to Main Menu

  As in other screens, the site of current data entry is highlighted in
reverse video and may have a flashing cursor displayed.  The first time the
Define Day Types program screen is entered, EPSKED automatically generates a
Day Type named "All Days", and assigns it to all days of the week.  To change
that name, type any new name you desire for the first Day Type.  The assigned
days of the week are modified as described below to conform to your schedule.
  To indicate that a Day Type is used on a specific day of the week, use the
arrow keys to highlight the first two letters of that day of the week in the
"Days Used" line of that Day Type's column, then press the <Spacebar> (the
wide bar at the center bottom of the keyboard).  The highlighted day of the
week is selected for that Day Type and removed from any other Day Type to
which it was previously assigned.
  If you have used all of the four displayed Day Types, an additional four are
accessible by pressing the <F2> key while in the Day Type name entry site, or
by pressing the <Right Arrow> key from within the farthest to the right Day
Type, up to the maximum of twelve separate Day Types that you can configure.
 04-5
Define Day Types  -  Details
  Configuring a Day Type requires three simple steps:
 ■ Designate a specific name for each of your different Day Types.  Up to
   twelve different Day Types names may be entered, each name with a maximum
   length of ten characters.  Some examples of valid Day Type names:
      Weekend     Weekday     Holiday     All Days     Tues-Thurs     Fri-Mon
 ■ Select the days of the week that each Day Type is normally used.  For
   example: a "Sat-Sun" or "Weekend" Day Type would normally be used on
   Saturday and Sunday, a "Mon-Fri" or "Weekday" Day Type on Monday, Tuesday,
   Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
 ■ List the shifts scheduled on each of the different Day Types.  Up to a
   maximum of twelve shifts may be used on any one Day Type.  The order in
   which you enter the shifts is not important, but all of the shifts used in
   the Day Type you are defining must be entered.

  Perplexed?  Don't give up -- this really is easy once you understand what a
Day Type is.  Let's work through an example:

EXAMPLE of a Day Type configuration
  Suppose that your emergency department uses twelve hour DAY and NIGHT shifts
every day and adds a SWING shift for overlapping coverage on weekends only.
The three steps used to configure the Day Types used by this schedule are:
 04-6
EXAMPLE of a Day Type configuration (continued)
  Step 1: Designate a specific name for each of your different Day Types.
   Do you see that two different Day Types are needed?  You could choose
   whichever names you wish, but "Sat-Sun" and "Mon-Fri" are easily understood
   choices.  Simply type "Sat-Sun" in the Day Type 1 column in the Day Type
   Name line, and later, "Mon-Fri" to configure the Day Type 2 column.
  Step 2: Select the days of the week that each Day Type is normally used.
   The "Sat-Sun" Day Type is used on Saturday and Sunday.  The "Mon-Fri" Day
   Type is used on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
    A source of confusion when selecting days for the Day Types:
     *All* days of the week must be assigned to a Day Type at *all* times.
     The "Days used" line indicates SUMOTUWETHFRSA when the "Sat-Sun" Day Type
     is first created as Day Type 1, even though SUMoTuWeThFrSA is desired.
     This problem resolves when SuMOTUWETHFRSa is later assigned to the "Mon-
     Fri" Day Type and days automatically removed from the "Sat-Sun" Day Type.
   For the "Mon-Fri" Day Type, use the <Arrow> keys to first highlight Monday
   (=Mo) in the SuMoTuWeThFrSa line, then select it by pressing the <Spacebar>
   (the Mo changes to MO).  Do the same to change Tu We Th Fr to TU WE TH FR.
  Step 3: List the shifts scheduled on each of the different Day Types.
   With the data entry site in the "Shifts used" area, refer to the Shift
   Reference window.  Press the letter keys matching the DAY, SWING, and NIGHT
   shifts to list these shifts under the "Sat-Sun" Day Type, and keys matching
   the DAY and NIGHT shifts to list them under the "Mon-Fri" Day Type.
 04-7
Define Day Types  -  Details (continued)
  Did you notice the words "normally used" in Step 2 above?  Later, when you
create an actual schedule, the information you entered on the Define Day Types
screen is used to generate a blank schedule, with the shifts normally used on
each day of the week already set, ready for scheduling.  At that time you can
change the Day Type of individual days.  For example, if July 4 falls on a
Tuesday but is usually a busy day for your department, you may want to change
its shifts to those of the Sat-Sun Day Type to obtain added coverage.
Alternatively, you could create and select other shifts for a Holiday Day
Type, which has no days selected in the "Days used" line (i.e., the
SuMoTuWeThFrSa line has no days selected), but can be used only when needed
for specific holidays.
05
CONFIGURATION - Format Menu (Display and Printout)
Overview of the Format Menu (Display and Printout)
  The fourth step in customizing EPSKED is selecting the appearance of your
schedule when it is displayed or printed.
   ╔═══════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]═════════════════════════╗
   ║ √ What are your shifts?                                              ║
   ║ √ How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
   ║ √ Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
   ║  What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
   ║ ■ What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
   ║ ■ Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
   ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
Four format configuration screens provide EPSKED with this information.  (Not
to worry -- two are nearly identical, the other two are usually quick and
easy!)  The four screens selected from the Format Menu are:
 ■ <P> Printed shift location - When a schedule is printed, where do you want
   the names of the scheduled physicians located?
 ■ <D> Displayed shift location - When a schedule is displayed, where do you
   want the names of the scheduled physicians located?  (You can usually use
   the same configuration utilized for the printed shift location.)
 ■ <G> General - What period of time do you want each schedule to cover?  What
   day should be printed on the left side of the schedule?  What do you want
   printed in the title of your schedule and in the Schedule Key?
 ■ <S> Select printer - What printer and printer options do you want to use?
 05-2
Format Menu (Display and Printout) - Commands
  If you selected the <A> ("Do All Selections") option from the Main Menu
screen, press <Esc> from this menu to automatically progress through the four
Configuration - Format Menu (Display and Printout) screens.  Each of these
screens have their own help information available.

  If you pressed <F> from the Main Menu to arrive directly at this screen,
press the <P>, <D>, <G>, or <S> key to go directly to the desired format
configuration option.

  Press <Home> to return directly to the Main Menu.
06
CONFIGURATION - Format Printout of Schedule
Overview of the Format Printout of Schedule
  The basic appearance of the printed schedule is that of a calendar.  Similar
to a calendar, the printed schedule is partitioned into separate days.  Within
each day, several lines of schedule information can be printed.
  On the top line of each day is printed that day's date.  The remaining lines
in each day are used to print the names of the physicians scheduled that day.
EPSKED allows you to schedule a maximum of twelve shifts each day, with the
name of the physician scheduled for each shift used on that day printed on one
of a maximum of twelve separate lines.  These twelve lines are referred to by
number on this screen, with line one the top line in each day of the printed
schedule, and line twelve the bottom.  (Initially, EPSKED displays only the
first eight lines.  Additional lines are displayed if needed.)
  Your mission on this program screen (should you decide to accept it) is to
assign a line number to each configured shift used in your schedule.
  The assigned line number determines where the name of the physician
scheduled for that shift is printed for each day that the shift is used.  For
example, assign your earliest daytime shift to line number one, so that the
name of the scheduled physician is printed as the first (top) name for the
day.
  A schedule using twelve shifts on one day with all names printed in
uppercase letters would be very difficult to read, so options to vary the
letter case and to add labels or dividers are available to improve the clarity
of the printed schedule.
 06-2
Screen Description
  Four columns of information are displayed at the top left portion of the
screen, headed by the labels "SHIFT NAME", "LINE #", "CAPITALIZE", and
"LEADING DASH?".
  Under the "SHIFT NAME" column are listed the names of the shifts configured
for your schedule.  The bottom line displays a dot string ( .......).
  The three other columns of information to the right of each shift name
display the currently selected options for the printing of that shift:
 ■ Under "LINE #" is displayed the line number (of the twelve available) on
   which that shift is printed.
 ■ Under "CAPITALIZE" is displayed either "ALL", "none" or "First" indicating
   which letters in the name of the physician assigned to that shift are
   printed in capital letters.
 ■ Under "LEADING DASH?" is displayed either "Yes" or "No", indicating whether
   or not a dash ( - ) is printed in front of the name of the physician
   assigned to that shift.  (Note: A preceding dash is always printed if this
   option has been chosen.  For physician names that are eight or fewer
   letters in length, a dash is also printed following the physician name.  A
   caveat for shifts printed with the dash option: any physician's name that
   is the maximum ten letters in length will not have the last letter of the
   name printed.)
  On initial entry to this screen, all "CAPITALIZE" entries are automatically
set to "UPPER", and all "LEADING DASH?" entries to "No".
 06-3
Screen Description (continued)
  Displayed at the bottom of the SHIFT NAME column is " ....... " (a string of
dots) and to its right is a data entry under the  LINE #  column.  Still
farther to the right (below the CAPITALIZE and LEADING DASH? columns) is
displayed "PRINT SHIFT NAMES @", followed by another entry area.  These
options are explained later in this Help section.
  The center of the screen contains a preview box which illustrates the
appearance of a printed day in your schedule for each of your Day Types.
  The eight (or twelve if needed) lines for each day are numbered in the left
margin of the box, line 1 at the top and line 8 at the bottom.  (When needed,
letters A, B, and C are used to allow single key entry of line numbers 10, 11,
and 12.)  The name of each Day Type is displayed above the lines that display
the preview of the printed shift locations for that Day Type.
  When you position a shift for printing by entering a number in the LINE #
column, the preview box displays the name of that shift, positioned on the
requested line, in all Day Types in which it is used.  (On the printed
schedule, the name of the physician assigned to that shift is printed on that
line in the day.)
  At the top right of the screen are displayed the screen title and the
general commands which can be used from any input site on the screen.
  On the bottom three lines are displayed commands specific to the current
entry site.  These lines are also used to display any warning or error
messages.
 06-4
Screen Commands
  The following commands are accessible from any data entry position.  Most
are similar to those on other screens:
<Esc> - to next screen
<Home> - to Main Menu
<All Arrows> - move hilite

<Alt>-more lines/day (or <Alt>-fewer lines/day)
  If you are using an EGA or better monitor and need more lines each day for
printing your schedule, press <Alt> to increase the number of usable lines to
twelve, numbered 1 through C.  If you do not need the extra lines, press <Alt>
to change the screen back to display of only eight lines.

<F2> - preview more Day Types
  The <F2> command is available only if you have configured more than four Day
Types.  Press the <F2> key to alter the display to show the additional Day
Types.

  The instructions displayed on the bottom three lines of the program screen
vary depending on which current data entry site is being used, and are self
explanatory for the entries in the "CAPITALIZE" and "LEADING DASH?" columns.
The instructions for the "LINE #" column and the "......." and "PRINT SHIFT
NAMES @" entry areas are explained below.
 06-5
"LINE #" Commands
  Use the arrow keys to move the highlighting of the current data entry site
to a position in the "LINE #" column, just to the right of one of your shift
names.  You are instructed on the bottom three lines of the screen to press
[key matching] the line number where you desire the name of the physician
scheduled for that shift to be located on each day of the printed schedule.
Press the desired key (1 through 8, or 1 through C depending upon the number
of lines available in your display).  Notice that the name of the current
shift is then displayed on the selected line in each of the Day Types in which
it is used.
  Each shift may be assigned to only one printed line, however each printed
line may be assigned to more than one shift as long as those shifts are not
used in the same Day Type.
  For example, suppose your schedule uses an eight hour morning shift on
Monday through Friday which is lengthened to ten hours on Saturday and Sunday
(in order to provide additional coverage on the busier weekend days).  You
could name the shorter morning shift DAY-8 and the longer morning shift DAY-10
to differentiate them.  Since the DAY-8 shift is used only in your Weekday Day
Type while the DAY-10 shift is used only in your Weekend Day Type, they can
both be positioned on Line 1 (the top line of the available printed lines)
without creating any positioning conflicts when the schedule is printed.
  In order to avoid positioning conflicts, EPSKED checks all Day Types as you
assign each shift to a printed line and advises you of any difficulties.
 06-6
"......." Commands
  Press and hold down the <Down Arrow> key from any entry site in the LINE #
column.  The entry site highlighting moves to the bottom line of the LINE #
column, next to a string of dots displayed under the SHIFT NAME column.  From
this entry site you select which lines, if any, you desire a string of dots
printed if the lines are not used to print a shift in a day.

  This feature can but used to add clarity to your printed schedule by
creating a divider to separate different sections of the schedule.

  On initial entry to this program screen all lines are unassigned, since no
formatting information has been previously entered.

  Press <PgDn> to see an example of how the LINE #, CAPITALIZE, LEADING DASH?
and "........" options are uses in a sample printout.
 06-7
An Example of Printout Formatting:
  Suppose you use EPSKED to simultaneously schedule both your emergency
department (ED) and an affiliated acute care clinic.  You want the printed
schedule to show assignments at both facilities.  (This is easily accomplished
by EPSKED even if some or all physicians work at only one of the facilities.
See the Help section for the Physician Data configuration screen for more
info.)  If your assumed ED uses DAY, SWING, and NIGHT shifts, and your clinic
uses CLINIC DAY and CLINIC EVE shifts, you could assign printout lines 1 - 3
to the ED shifts and lines 5 and 6 to the clinic shifts.  Line 4 could then
display the dot string as a divider separating the ED and clinic shifts.  To
further distinguish between the ED and clinic schedules, you could also select
different capitalization options.  The schedule "printout" for the first day
of the schedule, using invented physician names, would then appear as:
    ╓─ Printout ─╖╓────── Explanations of each line────────────────────────╖
     ╒══════════╕
     │  - 1 -   │ <- Date line
     │COOPER    │ <- Line 1 - Dr. Cooper is working the DAY shift in the ED
     │SMITH     │ <- Line 2 - Dr. Smith is working the SWING shift in the ED
     │JONES     │ <- Line 3 - Dr. Jones is working the NIGHT shift in the ED
     │  .....   │ <- Line 4 - Dot string (separates ED and clinic shifts)
     │Clark     │ <- Line 5 - Dr. Clark is working the CLINIC DAY shift
     │Samuelson │ <- Line 6 - Dr. Samuelson is working the CLINIC EVE shift
     ╘══════════╛
 06-8
"Print Shift Names @" Commands
  In addition to the format options used above, EPSKED also offers the option
of printing the actual shift names (not just the names of the scheduled
physicians) on each day of the printed schedule.  Consider this option if your
schedule is hard to interpret even using the previous format options and the
Schedule Key (entered later from the General Format screen).
  For your initial configuration we suggest that you do not use these
options -- you can always come back later and reconfigure if needed.
  Press and hold down the <Tab> key from any entry site.  The highlighting
moves to the "PRINT SHIFT NAMES @" entry site and new instructions are
displayed on the bottom three lines of the screen.
 ■ Press <D> if you don't want to print the shift name -- the default value.
 ■ Press <L> to print the name of the shift to the left of the name of the
   physician scheduled for the shift.  Due to space limitations only the first
   five letters of a shift name can be printed when using this option and the
   schedule must be printed using smaller print (a condensed font.)
 ■ Press <A> if you want to print the name of the shift above the name of the
   physician scheduled for the shift.  This option requires one extra line of
   the available printout lines for the day for each shift scheduled, limiting
   you to a maximum of six shifts each day.  Position your shifts on even
   numbered lines to allow printing of the full name of the shift on the line
   above.  This is not generally as useful an option as printing the shift
   names to the left of the physician name, but feel free to try it.
 06-9
  To help you decide whether you might want to use the "print shift name left"
option, appearances of a single printed day from a sample schedule formatted
both with and without the option is shown.
  The day shown is part of a schedule incorporating an emergency department
(names shown in UPPERCASE letters), an urgent care clinic (names shown with
their First Letter Capitalized) and an On Call shift (name shown in lowercase
letters).  The left sample utilizes a printed Schedule Key (created later in
the General Format screen and printed on all schedules) to clarify the shift
times and us usually sufficient.  The right sample requires printing with
smaller sized letters and prints only the first five letters of the shift
name, but would further clarifies shift times if needed.
               ═╪══════════╪═              ═╪════════════════╪═
                │  - 11 -  │                │    - 11 -      │
                │COOPER    │                │07-17 COOPER    │
                │SMITH     │                │15-01 SMITH     │
                │JONES     │                │23-07 JONES     │
                │  .....   │                │      .....     │
                │Clarke    │                │08-16 Clarke    │
                │Samuelson │                │16-24 Samuelson │
                │  .....   │                │      .....     │
                │friedman  │                │ call friedman  │
               ═╪══════════╪═              ═╪════════════════╪═
          Shift name not displayed     Shift name displayed to left
07
CONFIGURATION - Format Display of Schedule
Overview of the Format Display of Schedule Screen
  When creating or modifying a schedule, you will work with the schedule
displayed on your monitor (the TV-like screen you are looking at right now),
printing the schedule only when needed for distribution to your physicians.
If the schedule display can use the same line assignments as configured for
your printed schedule, these values are automatically copied and you need not
make any entries on this screen.

  If all shifts used by your schedule have been positioned by EPSKED you do
not need to make any entries on the screen.

  Unfortunately, automatic positioning is not always possible.  For the paper
printout of your schedule you can use as many as TWELVE in each day to
position shifts for printing.  However, even with a VGA monitor a maximum of
NINE lines are available for shift positioning on each day of the displayed
schedule.  (With a CGA monitor and a six week schedule period there is only
enough room to show TWO lines per day: see chart on the next screen.)
  EPSKED overcomes this limitation by splitting display lines (when necessary)
into a right and a left half, using each half to display the name of a
physician scheduled for a shift.  Only the first four letters of each
physician's name are displayed on the designated half of the line.  (Of
course, when the schedule is *printed*, the full name is used and positioning
remains as configured in the Format Printout of Schedule program screen.)
 07-2
  Be sure you understand the function of the "Format Display Of Skedule"
screen!  Basically, you are condensing each day's schedule that is being
PRINTED on up to TWELVE lines on paper into the maximum NINE lines available
for DISPLAY on the monitor.
  The maximum usable display line may be less than nine, depending upon your
monitor and your scheduling period.  (EPSKED can be configured to create
schedules in periods of one month, four week or six weeks at a time.)  The
maximum usable line number values are shown in the following chart:
            Maximum Usable Display Line for Shift Placement
                                     Monitor Type
                        ╔══════════╤════════════╤═════════════╗
                        ║   VGA    │    EGA     │   CGA/MCA   ║
            ╔═══════════╬══════════╪════════════╪═════════════╣
            ║ 1 month   ║    9     │     6      │      4      ║
  Schedule  ╟───────────╫──────────┼────────────┼─────────────╢
    Period  ║ 4 weeks   ║    9     │     6      │      4      ║
            ╟───────────╫──────────┼────────────┼─────────────╢
            ║ 6 weeks   ║    6     │     5      │      2      ║
            ╚═══════════╩══════════╧════════════╧═════════════╝
  The maximum number of shifts that can be displayed each day is *twice* the
maximum line number shown in the chart, up to a limit of twelve shifts.
Should you need to schedule more shifts each day than your monitor can
display, you need to use a different monitor to run EPSKED.
 07-3
Screen Description
  The screen appearance is similar to that of the Format Printout of Schedule,
reflecting their similarity in function.  Three columns of information are
displayed at the top left portion of the screen:
 ■ Under the SHIFT NAME column are listed the names of the shifts used by your
   schedule.  To the right of each shift name are two columns of information
   displaying the current options for the display of that shift.
 ■ Under "DISPLAY LINE" is displayed the line number on which that shift will
   be printed.
 ■ Under "PORTION OF LINE USED" is specified either Whole, Left, or Right,
   indicating where on the selected line the name of the physician assigned to
   that shift should be displayed.

  The CAPITALIZATION option you selected for printing each shift is
automatically carried over. The dot string, dash markers and display of the
shift name options are not used on the monitor display.

  Similar to the Format Printout screen, the center of the Format Display of
Schedule screen contains a preview box illustrating the appearance of a
displayed day in your schedule for each of your Day Types.  The four (or nine
if needed) lines for each day are numbered in the left margin of the box, line
1 at the top and 4 (or 9) at bottom.  The higher line option number is
automatically displayed when required or if you press the <Alt> key.
 07-4
Screen Description (continued)
  In the preview box the name of each Day Type is shown above the lines that
display the preview of the displayed shift locations for that Day Type.
  When you position a shift for the displayed schedule by entering a number in
the  LINE #  column, the preview box displays the name of that shift, located
on the requested line, in all Day Types in which it is used.  (On the actual
schedule display the name of the physician assigned to that shift is shown on
that line in the day.)
  If you have blank lines in your *printout* format, these lines can be
removed and any shifts displayed below them moved upward to lower line numbers
for the display positioning.  However, if any of your Day Types uses more
lines than your monitor can display in a day, some shifts must share a display
line with another shift.  Each shift is then configured to use one half
portion of the shared line (either the right or the left half).
  Compared to the printout preview box, the display preview box has a wider
display area for each Day Type.  This is done to accommodate display of as
much of the full shift names as is possible when two shifts are positioned on
the same line.  (If your shift name is the maximum ten letters in length, a
shortened version of the name is displayed when that shift is positioned on a
half line -- spaces are removed if present, then two characters are removed
from the center portion of the name and replaced by an apostrophe if needed.)
  Sound complicated?  It's really not.  Take a look at the example on the next
screen...
 07-5
An EXAMPLE of Display Formatting (to see how the line sharing works):
  Imagine a combined schedule for an ED which uses three shifts a day (DAY,
SWING, and NIGHT) and an acute care clinic which uses two shifts (CLINIC DAY
and CLINIC EVE).  For *printout*, the ED shifts were already positioned on the
first three lines, the clinic shifts on lines five and six using the lowercase
letter option, and line four kept as a dot string divider.  If you are using
an EGA monitor, no problem -- simply continue to the next screen.  If you are
using a CGA monitor and therefore limited to four display lines, EPSKED needs
further information in order to know how to display the clinic shifts on the
monitor.  The most intuitive approach is to move both clinic shifts onto
display line 4, with the CLINIC DAY shift displayed on the left half of the
line and the CLINIC EVE shift on the right half.  Compare a day of the
schedule as it would appear on your schedule printout and display:
   ╓──Printout─────────────────────╖    ╓─────────────────Monitor Display──╖
     ╒══════════╕                                            ████████████
     │  - 1 -   │------------  (Date line)  ---------------█   - 1 -  █
     │COOPER    │- DAY---------- (Line 1) ------------ DAY-█ COOPER   █
     │SMITH     │- SWING-------- (Line 2) -----------SWING-█ SMITH    █
     │JONES     │- NIGHT-------- (Line 3) -----------NIGHT-█ JONES    █
     │  .....   │- (Dot string)- (Line 4) --CLINIC DAY/EVE-█ clar/samu█
     │clark     │- CLINIC DAY--- (Line 5) --- (not used!)   ████████████
     │samuelson │- CLINIC EVE--- (Line 6) --- (not used!)
     ╘══════════╛
 07-6
Screen commands
  Commands specific to this screen should be self explanatory if you
understand the function of the screen!  Basically, you are condensing each
day's schedule that is PRINTED on up to TWELVE lines on paper into the maximum
of NINE lines available for DISPLAY on the monitor.
  Try to do this in a way that is as intuitive as possible, since you will be
working mostly with the displayed schedule, printing the schedule only when it
is ready for distribution to your physicians.
08
CONFIGURATION - General Format of Schedule
Overview
  If you selected the "<A> - Do All Selections" option from the Main Menu
screen, you have now identified your shifts, described how they relate to each
other, indicated which shifts are used on which Day Types, and specified how
and where the physician scheduled for each shift is printed on your schedule.
  Options selected from the current General Format of Schedule screen define
some further schedule printout information:
 ■ What period of time do you want each schedule to include?  EPSKED offers
   selection of monthly, four week and six week schedule periods.
 ■ What day do you want farthest to the left on the displayed and printed
   schedules?  EPSKED allows you to designate either Monday or Sunday.  (While
   Sunday is the normal calendar position, designating Monday as the day
   farthest to the left places Saturdays and Sundays together at the right
   hand side of the schedule, facilitating review of weekend scheduling.)
 ■ What title do you want printed at the top of each printed schedule?  EPSKED
   provides two lines for this information, usually used for "Emergency
   Department Schedule" and the name of your hospital, clinic or group.
 ■ What Schedule Key information do you want printed at the bottom of each
   printed schedule?  Up to twelve lines are provided for you to enter a key
   or guide to your schedule.  Feel free to continue with whatever conventions
   you are using on your current schedules as long as it fits within the space
   allowed.
 08-2
Screen Description
  Four zones of information entry are displayed on the program screen.  The
upper two zones display the current configuration for "Schedule Period" and
"Leftmost day on the schedule".  The lower two entry zones accept text
information (your schedule title and Schedule Key) that you want printed
adjacent to the actual calendar-like portion of the schedule.
  General screen commands and instructions for the selection of Schedule
period are given below.  Help Screens with specific instructions for the other
data entry zones are available by pressing the <F1> key while entering data in
each area.
 08-3
Screen Commands:
  General screen commands available for use from any entry site on the screen
are displayed in the upper right hand corner below the screen title.  The
first two commands listed below are unique to this screen.
<F2> - to Main Menu
  <F2> is the second of the "function keys", and is positioned next to the
<F1> key you pressed to reach this Help Screen.  Pressing <F2> returns you to
the configuration Main Menu.  (On all other screens the <Home> key is used for
this purpose, however, <Home> is used for another purpose when editing text in
the lower data entry areas on this screen and is therefore not available.)
<F3> - edit Request key
  Press <F3> to change the display in the Schedule Key area to a second key
titled "Request Schedule Key".  Press <F1> to see details when the data entry
site is located in that area.
<Esc> - to next screen
  When you have completed entries for this screen, press <Esc>.  If you
selected the "<A> - Do All Selections" option from the Main Menu, you will
move to the Printer Options screen -- the next and last Format configuration
screen.  Otherwise, you are returned to the Main Menu.
<Up/Down Arrows> - move hilite
  Use the up and down arrow keys to move between data entry area.  (The right
and left arrow keys are used to move the cursor position right or left in the
two lower text entry areas.)
 08-4
Commands - "Skedule period"
  Instructions for the selection of the "Skedule period" are contained in this
section.  Specific instructions for commands specific to the other data entry
zones on the program screen are available by pressing the <F1> key while
entering data in each area.
  EPSKED creates individual schedules that cover time periods of one month,
four weeks or six weeks.  Select the period of time covered in each of your
schedules by pressing the <1> key for one month schedules, <4> for four week
schedules, or <6> for six week schedules.  Only one of these time intervals
can be used as the schedule period.
  If you are creating monthly schedules, pressing the <1> key is the only
entry made in this area.

  If you press <4> or <6> to select a four or six week scheduling period:
  An additional prompt appears requesting you to enter a sample start date.
Enter the date of the first day of *any* prior or future schedule.  (The
actual date does not matter as long as it is correctly identifies the date of
the first day of any schedule in the correct four or six week series of
schedules for your department.)  The date must be either a Sunday or a Monday,
depending upon which day is printed on the left hand column of your schedule.
Enter the date in a MM-DD-YY format, where MM stands for the two digit number
of the month, DD stands for the two digit day in the month, and YY is the last
two digits of the year.  For example, enter June 23, 1995, as 06-23-95.
09
CONFIGURATION - General Format - Leftmost day on the schedule
  What day do you want farthest to the left on the displayed and printed
schedules?  EPSKED allows you to designate either Monday or Sunday.  While
Sunday to the left is the normal calendar position, designating Monday as the
day farthest to the left places Saturdays and Sundays together at the right
hand side of the schedule, facilitating review of weekend scheduling.

  If you selected a four or six week schedule period the left most day on the
schedule is already set to the same day of the week (Sunday or Monday) as the
day you entered for your sample start date.


Press <S> to select Sunday as the left most day.
Press <M> to select Monday as the left most day.
10
CONFIGURATION - General Format of Schedule - Schedule Title
  Type in whatever text you want printed as a two line title at the top left
hand corner of your schedule printout.  Most commonly, the first line would be
"Emergency Department Schedule", and EPSKED automatically inserts this the
first time you enter this screen.  The second line is normally the name of
your hospital, though either line can be used to print whatever you desire up
to the limits of the space provided.  You can move between the two lines by
using the up and down arrow keys.
 The usable editing keys are listed at the bottom of the screen:
  The right and left arrow keys move the position of the cursor (the small
flashing "_" which indicates where the next character you type is placed).
  The <Delete> (or <Del>) key deletes the character overlying the cursor.
  The <Backspace> key deletes the character one to the left of the current
cursor position and moves the cursor one position to the left.  This key may
be labeled only as "-" on some keyboards.
  The <Home> key moves the cursor to the beginning and <End> key moves the
cursor to the end of the current line.
  The <Insert> key toggles between the insert and overtype editing modes.
While in the overtype mode, the cursor will appear larger (▄) than when in the
insert mode (_).
11
CONFIGURATION - General Format of Schedule - Schedule Key
  This area of text is intended as a key or guide to your schedule and is
permanently labeled to that effect with the words SCHEDULE KEY (as shown
below) when printed.  Sample schedule keys (obviously vary this to match your
schedule) are displayed below and on the next help screen, but feel free to
continue the conventions you are using on your current schedule as long as it
fits within the space provided.
  The first time you enter this screen EPSKED automatically inserts the names
of the shifts used in your longest Day Type along the left margin of the
schedule key area (to prepare for the key shown below).  If you desire to
remove them (or to clear a line at any time), use the arrow keys to highlight
the offending line and press <Ctrl-Del> to erase it.
            *******[ SCHEDULE KEY ]*****************************
            * DAY         7AM -  3PM                           *
            * SWING       3PM - 11PM  (1PM - 1AM Sat & Sun)    *
            * NIGHT      11PM -  7AM                           *
            *  ...                                             *
            * clinic day  9AM -  5PM                           *
            * clinic eve  5PM -  1AM                           *
            *                                                  *
            *                                                  *
            * Advise the ED secretary of any schedule changes! *
            ****************************************************
 11-2

  An alternative way to set up your schedule key...

            *******[ SCHEDULE KEY ]*****************************
            *      Monday - Friday       Saturday & Sunday     *
            *         7AM -  3PM            7AM -  3PM         *
            *         3PM - 11PM            3PM - 11PM         *
            *        11PM -  7AM            1PM -  7AM         *
            *           .....                  .....           *
            * Clinic  9am -  5pm            9am -  5pm         *
            * Clinic  5pm -  1am            5pm -  1am         *
            *                                                  *
            * Advise the ED secretary of any schedule changes! *
            ****************************************************

  The schedule key can be either nine or twelve lines in length.  Press <Alt>
to change between these two options if you desire more or fewer lines.

  Any unused lines at the bottom of the Schedule Key area may be used for
printing any other desired information (as demonstrated above).
12
CONFIGURATION - Define Summary Categories
Overview of the Define Summary Categories screen
  The Define Summary Categories screen identifies the summary statistics (such
as the Total Hours worked by each physician) you want calculated for your
schedule.  This is the fifth step in customizing (configuring) EPSKED for your
schedule:
   ╔════════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]════════════════════════╗
   ║ √ What are your shifts?                                              ║
   ║ √ How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
   ║ √ Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
   ║ √ What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
   ║  What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
   ║ ■ Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
   ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
  When you create schedules you are interested not only in viewing them, but
also in obtaining some statistical information.  Usually you would want to
know the total number of hours worked by each physician.  Other summary
information specific to your schedule may be of interest to you, such as the
total number of night shifts worked, or holiday shifts or weekend shifts or
clinic shifts or weekend night shifts or weekend holiday shifts.  Each of
these names represents a category that EPSKED can summarize, both individually
for each physician and as a total for the entire schedule (for example, total
number of hours in the schedule) or as a cumulative total for two or more
schedules.  This summary information is displayed and printed when desired.
 12-2
Screen Description
  The top half of the screen displays six columns, each representing one of
the maximum of six categories of summary information that can be displayed at
any one time.  A total of thirty(!) summary categories can be configured.
  The top two lines in each column contain the name of the summary category
defined by that column.  The first of these two lines is a title used to
identify the type of shifts included in the category.  This title may be the
actual shift name ("NIGHT" for the NIGHT shift), the name of a category of
shifts ("CLINIC" could include both the CLINIC DAY and CLINIC EVE shifts, or
"TOTAL" could include all shifts), or one of several special category names
that have a specific meaning to EPSKED.  These special category names are:
WEEKEND, WEEKDAY, HOLIDAY, OFF, BACKUP, HAND SKED, and names of days of the
week (SUNDAY, MONDAY, TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY).  When
used, special category names are displayed in highlighted (bright) letters to
indicate that EPSKED has recognized it.
  The second of the two top lines in each column displays either the word
"SHIFTS" or the word "HOURS", indicating which you want summarized in the
category (for example, if the title entered in the first line was "CLINIC",
you could create either categories for "CLINIC HOURS" or "CLINIC SHIFTS").  If
one of the special category names was used for the first line of the category
name, the second line may also be selected from a displayed list of choices
that allows linking to other summary categories to create new categories such
as "WEEKEND CLINIC" or "HOLIDAY NIGHT".  See Linking Summary Categories below.
 12-3
Screen Description (continued)
  The lower group of lines in each column are separated from the first two
lines by a reverse video bar containing arrows.  The actual number of lines in
this lower group varies depending on the number of shifts you have defined for
your schedule.  Listed on these lines are the names of the shifts included in
the named summary category.  For example, the "CLINIC HOURS" or the "CLINIC
SHIFTS" category would list the CLINIC DAY and the CLINIC EVE shifts on these
lower lines as the names of the shifts to include in that category.  During
scheduling, whenever a physician is scheduled for one of the listed shifts,
EPSKED will update his or her summary information for that category.
  The first time you access this screen, EPSKED automatically creates several
summary categories, which you may or may not want to keep.  Instructions for
modifying or deleting them are shown on the screen and more fully described
below.
  Displayed on the mid left hand portion of the screen is a Shift Reference
listing of the shifts defined for your schedule.  The shift number displayed
to the left of each shift name is used to allow rapid entry of the associated
shift into the lists of names of shifts included in each summary category.
  Similar to other configuration screens, the center of the screen lists
commands which may be used from any data entry point on the screen, while the
bottom three lines on the screen give instructions that vary depending on the
data entry site.  These are further explained below.
 12-4
Screen Commands
 "Category name" entries (the top two lines in the summary data column)
  When the reverse video highlighting marking the current data entry site is
on the top line in the summary data column, you are instructed to enter a
title for that summary category.  Several sample titles are displayed at the
bottom of the screen.  A title may be an actual shift name (for example,
"NIGHT" for the NIGHT shift), the name of a category of shifts (for example,
"CLINIC" could include both a CLINIC DAY and a CLINIC EVE shift) or one of
several special category titles that have a specific meaning to EPSKED.  These
special categories are WEEKEND, WEEKDAY, HOLIDAY, BACKUP, OFF, HAND SKED, and
names of days of the week (SUNDAY, MONDAY, TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY,
FRIDAY, or SATURDAY).  See details below under Special Summary Category
Titles.
  To start a summary category, type in whatever name you desire, up to ten
characters, then press the <Enter> key.  Special category titles are displayed
in highlighted (bright) letters to indicate that EPSKED has recognized them.
  To delete an entire summary category press the <Delete> key.  You will be
asked to confirm the delete request by pressing the <!> key.  (Pressing any
other key cancels the delete request.)  If you delete a summary category, any
categories to the right are shifted over to fill in the newly blank category.
  The <Insert> key may be used to create a blank category area, allowing you
some flexibility when revising the order in which the summary categories are
displayed.
 12-5
"Category name" entries (continued)
  After the title (top line) portion of the category name is entered, the data
entry site moves to the second line of the summary column.  A Summary Option
window displayed below the entry site lists entry options for the second line
of the Category name.  The options listed depend upon both the title portion
of the category name and upon the categories you have already configured.
  For normal summary categories you can elect either SHIFTS or HOURS by
pressing the <A> key or the <B> key as listed in the option window.  (Example:
If you entered DAY as your current category title you can create either a DAY
SHIFTS or a DAY HOURS summary category, or both.)
  Special category titles (see previous screen) may have additional options
listed in the Summary Option window, allowing you to "link" one summary
category to another.  (Example: If you already completed creation of a DAY
SHIFTS summary category and entered WEEKEND as the title of the summary
category you are currently creating, the option window lists DAY as one of the
options.  You would press the letter key matching the letter listed adjacent
to DAY in the option window to create a WEEKEND DAY category.)
  Summary categories linked to other summary categories always total shifts
rather than hours.  For example, even if the WEEKEND above had been linked to
a previously created DAY HOURS summary category, the resulting WEEKEND DAY
summary category would still summarize the number of weekend day shifts (not
the number of weekend day hours) scheduled for each physician.
 12-6
"Shifts to include in category" entry
  After making your HOURS or SHIFTS or linked category selection, press the
<Down Arrow> key to move to the entry of shifts that are included in the
category you just created.  If shifts are already entered in this area, the
highlighting moves to the first available blank entry site.  To add a shift to
the list, press the letter of that shift as indicated on the Shift Reference
box.  To remove a shift from the list, use the up or down arrow keys to
highlight the shift name, then press the <Delete> key.

An EXAMPLE of setting up a normal summary category
  Let's quickly go through the steps of creating a CLINIC SHIFTS summary
category.  At the top line, type the word (title) CLINIC, then press <Enter>.
The highlighting moves to the second line.  Press the <A> key (referenced in
the Summary Option window that appears) to let EPSKED know you want to keep a
shifts total in this category.  Press the <Down Arrow> key to move to the
"Shifts to include in category" entry area.  If needed, use <Delete> to remove
any unwanted shifts previously listed in this area.
  If our hypothetical shifts are lettered as A-DAY, B-SWING, C-NIGHT, D-CLINIC
DAY, E-CLINIC EVE (this information is displayed in the Shift Reference box),
press <D> to add the CLINIC DAY shift, then press <E> to add the CLINIC EVE
shift.  Your category is created --  that's all there is to it.  When you
create schedules, EPSKED will automatically keep statistics for the number of
CLINIC SHIFTS scheduled for each physician.
 12-7
  The remaining help screens provide details about the Special Summary
Categories and additional information about linking summary categories.
Special Summary Category Titles -- Details
 ■ WEEKEND - Use WEEKEND as a title if you want EPSKED to generate statistics
   for weekend shifts and/or hours scheduled for each physician.  All shifts
   scheduled on Saturdays, and any shifts scheduled on Friday or Sunday that
   you indicated should be considered as a weekend shift in the "Weekend Shift
   If On Friday?...Sunday?" columns of the Shift Names and Hours screen, are
   automatically counted.
 ■ WEEKDAY - Counts all shifts that are not WEEKEND shifts.
 ■ HOLIDAY - Establish a HOLIDAY summary category if you want EPSKED to track
   the holiday shifts and/or hours scheduled for each physician.  (When you
   create schedules you can designate which days and shifts are holidays.)  In
   addition to keeping statistics of holiday shifts worked, EPSKED can print
   a cumulative summary *schedule*, showing holiday names and scheduled
   physicians for all holidays configured over a period of several years.
 ■ BACKUP - If you configured a BACKUP shift, you can create a BACKUP summary
   category.  BACKUP shifts are counted only by BACKUP and OFF summary
   categories.  For example, a WEEKEND SHIFTS category would not count any
   BACKUP shifts scheduled on weekends, while a WEEKEND BACKUP category would.
   OFF summary categories do include BACKUP shifts (an OFF WEEKEND summary
   category counts the number of weekend shifts requested off, including any
   BACKUP shifts).
 12-8
Special Summary Category Titles (continued)
 ■ OFF - For each schedule you create you can inform EPSKED of any shifts your
   physicians are off (have requested not to work).  If you want to keep a
   total of these shifts, establish an OFF summary category.  OFF categories
   can only be configured to count shifts, not hours.
 ■ HAND SKED - When you create a schedule you may manually schedule shifts
   your physicians have specifically requested to work, then have EPSKED
   complete the remainder of the scheduling leaving the manually scheduled
   shifts intact.  If you want to keep a total of these HAND SKED shifts,
   establish a HAND SKED summary category.
 ■ Names of days of the week - Title a category as SUNDAY, MONDAY, TUESDAY,
   WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, FRIDAY, or SATURDAY if you want to keep statistics
   scheduled on a specific day of the week.  (Advanced hint: During physician
   configuration, physicians can be assigned a "bias" for a summary category,
   increasing or decreasing the likelihood of being scheduled for shifts in
   that category.  A "double negative bias" prevents EPSKED from scheduling
   the physician for any shifts in that summary category.  If you have a
   physician who needs to be off every DAY shift on Fridays, you could create
   a FRIDAY DAY summary category and double negative bias the physician for
   that category, saving you from having to mark these shifts as "Off" in each
   schedule.)
Note: Special summary categories list *all* configured shifts as "Shifts to
include...", but only shifts meeting the Special criteria are counted.
 12-9
Linking Summary Categories - details
  All Special Categories can be configured to be "linked" categories. Special
Linked categories summarize the number of shifts meeting double criteria.
This allows you to combine existing summary categories to create additional
categories such as WEEKEND CLINIC, FRIDAY NIGHT, OFF HOLIDAY, OFF WEEKEND,
HOLIDAY DAY, WEEKEND HAND SKED, etc.
  To create a linked category, enter one of the Special category names as the
title (top line) of the category.  A selection window then lists all available
possibilities for the second line of the summary category name.  The choices
vary depending upon what summary categories you have already configured.
  For example, if you wish to create a FRIDAY NIGHT summary category you must
first create a NIGHT SHIFTS (or NIGHT HOURS) summary category.  After you
enter FRIDAY as the title of a separate category, NIGHT is listed in the
Summary Option window.  Press the letter key matching the NIGHT option and the
FRIDAY NIGHT summary category is created.  EPSKED copies the shifts listed in
the NIGHT SHIFT category to the FRIDAY NIGHT category.  These shifts cannot be
changed, since they are linked to the shifts included in the NIGHT SHIFT
category.  If you change the shifts listed in the NIGHT SHIFT category, they
are automatically also changed in the FRIDAY NIGHT category.
  Summary categories linked to other summary categories always total shifts.
For example: The FRIDAY NIGHT summary category summarizes the number of Friday
night shifts (not the number of Friday night hours) scheduled for each
physician, even if linked to a NIGHT HOURS summary category.
13
CONFIGURATION - Printer Options
Overview
  If you selected the "<A> - Do All Selections" option from the Main Menu
screen, this is the final configuration screen that determines the appearance
(format) of your schedule.

  On your first entry to this screen you should press <F2> to select your
printer.  All other options are automatically set to work well with your
schedule, though they may be modified to suit your own preferences.

  Information from the current Printer Options screen provide EPSKED with five
pieces of information it needs to print your schedule:
 ■ What printer do you use?  Select your printer from an alphabetized list of
   several hundred printer names.
 ■ Can your printer draw lines using the IBM graphics characters?
 ■ What size of paper (letter or legal) do you want to use?
 ■ What size of printed characters (standard or condensed) do you want to use?
 ■ Does your printer need to be set to its "manual feed" option before
   printing?
 13-2
Screen description
  Displayed on the left hand side of the screen is a window accommodating five
printer configuration option entry areas.  These five areas are labeled:
  Active printer    Line drawing    Paper size    Font size    Manual feed?
Each area contains two alternative configuration options.  These are described
below.
  On the right side of the screen are the screen title and several prompts.
Pay particular attention to the <F#> prompts other than <F1> -- these are used
to identify and test your printer.
  The bottom three lines contain instructions can also be used for other
messages if needed by EPSKED.
 13-3
Screen commands
  Two familiar commands:
<Esc> - to next screen
  Press the <Esc> key when you have finished selecting and testing your
printer options.
  If you selected the "<A> - Do All Selections" option from the Main Menu, you
have completed the fourth step in customizing EPSKED for your schedule --
selecting the format (appearance) of the schedule.  You will continue to a
single entry screen where you tell EPSKED what summary statistics you want
kept for your schedule (the fifth of the six steps in EPSKED configuration).
Don't get discouraged -- the hard stuff is pretty much done!
  If you came to this screen by pressing <F> (Format) from the Main Menu, then
selected <S> (Select printer) from the Format Menu, pressing <Esc> returns you
to the Format Menu where you may select other format options or return to the
Main Menu.
<Home> - to Main Menu
  Press the <Home> key to return directly to the Main Menu.

  The Printer Options configuration screen does not contain a data entry area.
All commands select from fixed options or between fixed alternatives.

  On your first entry to this screen you should press <F2> to select your
printer.  The <F2> command is described on the next screen.
 13-4
Screen commands (continued)
<F2> - select new printer
  Press the <F2> key to the change option window to display a listing of
several hundred printers.  Follow the prompts on that screen to select the
specific printer you will use to print your schedules.
  If your specific printer is not shown, select a similar printer by the same
manufacturer or a known compatible printer, then use the "<F4> - test printer"
option (see below) to confirm that it works correctly.  If you are using
SoftPC to run EPSKED, choose the *non* PostScript version of the Epson printer
emulated by your version of the program.
  EPSKED can be configured for use with two separate printers -- see the <1>
and <2> commands below.  (Some users run EPSKED from a floppy disk which they
transport between home and work where they may have different printers.)
  Important note: EPSKED has *not* been tested on all printers contained in
the data base, so please use the <F4> command to verify proper function with
your printer after it is selected.  The printer data base is extracted from a
purchased printer data base and we have found some errors, but it does work
quite well for most commonly used printers.  If you experience problems,
please see the "<F5>-edit printer commands" instructions below.
<F3> - auto set options
  EPSKED initially sets the printer options that it thinks are best for your
schedule and printer.  If you change these options but then decide you prefer
the original options selected by EPSKED, press the <F3> key.
 13-5
<F4> - test printer
  Press the <F4> key to request EPSKED to print a test sheet to check that
your printer is working as expected.  Please read any notes printed on that
sheet for further instructions, especially if you are using a condensed font
(see below).  If you do experience any problems, you may need to review your
printer's instruction manual to obtain the correct printer codes that will
allow EPSKED to function properly.  See below under the <F5> command.

  In addition to the commands listed on the right side of the screen, the
printer options window lists key commands that are used to select individual
printer options from each of the five areas contained within the window:
  Active printer    Line drawing    Paper size    Font size    Manual feed?
The alternatives for each of these are described in order.

Active printer
  EPSKED can be configured for use with two separate printers. Press the <1>
key to select printer #1; press the <2> key to select printer #2.  The current
printer selected is the printer affected by all other commands.
  (The choice of two printers is provided because some users never install
EPSKED on a hard drive, but instead run EPSKED directly from a floppy disk
which they transport between home and work where they may have different
printers.)
13-6
Line drawing
  Two options are shown under "Line drawing" in the Printer Option window --
press <G> to select IBM Graphics characters, press <U> to select Universal
printer characters.
  The "IBM Graphics characters" refers to a set of special characters that can
be reproduced by some printers.  Their use gives your printed schedule a
somewhat more finished appearance, though the alternative universal (draft)
printer option allows printout on virtually all commonly used printers while
still providing a quite acceptable appearance.  Here are comparison printouts
for a day:
                 IBM Graphics             Universal printer
                ═╪══════════╪═             =|==========|=
                 │  - 11 -  │               |  - 11 -  |
                 │COOPER    │               |COOPER    |
                 │SMITH     │               |SMITH     |
                 │JONES     │               |JONES     |
                 │  .....   │               |  .....   |
                 │clarke    │               |clarke    |
                 │samuelson │               |samuelson |
                ═╪══════════╪═             =|==========|=
  If you press <G> to use the IBM Graphics characters, test your printer using
the "<F4>-test printer command" to ensure that it works properly with EPSKED.
If you have any difficulty, the <U> option should always work.
 13-7
Paper size
  The "Paper size" option is shown in the middle of the Printer Option window.
It allows you to indicate whether you want to print your schedule on legal
size or regular (letter) size paper.  Depending upon the number of shifts you
use each day and the printer options you selected, EPSKED may require that you
use legal size paper.  Should this occur, explanatory messages are displayed.
  If you press <R> to select regular (letter) size paper, EPSKED expects to
print your schedule on letter sized (8½ by 11 inch) paper.  The paper should
be inserted into the printer with its long axis oriented vertically (like a
portrait).
  If you press <L> to select legal size paper, EPSKED expects to print your
schedule on 8½ by 14 inch) paper.  The legal sized paper option is required
when printing shifts below line six, unless you use the condensed font (see
below).  Using the legal sized paper option usually guarantees that you have
at least one blank line at the bottom of each day of the calendar to make
additional notes on the schedule about other events of the day (meetings?).
  If your schedule is formatted to print on only the first four lines, you
will probably want to press the <R> key to select the letter sized paper
(unless you need lots of room to write).  (More meetings?)

  Whichever option you choose, the scheduling program gives you the
opportunity to switch options just prior to printing a schedule.
 13-8
Font size
  Press <S> if you want your schedule printed in the standard font (character
pitch of ten characters per inch, vertical line spacing of six lines per inch,
no proportional printing).
  Press <C> if you want your schedule printed in a condensed font.  This
smaller printing is required if you are printing the name of your shifts to
the left of the names of the scheduled physicians or if you schedule a large
number of shifts each day.  (EPSKED will advise you if this is necessary.)
  If you utilize the condensed font, be sure to use the "<F4>-test printer"
command to check that your printer works properly with EPSKED.  Pay special
attention to the line numbers printed on the left hand side of the page and
the instructions under "IMPORTANT NOTE" on the printed page.

Manual feed?
  Usually leave this option as "<N> No - manual feed is NOT required".
  This option is required if you are printing to a printer that uses different
sized paper trays, but you do not have the correct size paper tray for the
paper you are using.  For example, suppose you have a letter size paper tray
in you laser printer but are trying to print your schedule on legal size
paper.  You could switch to a legal size paper tray, if available.
Alternatively, press <Y> to select the "<Y> Yes - manual feed is required"
option.  You may then insert legal size paper into the manual feed slot of the
letter size paper tray, and your schedule will print correctly.
 13-9
<F5> - edit printer commands
  Press <F5> to display another screen that presents the printer command codes
that EPSKED sends to your printer to activate the printer options you have
selected.  You normally do not need to become involved in entering printer
command unless your printer is not working as expected.
  Separate help screens are available from that screen to assist you as
needed.

  Press the <Esc> key when you have finished selecting and testing your
printer options.

  If you selected the "<A> - Do All Selections" option from the Main Menu, you
have completed the fourth step in customizing EPSKED for your schedule --
selecting the format (appearance) of the schedule.  You will continue to a
single entry screen where you tell EPSKED what summary statistics you want
kept for your schedule (the fifth of the six steps in EPSKED configuration).
All that's left after that is informing EPSKED about your physicians and their
scheduling preferences --  you're almost there!

  If you came to this screen by pressing <F> (Format) from the Main Menu, then
selected <S> (Select printer) from the Format Menu, pressing <Esc> returns you
to the Format Menu where you may select other format options or return to the
Main Menu.
14
CONFIGURATION - Printer Control
Overview
  Normally you do not need to enter information on this screen, but if you
are experiencing difficulties with your printer or want to further customize
some print feature, read on...
  A printer control code is information sent to the printer by the computer,
but not printed; it instead turns on or off various printer functions.  The
Printer Control screen displays the control codes that EPSKED sends to your
printer to advise it of the print options you selected in the Printer Options
screen, as well as other information needed to correctly print your schedule.
  EPSKED has *not* been tested on all printers contained in the data base.
The printer data base is extracted from a purchased data base and we have
found some errors, but it does works quite well for most commonly used
printers.
  Before continuing, you need to have available the instruction manual for
your printer.  In that manual, please locate the section that lists the
control codes or control sequences used by your printer.  (This section may be
listed in the index as "Command table", "Control sequences", "Control codes",
or "Codes, control" or some similar name.)

  The following screens explain how the control codes listed in your printer
manual are entered in EPSKED, then describe each of the entry areas in detail.
 14-2
Entering control codes in the Printer Control screen
  In your printer manual, find the listing of control codes or sequences that
need to be sent to your printer to activate its various features.
  For example, to tell your laser printer that you are using legal size paper
your printer manual may instruct you to send the command:
                                   Ec&l3A
(where the letter "c" is a subscript of the "E").  The "Ec" stands for the
"Escape" code that is commonly used as the initial control code in a sequence
of printer control codes, preparing the computer to accept the subsequent
values as control codes rather than characters for printing.  (The
abbreviation used for the Escape code varies from printer to printer, but is
usually explained at the beginning of the section in the printer manual that
lists the control codes.  Common abbreviations are "ESC" and the "^" symbol.)
  Simple enough, but we're still not through.  "Ec" is only an abbreviation
for a control code that is commonly used as the first code in a sequence, not
an actual control code, and cannot be sent directly to your printer.
Additionally, the control code sequence must be converted to its decimal
equivalent for entry on the Printer Control screen.
  The chart on the next screen gives you the information needed to make the
decimal conversions.  Some printer manuals list the decimal conversions in
addition to the alphabetic control codes; use these values if available!  If
not, you may want to press the "Print Screen" key on your computer to make a
copy of the chart for use side by side with your printer manual.
 14-3
     ╔══[ Decimal Control Code Equivalents ]════════════════════════════╗
     ║  0 NUL    16 DLE    32 SP   48 0    64 @    80 P    96 `   112 p ║
     ║  1 SOH    17 DC1    33 !    49 1    65 A    81 Q    97 a   113 q ║
     ║  2 STX    18 DC2    34 "    50 2    66 B    82 R    98 b   114 r ║
     ║  3 ETX    19 DC3    35 #    51 3    67 C    83 S    99 c   115 s ║
     ║  4 EOT    20 DC4    36 $    52 4    68 D    84 T   100 d   116 t ║
     ║  5 ENQ    21 NAK    37 %    53 5    69 E    85 U   101 e   117 u ║
     ║  6 ACK    22 SYN    38 &    54 6    70 F    86 V   102 f   118 v ║
     ║  7 BEL    23 ETB    39 '    55 7    71 G    87 W   103 g   119 w ║
     ║  8 BS     24 CAN    40 (    56 8    72 H    88 X   104 h   120 x ║
     ║  9 HT     25 EM     41 )    57 9    73 I    89 Y   105 i   121 y ║
     ║ 10 LF     26 EOF    42 *    58 :    74 J    90 Z   106 j   122 z ║
     ║ 11 VT     27 ESC    43 +    59 ;    75 K    91 [   107 k   123 { ║
     ║ 12 FF     28 FS     44 ,    60 <    76 L    92 \   108 l   124 | ║
     ║ 13 CR     29 GS     45 -    61 =    77 M    93 ]   109 m   125 } ║
     ║ 14 SO     30 RS     46 .    62 >    78 N    94 ^   110 n         ║
     ║ 15 SI     31 US     47 /    63 ?    79 O    95 _   111 o         ║
     ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
  Do you see that 27 is the listed decimal conversion for the "ESC" ("Ec")
control code?  The remaining characters in the control sequence "Ec&l3A" are
& (listed as 38),  the letter l (listed as 108),  3 (listed as 51) and
A (listed as 65), so that the decimal conversion of the "Ec&l3A" control
sequence is 27 38 108 51 65.  Be sure you understand this before proceeding...
 14-4
Entering control codes in the Printer Control screen (continued)
  The decimal conversion of the control codes are the values that are entered
in EPSKED.  Control code sequence entry areas appear as a series of plus signs
(+) separating areas for entering the individual control code values.  A
maximum sequence of 35 control code values can be entered in each area, which
should be more than sufficient.
  Between each set of plus signs, the numerical value you enter can be placed
to the right, to the left, centered, or preceded by zeroes and still be
correctly interpreted by EPSKED.  For example, in the  "Ec&l3A" command,
converted to its decimal equivalent of  27 38 108 51 65  to tell your laser
printer that you are using legal size paper, the initial 27 may be entered as:
Legal Size: 027+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___
  or
Legal Size: _27+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___
  or
Legal Size: 27_+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___
  As you type, the cursor marking the current entry position automatically
skips over the plus signs.  Usable editing keys are displayed in the prompt at
the screen bottom.
  Once you finish entering the control codes, confirm that your entries work
as expected by pressing <Esc> to return to the Printer Option screen, then
press <F4> to send a test print to your printer.
 14-5
Entering control codes in the Printer Control screen (continued)
  One variation on the conversion of control codes to their decimal value
occurs with some printer.  As an example, a dot matrix printer manual might
indicate the following control codes (entered as part of the font selection
codes) are needed to select the IBM Graphics character set printing mode:
          FS I(n)  Selects italic or IBM character set.
                   n=0 selects italic set
                   n=1 selects IBM set
  The "FS" stands for the Form Separator control code and the "I" is the
letter "I".  The "n" (which may or may not be enclosed in parentheses) would
be replaced by a "1" (one) if you desire the IBM set (which we do).  The
control sequence to send to this printer to prepare it to print the IBM
character set then becomes "FS I(1)".
  Again, we're still not through -- "FS" is only an abbreviation for a control
code that is commonly used as the first code in a sequence, not an actual
control code, and cannot be sent directly to your printer.  Both the "FS" and
the "I" need to be converted to their decimal equivalents.  The "n" value,
however, is used directly without conversion, and the parenthesis are not
converted or sent!  (Hey, this wasn't our idea.)  Referring to your copy of
the previous Decimal Control Code Equivalents chart, the "FS" becomes 28, and
"I" is converted to 73.  The decimal conversion for the FS I(1) command is
therefore  28 73 1  which is  entered in the Printer Control screen as:
Standard Font: _28+_73+__1+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+___+
 14-7
  The remainder of the help screens give details for each of the entry areas
on the Printer Control configuration screen.

Printer Name
  The printer name is displayed for reference only and does not affect control
codes sent to your printer.  The name entered here is displayed in the "Active
Printer" portion of the Printer Options window.

Reset
  Control codes entered on this line are the first control codes sent to the
printer each time EPSKED prints a schedule or schedule summary.  For a dot
matrix printer, no code may be required, or perhaps a simple code telling the
printer to return to its normal start up options.  A laser printer may require
information telling it to print in a portrait orientation, with no margins,
and accept paper from an attached paper tray.
  If you are manually configuring your printer, the control codes listed in
your printer manual for the "Reset" command sequence are usually sufficient.
 14-8
Standard Font
  The standard font required by EPSKED is the usual default font on most
printers: character pitch of 10 characters per inch, no proportional printing.
Suggested are the Courier 10 font found on most laser printers, or the Pica
font found on most dot matrix printers.  If a selection for IBM (or PC)
graphics characters is available, we recommend using that font.
  If selection of the Standard Font was made from the EPSKED printer data
base, the name of the font selected is shown just above the screen prompts.
This name is for reference only -- it does not affect the printer control
codes and cannot be edited.  If you change the control codes to select a
different font, the codes you enter determine the font used when printing.

Standard Font Line Advance
  Control codes displayed here are sent to the printer at the end of every
line printed in the Standard Font.  They instruct the printer to advance its
print location to the next line and begin printing at the left margin.
  EPSKED requires six lines/inch line spacing for the Standard Font.  It uses
this figure to calculate the maximum size schedule that can be printed on
letter size paper (fixed at sixty printed lines each page) or legal size paper
(fixed at eighty printed lines each page).  If you are attempting a customized
line spacing for a selected font, you should utilize the Condensed Font and
Condensed Line Advance control codes which allow you to notify EPSKED about
the number of lines that can be printed on each page by your printer.
 14-9
Condensed Font
  A "condensed" or "compressed" printing mode is available for most dot matrix
printers.  Printing produced using this condensed font is a smaller size than
with the standard font and allows printing of roughly eight lines per inch and
136 characters per line.  For printers with a more extensive font selection,
the EPSKED printer data base automatically selects a type size of nine points
or smaller, if available.  (A "point" is 1/72 of an inch.  Type size in points
indicates the height of the printed characters, measured from the top of the
tallest ascender above the base line to the bottom of the lowest descender
below the base line.)
  If the number of lines required to print your schedule is more than can be
printed on the size paper you have selected using the standard font, or if you
elected to print the name of each shift to the left of the physician scheduled
for that shift, EPSKED requires that you print your schedule using the
"Condensed font".
  If selection of the Condensed Font was made from the EPSKED printer data
base, the name of the font selected is shown just above the screen prompts.
The name is composed of an alphabetic name (for example, Pica), a number
indicating the type size in points, and the suffix "PC" if the font can print
the IBM Graphics characters.  This name is for reference only -- it does not
affect the printer control codes and cannot be edited.  If you change the
control codes to select a different font, the codes you enter determine the
font used when printing.
 14-10
Condensed Line Advance
  Control codes displayed on this line are sent to the printer at the end of
every line printed using the Condensed Font.  They instruct the printer to
advance its print location to the next line and begin printing at the left
margin.
  Line spacing information, if required in the command, should match the point
size of the Condensed Font.  For example, since a point is 1/72", a nine point
type size is 9/72" or 1/8" high and line spacing would be set as closely as
possible to eight lines per inch to connect the line draw characters.
Underline On
Underline Off
  EPSKED uses underlining to highlight the names of holidays printed on your
schedules.  If control codes are entered these two lines, the "Underline On"
codes are sent immediately before printing the holiday name and the "Underline
Off" codes are sent immediately after printing of the holiday name.
  If no control codes are indicated for underlining, EPSKED first prints the
holiday name, backspaces to the beginning of the holiday name, then underlines
it by printing the underline character ( _ ) until it again reaches the end of
the holiday name.
  If, for some reason, you do not wish to underline the holiday names on your
printed schedule, enter a zero (0) as the "Underline On" control code to
disable the underline feature.
 14-11
Letter Size
Legal Size
  Control codes displayed on these lines tell the printer what size paper,
Letter (regular) or Legal, you want to use when printing your schedule.  The
selection you make in the "Paper size" area of the Printer Options screen
determines which of the two control code sequences are sent to your printer.
  For continuous form paper, the printer needs this information to know how
far to advance its print head to start each new sheet of paper.  For printers
that use sheet paper, this information is also used to tell the printer what
paper tray needs to be used for printing.

Manual Feed On
Manual Feed Off
  If you selected "Yes - manual feed is required" in the "Manual feed?" area
of the Printer Options window, the control codes entered in the Manual Feed On
line are sent to the printer immediately after the Reset command is sent, and
the Manual Feed Off codes (if any) are sent at the end of printing.  See the
help instructions for the "Manual feed?" option for reasons you might select
this option.
 14-12
Condensed Letter Paper Page Lines
Condensed Legal Paper Page Lines
  At the bottom of the entry area of Printer Control screen are two lines
labeled as above.  Values you enter here are not printer control codes, but
the actual number of usable lines that can be printed on a page, before
reaching the end of the paper, using the Condensed Font.  These values are
used by EPSKED to calculate the amount of space required to print your
schedule.  (For the Standard Font, 60 lines/page are used for letter size
paper and 80 lines/page for legal size paper.  These two values cannot be
changed.)
  The two values are set by EPSKED if you selected a printer from the data
base, but can be changed if needed.  If you configured your own printer or
changed to a different condensed font, you need to enter new values.
  An easy way to obtain the correct value is by using the "<F4> - test
printer" command from the Printer Options screen.  First make your changes in
the control codes for the Condensed Font and Condensed Line Advance, then
press <Esc> to return to the Printer Options screen and press <F4>.  The test
sheet which is printed has line numbers down its left margin.  Enter the
number printed at the bottom of the sheet as the Condensed Letter (or Legal)
Paper Page Lines value, depending upon which size paper you used for printing.
  Even if your schedule is printed on legal size paper, take a moment to also
obtain the correct value for letter size paper, since you may still want to
print summary information on letter size paper.
15
CONFIGURATION - Physician Information menu
Overview of the Physician Information menu (Display and Printout)
  The sixth (and final!) step in customizing EPSKED is identifying the
physicians who work the schedule you have created in the previous five steps.
   ╔════════════════════════[ Customizing EPSKED ]════════════════════════╗
   ║ √ What are your shifts?                                              ║
   ║ √ How do your shifts relate to each other?                           ║
   ║ √ Which shifts are normally scheduled on which days of the week?     ║
   ║ √ What format (appearance) do you want for your schedule?            ║
   ║ √ What summary statistics do you want EPSKED to track and display?   ║
   ║  Who are your physicians and what are their scheduling preferences? ║
   ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

  If you are performing your initial configuration of EPSKED, press <I> to
select the "Individual physician entry form".  From that one screen you can
make all needed configuration entries!

  Please, don't be overwhelmed by the number of options!  EPSKED can produce
schedules even if all you do is simply enter the names of your physicians.
The remaining options are either automatically set to standard values or do
not need to be used, but are available if required by your schedule.  A brief
description of the purpose of each of the available selections is shown on the
next screen to help you decide which options you want to use.  Detailed help
is available from within all screens by pressing the <F1> key.
 15-2
  You normally customize EPSKED for your physicians through an Entry Form that
contains all needed configuration options for an individual physician -- see
selection <I>.  The other configuration screens display information which
mostly duplicates information shown on the Entry Form, but allows you to
examine and modify specific information (such as requested hours) for all
physicians rather than all information for a single physician as is shown on
the Entry Form.
  The various entry areas allow EPSKED to customize schedules according to
each physician's individual requirements.  Each entry area is designed to
answer logical questions about your physicians:
 ■ <I> Individual physician entry form - What are the names and individual
   scheduling preferences of your physicians?
 ■ <H> Hours and shifts requests - How many hours and shifts should be
   scheduled for each physician?  You may enter requests for specific numbers
   of shifts in up to three selected summary categories.  For example, you
   might want to configure EPSKED to accept scheduling requests for specific
   numbers of night, weekend and evening shifts for each of your physicians.
 ■ <S> Sequences of shifts - How many shifts in a row does each physician want
   to work?  Are there any shifts, such as night shifts, for which your
   physicians want to work fewer in a row than for other shifts?  Do any
   physicians want to either work the entire weekend or have the entire
   weekend off?  If you configured more than one Shift Relations Model, which
   one should be used for each physician?
 15-3
 ■ <P> Preferences for shift types - Are there any of the configured shifts
   that an individual physician cannot work?  (For example, physicians or
   physician assistants who work only in a fast track area may not be able to
   work shifts in the main emergency department.)  Likewise, are there any
   shifts that individual physicians prefer working or dislike working?
 ■ <C> Cycle scheduling - Are there any repetitive cycles of shifts worked or
   days off that you want EPSKED to automatically pre-schedule?  If so, enter
   a cycle that can automatically schedule through the year 2079!
 ■ <T> Telephone numbers - One of the functions of the EPSKED scheduling
   program is printing an individual physician schedule for each of your
   physicians.  These schedules are normally distributed only to your
   physicians.  What information, including telephone number if you desire, do
   you want printed on these individual schedules in addition to the schedule?
 ■ <B> Bias for summary categories - Do you want EPSKED to try to schedule
   some physicians for more or fewer shifts in a particular summary category?
   This feature can be used to help adjust the long term balance between
   physicians in any summary category.
 ■ <M> Main Menu - Press <M> when you are finished configuring your
   physicians.  You will be returned to the configuration Main Menu screen.
   If you pressed <A> to select the "All selections" option from the Main Menu
   the configuration of EPSKED for your schedule is complete and you are ready
   to begin actual scheduling.  Congratulations!
16
CONFIGURATION - (Physician) Entry Form and Physician Name Entry
Overview
  This help screen contains both general information for the physician Entry
Form and detailed information about the Physician Name entry section of that
form.  Detailed, context sensitive help information about other sections of
the Entry Form are available by pressing <F1> when entering information in
those areas.

  The physician Entry Form displays all configuration requests specific to an
individual physician.  In addition to a name, other information is displayed.
Most important to you are probably the usual number of hours and shifts
requested by the physician for each schedule, the number of days in a row the
physician prefers to work (referred to as Shifts In A Row on the program
screen), and shifts the physician is unable to work or for which he has
special preferences.

  When the EPSKED scheduling program creates a schedule it attempts to match
the requested values as closely as possible for each physician.  The task of
entering these data values for each physician is greatly simplified by use of
a template, as explained below.

  Again, don't be overwhelmed by the number of options!  EPSKED can produce
schedules even if all you do is simply enter the names of your physicians.
 16-2
Screen description
  The majority of the physician Entry Form screen is occupied by the entry
form itself.  The unlabeled entry areas at the top the form are for the
physician name and physician name abbreviation, and are unique to this screen.

  The first time you use the Entry Form, the name TEMPLATE is automatically
printed as the physician name.  In each of the remaining data entry sites you
may enter the most common values used by the physicians working in your
emergency department.  This template feature is designed to save you time when
adding a new physician: all you do is press the <+> key, then enter the new
physician name.  The template data values are then automatically entered for
all of the newly added physician's data categories.  EPSKED initially assigns
several standard template values, any of which you can change.

  You may choose to make entries in none or all of the data entry areas.  To
help you decide in which areas you may want to make further entries, an
abridged description of each row of entries is shown on the following help
screen.  For detailed help information about any data area of interest, use
the arrow keys to highlight that individual entry area, then press the <F1>
key.
 16-3
  Data entry areas in the physician Entry Form are:
 ■ In the row starting with the REQUESTED HOURS entry area you can enter
   requests related to the number of hours and shifts for which the physician
   should be scheduled.  To make your life easier, take a moment to understand
   the use of the "=" and "%" entries in these columns, which allow EPSKED to
   automatically calculate some requested values.  (Detailed information about
   this is contained in the help information available by pressing <F1> while
   highlighting any entry area on that line.)
 ■ In the row starting with the SHIFTS IN A ROW entry area, indicate sequences
   of shifts preferred by each physician.  The number of shifts worked in a
   row, nights worked in a row, and whether the physician wants to either work
   the entire weekend or be off for the entire weekend (or doesn't care) can
   be indicated.  If you configured more than one Shift Relations Model,
   select which one is used for each physician.
 ■ In the row starting with the CAN'T DO SHIFTS entry area, let EPSKED know if
   there are any types of shifts that an individual physician cannot work, or
   ones s/he prefers or dislikes working.  (For example, physicians who work
   only in a fast track area may not be able to work other shifts.)
 ■ In the row beginning with the CYCLE START entry, define any repetitive
   cycles of shifts worked or days off that you want automatically scheduled.
 ■ On the bottom row, you can enter the physician's telephone number, used
   only on individual physician schedules distributed only to your physicians.
Remember, for detailed help, press <F1> from any entry area!
 16-4
Screen commands

<F2> - swap displays
  Press <F2> to change the screen display from the physician Entry Form screen
(which shows all configuration options for one physician) to a screen which
still displays the currently highlighted configuration option, but for all
physicians.

<+> - add new doc
  Press the <+> key to display a blank physician Entry Form.  Type in the name
of the physician you want to add, then press <Enter>.  Template values are
automatically copied to the new form, which you may modify as needed.  EPSKED
permits you to configure and schedule as many as forty active physicians at
one time.

<-> - delete doc!
  If a physician leaves your group, remove his name from the list of active
physicians by pressing the <-> key while highlighting any of the configuration
areas for that physician.  A warning screen is displayed, requesting you to
confirm the delete request.

Arrow keys - move cursor
  Similar to other screens.  <Tab> works also.
 16-5
Screen commands (continued)

<PgUp>/<PgDn> - swap doc
  Press the <PgUp> key to move to the Entry Form of the previous physician
alphabetically, or <PgDn> to move to the Entry Form of the next physician.

<Esc> - prior menu
  Press <Esc> to return to the Physician Information menu.  From there you may
return to the configuration Main Menu and load the scheduling program.

<Ctrl+first letter> - direct to name
  This prompt is continuously displayed immediately above the instructions at
the bottom of the screen.  Press and hold down the <Ctrl> key, then press the
first letter of the name of the physician whose Entry Form you want to
display.  If more than one physician has the same first letter, continue
holding down the same keys until the correct physician's form is displayed.
To display the TEMPLATE form, press <Ctrl+T>.
 16-6
Physician Name entry
  The remainder of this help screen provides information about entry of your
physicians' names.
  The data entry site for physician names is at the top of the Entry Form,
reached by pressing the <+> key to add a new physician, or by arrow keys
movement from adjacent data entry areas.  A maximum of forty physicians may be
scheduled at any one time.
  EPSKED does not let you change the TEMPLATE name or the names of physicians
entered during previous configuration sessions.  Previously entered names are
surrounded by bright red lines to designate this and a message is displayed if
you attempt to make a change.
  Type the name of a physician you want to add to the list of physicians
available for scheduling.  Capital letters only are allowed -- no spaces,
numbers, or other characters, with one exception.  If you have two physicians
with the same last name (nepotism?) you can insert period characters ( . ) in
the names, allowing you to use a first initial to differentiate them (for
example, M.SMITH and P.SMITH).
 16-7
  Another physician name consideration that may apply to your schedule:  If
you configured EPSKED so that two shifts share a single *display* line, only
the first four letters of each physician's name can be displayed on the
designated half of the line.  (You would have requested this in the "Format
Display of Schedule" screen.)  Because only four letters can be displayed, two
physicians having the same first four letters of their name are
indistinguishable when displayed on a shared line (for example, Drs. Mayers
and Mayes would both be displayed as MAYE).  If this situation applies to your
schedule, you are notified when the second physician name is entered.  Use the
period character (.) as described above to allow you to distinguish between
the names.  Please note that the *printed* schedule always prints the full
name, up to ten letters.
  After you have finished typing a physician name, press the <Enter> key.  Any
configured Template values are automatically copied to the new form, which you
may then modify as needed.
  To the right of the physician name, separated from it by a  ≡  symbol, you
will also notice that EPSKED displays a unique two letter abbreviation for
each physician.  This abbreviation is used to simplify requests in the
scheduling program.  Highlight that entry area and press <F1> if you want more
information.
17
CONFIGURATION - Physician name abbreviation
  To simplify entry of your requests in the scheduling program, EPSKED assigns
a unique two letter abbreviation to each physician.  For example, one of the
functions of EPSKED is the display of individual physician schedules which
highlight all shifts worked by a single physician.  If "SM" has been
designated as the abbreviation for Dr. Smith, then typing "SM" at the
appropriate prompt would result in a displayed schedule with Dr. Smith's name
highlighted for each shift that he is working, facilitating your review of his
individual schedule.
  As you enter new physicians, EPSKED automatically selects the first two
letters of each newly entered physician name for use as the abbreviation for
that physician.  (If you used a period as the second letter of the name, this
is used.)
  Feel free to change the abbreviations if you want, but you should pick
easily remembered letters, since the abbreviation you enter is used throughout
the scheduling program.
18
CONFIGURATION - Duplicate Abbreviation Window
  You have just finished entering a new physician or new physician
abbreviation.  EPSKED has rewarded you with a soothing beep and is displaying
an entry window which you may not understand at first glance.  One bit of
information should help clarify the situation.
  To simplify entry of your requests in the scheduling program, EPSKED assigns
a unique two letter abbreviation to each physician.  For example, one of the
functions of EPSKED displaying an individual physician schedule, highlighting
all of the shifts worked by a single physician.  If "SM" has been designated
as the abbreviation for Dr. Smith, then typing "SM" at the appropriate prompt
results in a schedule being displayed with Dr. Smith's name highlighted for
each shift that he is working, facilitating your review of his individual
schedule.
  As you enter each physician name, EPSKED automatically selects the first two
letters of each newly entered physician name for use as the abbreviation for
that physician.  (If you used a period as the second letter of the name, this
is used instead.)  The current physician has the same two letter abbreviation
as another active physician and EPSKED is displaying a window giving you the
opportunity to select an alternative abbreviation for one of them.  An
example...
 18-2
Duplicate abbreviation example:
  You have two physicians, Drs. Friedman and Frost.  EPSKED initially selects
"FR" as the two letter abbreviation for both of them, but then displays a
message stating, "Drs. FRIEDMAN and FROST use the same two letter
abbreviation."  You are requested to enter a new abbreviation for the first
physician.
  You may change this abbreviation by typing in a new two letter abbreviation,
or use the <Arrow> keys to move the highlighting to the other physician and
change that abbreviation.  Since the abbreviation you enter is used frequently
in the scheduling program, you should pick easily remembered letters, such as
initials ("HF" for Howard Friedman, or "DF" for David Frost), though any
letters you select are acceptable as long as they do not conflict with the
abbreviation used for another physician.
  When you have finished entering a new abbreviation, press <Esc>, and EPSKED
returns you to the physician Entry Form.
19
CONFIGURATION - Physician Data - Requested Hours
  One of the variables that EPSKED considers when creating schedules is the
number of hours that should be scheduled for each physician.  If you are
entering this information from the Entry Form, the value you enter applies to
the physician named at the top of the form.  If you are entering the
information from the Hours & Shifts screen, the value you enters applies to
the physician whose name is displayed in the first column at the left of the
entry line.
  A specific numerical value (from zero to 499) can be entered.  If you enter
a zero hour value, EPSKED will not schedule the affected physician for any
shifts, though you may hand schedule the physician at any time.  Alternatively
a "=" can be entered by pressing the <=> key.  This indicates that you want
EPSKED to distribute the total available (not specifically requested) hours in
the schedule equally among all of the physicians for which this option is
chosen.
  For the "=" option: when actual scheduling is performed, the total of all
specific hours values requested are subtracted from the total number of hours
available for scheduling, then the remaining hours are equally divided among
the physicians for whom the <=> option was chosen.  This calculated value is
displayed as a numerical value in the scheduling program when you are actually
creating a schedule and may be also modified at that time.  In the
configuration program, only the "=" is shown.  From our experience, the <=>
option is under utilized, perhaps because the actual numerical value cannot be
seen during configuration.  Perhaps an example will help...
 19-2
An example of <=> option calculations
  Suppose you have a total of 1100 hours of shifts in a schedule worked by ten
physicians.  If an "=" entry is made in the Requested Hours column for all the
physicians, EPSKED would calculate that each physician should work 110 hours
and display this value *in the scheduling program* as the requested number of
hours for each physician.  Alternatively, if one of your physicians always
works 200 hours, you could enter a fixed value of 200 for his requested hours
and an "=" value for the remaining nine physicians, who would then split the
remaining 900 hours with a calculated value of 100 hours each.
  The use of the "=" option is somewhat difficult to visualize now, since in
the configuration program it does not have any specific value attached to it.
The function is more clear in the scheduling program, where it is associated
with a value that depends upon the total hours in the current schedule.
  Depending on your scheduling practices, you may want to use the "=" option
for all of your full time physicians while entering a specific hours value for
any part time physicians.  Or, you may want to do the reverse: if your full
time physicians work a fixed (specific) number of hours each schedule, the
remaining hours in the schedule could be equally divided among your part time
physicians.
  EPSKED initially places the "=" option as the standard entry in the
REQUESTED HOURS position of the template,  but you may change this, if needed,
to suit your schedule.  You may modify requested hours values entered on this
screen from the scheduling program prior to scheduling.
20
CONFIGURATION - Requested Shifts Summary Category Selection
  When creating schedules, EPSKED can schedule physicians for specific numbers
of shifts in specific categories.  For example, many groups want to distribute
night shifts, weekend shifts and/or evening shift in a specific fashion.
  The current entry area is one of three entry areas to the right of the
Requested Hours column.  In each of these areas you may identify a category of
shifts for which you want to request scheduling of specific numbers of shifts
for each physician.  The three categories are prioritized, left to right, as
maximum (), high (!), and medium (≈) according to their importance for having
an exact match between the number of shifts requested and the number of shifts
actually scheduled.
  A Summary Option window displayed below the entry site lists your available
choices -- to create a request category, press the matching letter shown in
the window.  For example if NIGHT is displayed in the Summary Option window
with a <D> adjacent to it, press <D> to establish a NIGHT SHIFTS request
category.  The choices listed depend upon the Summary Categories you
configured on the Define Summary Categories screen (option <S> from the
configuration Main Menu screen).  Any category created in the Summary
Categories screen that tracks SHIFTS worked, except HOLIDAY and HAND SKED, can
be used as one of the three request categories.
  Do not configure request categories that you do not really need, as each
category limits EPSKED's flexibility and prolongs scheduling time.
  Once your request category is established, press <Enter> to begin entering
the number of shifts each physician should work in the created category.
21
CONFIGURATION - Physician Data - Requested Shifts
  Displayed in the three columns to the right of the REQUESTED HOURS entry
area are entry areas for indicating the usual number of shifts a physician
should work each schedule in up to three request categories.  A specific
numerical value (from zero to 31) can be entered, or you may use one of two
other options indicated by pressing the <%> or the <=> keys.
  A percentage sign ("%") entry instructs the EPSKED scheduling program to
calculate a physician's target value for shifts in a request category based
upon the target value the physician has displayed for Requested Hours.  This
option helps automate calculation of target values for schedules in which
physicians who work more total hours are expected to work proportionately more
shifts in a request category.
  For example, consider a schedule which contains a total of 1000 hours and
includes 30 night shifts.  If one physician requests scheduling for 100 hours
(=10% of the total hours in the schedule), a <%> entry for a NIGHT SHIFT
request category causes the EPSKED scheduling program to calculate a target
value of 3 NIGHT SHIFTS for the physician (=10% of the 30 total night shifts
in the schedule).  If another physician requests 200 hours (=20% of the total
hours), EPSKED would calculate a target value of 6 NIGHT SHIFTS (=20% of the
30 night shifts in the schedule).
  EPSKED initially places the <%> option as the standard entry in the
requested shifts position of the template copied to all physicians, but you
can change this if desired.  You may also modify any requested shift values
entered on this screen from the scheduling program prior to scheduling.
 21-2
  Similar to the "=" entry in the Requested Hours column, a "=" entry in a
requested shifts column signifies that you want EPSKED to distribute the total
available shifts in the schedule equally among those physicians with this
option.
  For example, suppose your schedule contains a total of 50 weekend shifts,
worked by ten physicians.  If an <=> entry is made in the Requested Hours
column for all the physicians, EPSKED would calculate that each of the ten
physicians should work 5 weekend shifts and display this value *in the
scheduling program* as the requested number of WEEKEND SHIFTS for each
physician.  Alternatively, if one of your physicians prefers working weekend
shifts and usually works ten of them, you could enter a fixed value of 10 for
that physician and an "=" value for the remaining nine physicians, who would
then split the remaining forty weekend shifts with a calculated (rounded)
request value of 6 weekend shifts each.  Four weekend shifts would be left
unrequested, which you could allow EPSKED to distribute or, prior to
scheduling, you could specifically assign them to some of the "=" physicians,
changing their requests from "=" to a specific value.

  The use of the <=> and <%> options may be somewhat difficult to visualize,
since in the configuration program they do not have any specific values
attached to them.  Their function is more clear in the scheduling program,
where they are associated with specific values that depend upon the current
schedule.
22
CONFIGURATION - Physician Data - Shifts In A Row
  Displayed below the "SHIFTS IN A ROW" label is a number representing the
upper limit of the number of days in a row that each physician *desires* to
work.  Any number from one to nine may be entered by pressing the
corresponding number key on the keyboard.
  The Shifts In A Row column also allows a <!> entry next to each number,
indicating that the physician wants to work as close to that number of shifts
in a row as possible.  Use the <!> option judiciously, as it limits schedule
flexibility and prolongs scheduling time.  EPSKED does not set a minimum
number of days in a row for each physician to work, but schedule
configurations that establish a large number of PREFER shift relationships (in
the Shift Relationships Entry screen) most closely attain the desired number
of days in a row.  Schedule configurations that establish few or no PREFER
relationships tend to produce more isolated shift scheduling.
  If necessary, EPSKED schedules a physician for ONE more day in a row than
the requested upper limit in order to avoid scheduling another physician for
shifts having a DISLIKE preference relationship (as indicated by your entries
in the "Shift Relations Entry" screen) or if it is the only way to schedule a
physician for his requested number of hours.
  EPSKED will schedule a physician for as many shifts in a row as necessary
in order to avoid leaving a shift unscheduled, but only after attempting to
schedule that shift by all other means at its disposal.
  The initial template value that EPSKED displays for the Shifts In A Row is
five, but feel free to change this to suit the usual value for your group.
23
CONFIGURATION - Secondary Shifts in a Row Selection
  Some physicians want to work several shifts in a row for most shifts but not
for certain other shifts, such as nights or longer length shifts.  The "? In
A Row" column allows a secondary Shifts in a Row designation to be configured
if desired.  This area is most commonly used to create a NIGHTS IN A ROW
restriction, useful when some of your physicians want to work only one or two
nights at a time, while others want several at a time in order to "get them
over with".
  Do not configure a "Nights In a Row column" if all of your physicians work
only one night shift in a row and your shift relations established a conflict
relationship between working a night shift the day after having already worked
a night shift.
  The current entry area is immediately to the right of the Shifts In A Row
column.  A Summary Option window displayed below the entry site lists your
available choices -- to create the secondary Shifts In A Row category, press
the matching letter shown in the window.  For example if NIGHT is displayed in
the Summary Option window with a <D> adjacent to it, press <D> to establish a
NIGHTS IN A ROW category.  The choices listed depend upon the Summary
Categories you configured on the Define Summary Categories screen (option <S>
from the configuration Main Menu screen).  Any simple (not Special) summary
category that tracks SHIFTS worked can be used.
  Once your secondary Shifts In A Row category is established, press <Enter>
to begin entering the number of shifts in a row for each physician.
24
CONFIGURATION - Secondary Shifts In A Row Requests
  Displayed below the secondary Shifts IN A ROW label is a number representing
the upper limit of the number of days in a row that each physician DESIRES to
work the type of shift that you configured in the Secondary Shifts in a Row
Selection.  Any number from one to nine may be entered by pressing the
corresponding number key on the keyboard.

  The secondary Shifts In A Row column also allows a <!> entry next to each
number, indicating that the physician wants to work as closely to that number
of shifts in a row as possible.  Use this option with caution, as it limits
schedule flexibility and prolongs scheduling time.  EPSKED does not set a
minimum number of shifts in a row for each physician to work.  Schedule
configurations that establish few or no PREFER relationships tend to produce
more isolated shift scheduling.

  EPSKED will schedule a physician for as many shifts in a row as necessary
in order to avoid leaving a shift unscheduled, but only after attempting to
schedule that shift by all other means at its disposal.

  The initial template value that EPSKED displays for the secondary Shifts In
Row is five, but feel free to change this to suit the usual value for your
group.
25
CONFIGURATION - Link Sat-Sun?
  Some physicians may want to work the whole weekend if they are working it at
all.  The Link Sat-Sun? entry area allows you to indicate if a physician
prefers working shifts on *both* Saturday and Sunday if he is working any
shifts on either day, or being off for the entire weekend.

  Press <Y> if the current physician wants to work for the entire weekend or
be off for the entire weekend.  Use this option only if really needed, as it
limits schedule flexibility and can prolong scheduling time.

  Press <N> if this in not important to the current physician (i.e., working
only one weekend day and being off for the other is acceptable).
26
CONFIGURATION - Physician Information - Relation Model
  The Relation Model entry area indicates the Relation Model (of the nine that
can be configured in the Configuration - Shift Relations Entry screen) used by
the current physician.

  Displayed in the upper right hand corner of the screen, immediately below
the screen title, is a numbered reference listing of the Relationship Models
you have configured for your schedule.

  To change the Relationship Model selected for the current physician, first
refer to the Relationship Models listing and find the number corresponding to
the desired Relationship Model.  Press the matching number key and the name of
the selected Relationship Model will be displayed in the current entry area.
27
CONFIGURATION - Physician Information - Shift Preferences
Overview
  Some of your physicians may not be able to work all types of shifts.  For
example, physicians or physician assistants who work only in a "fast track"
area may not be able to work shifts in the main emergency department.
Likewise, there may be types of shifts an individual physician prefers working
or dislikes working.  EPSKED can be informed about these restrictions using
four Shift Preference entry areas.

Screen Description
  The four shift preference entry areas available for each physician are:
  CAN'T DO SHIFTS    PREFERRED SHIFTS    DISLIKED SHIFTS    HI PREFER SHIFTS
  Displayed in each of these entry areas is either the notation "--none--" or
a series of letters representing the shift letters of shifts for which the
physician has expressed that preference.  Use the Shift Reference listing at
the top right of the screen to interpret the letters (they are highlighted
using flashing letters whenever you are entering shift preference
information).  A "W" can also be included to indicate a physician preference
for working Weekend shifts.

  CAN'T DO SHIFTS entry is described in detail below, followed by a brief
description of the other entry areas and how they are handled by EPSKED.
 27-2
CAN'T DO SHIFTS entry
  When creating a schedule, EPSKED does not schedule a physician for any
shifts you have identified in this area as Can't Do shifts, and cautions you
with a beep and a warning message if you attempt to do so by hand.  EPSKED
initially displays the "--none--" option as the standard entry in CAN'T DO
SHIFTS position in the template.  To enter Can't Do shifts, press their
corresponding letters (refer to the blinking letters in the Shift Reference
area) then press <Enter> when done.  Press the <Spacebar> to change a listing
of "Can't Do" shifts back to "--none--".
  When should shifts be entered as Can't Do shifts?  One use is to allow
simultaneous scheduling of an emergency department and an affiliated urgent
care clinic.  For example, assume your emergency department shifts have been
lettered as A=DAYS, B=SWING, and C=NIGHT, while clinic shifts are lettered as
D=CLINIC DAY and E=CLINIC EVE (this information would be displayed in the
Shift Reference listing).  Physicians who can work only in the clinic would
have "ABC" displayed in their CAN'T DO SHIFTS entry area, corresponding to the
three emergency department shifts and making them unavailable for scheduling
in the emergency department.  Physicians who work only in the emergency
department but not in the clinic would have "DE" displayed in their CAN'T DO
SHIFTS column, making them unavailable for scheduling in the clinic.
Physicians who work in both areas would have "--none--" displayed.
 27-3
"CAN'T DO SHIFTS" (continued)
  The CAN'T DO SHIFTS option can also be used to allow separate scheduling of
physician assistant and physician shifts.  Simply identify all physician
assistant shifts as CAN'T DO shifts for your physicians and all physician
shifts as CAN'T DO shifts for your physician assistants.  (To simplify entry
using the template, you could first setup the CAN'T DO template values for
your physicians and enter their names, then modify the template values for the
physician assistants and enter their names.)
 27-4
Other shift preferences
  Default shift preferences other than Can't Do may also be assigned to each
configured shift for each physician.  In addition to the identification of
shifts as Can't Do shifts, individual shifts can be identified as Disliked
shifts (shifts in this category that would normally be considered as okay or
preferred by shift relations are instead regarded as disliked), Preferred
shifts (shifts in this category that would normally be considered as okay by
shift relations are instead regarded as preferred) and Hi Prefer shifts
(shifts in this category that would normally be considered as okay or disliked
by shift relations are instead regarded as preferred).
Weekend preferences
  A "W" entered in the Can't Do, Disliked, Preferred, or Hi Prefer shift
preference list applies to all weekend shifts.  For example, a "W" entered in
the Can't Do list makes a physician unavailable for computerized scheduling
for *any* weekend shifts on any schedule (though you may hand schedule a
physician for any shift, overriding all restrictions).

Resolving conflicting preferences
  Conflicting preferences may arise from your entries.  For example, if you
enter a Preferred preference for swing shifts, but a Disliked preference for
weekends, what should swing shifts on weekends be considered?  To resolve such
conflicts, Can't Do overrides Hi Prefer which overrides Disliked which
overrides Preferred entries.
28
CONFIGURATION - Cycle Entry
Overview of the Cycle Entry screen
  Some emergency departments schedule many of their shifts following fixed,
recurring sequences (cycles) of scheduled shifts and/or days off.  The Cycle
Entry screen allows you to inform EPSKED about any of these cycles used by
your schedule.  These shifts are then automatically scheduled by EPSKED rather
than having to be individually entered by hand for each new schedule.

  If your schedule does not require this feature you do not need to make any
entries on this screen.  Press <Esc> twice now to return to the Physician
Data screen.

  Prescheduled, repeating cycles of shifts may be entered, up to fifteen weeks
(135 days) in length.  Additionally, days a physician is not available to work
can be included in the cycle (e.g., every other weekend off).  Simply identify
a cycle starting date and cycle sequence: the entered cycle will be
repetitively scheduled indefinitely (through the year 2079) without requiring
manual entry for each new schedule.  Cycle sequence entries may include
specific shifts to be scheduled for a day in the cycle, "off" for a day in the
cycle, or simply available for a day in the cycle.  If the shift that normally
is cycle scheduled is already filled or not used on a given day, EPSKED
consults a list of substitute shifts where you may designate which shifts, if
any, should instead be scheduled (see the <*> command below).
 28-2
Screen description
  Two entry area are used to define the cycles used by the physicians working
in your emergency department.  The left entry area is labeled CYCLE START, and
provides for the entry of a starting date for the cycle.  To the right of this
is a wide entry area labeled CYCLE SCHEDULING SEQUENCE, where the actual cycle
sequence is entered and displayed.  The meaning of each of these is further
explained below.
  A template cycle starting date and cycle sequence may be entered which is
copied to the start date and cycle sequence of individual physicians.  This
feature is designed to save you from repeatedly entering a cycle sequence if
some or all of your physicians work similar cycles.
  At the top right of the program screen is displayed the Shift Reference
listing.  Below this are shown the commands that can be used from any data
position on the screen.  On the bottom two lines are displayed commands
specific to the current entry site.  These lines are also used to display any
warning or error messages.
 28-3
Screen Commands:
  General screen commands available for use from any entry site on the screen
are displayed below the Shift Reference listing at the right of the screen.
Most of these commands are self explanatory once you begin using them.  The
<V> command does need some explanation:
<V> - view schedule
  After entering cycles sequences, you should check that they are being
scheduled as you intended.  To preview how the cycles you enter are used to
create a schedule, press <V>, then select the schedule that you want to
preview from the displayed screen.  Cycle scheduling for that schedule is then
displayed for your review.  You may also elect to highlight individual
physician cycle schedules from that screen or page backward or forward through
adjacent schedules, observing your cycles in schedules over a period of time.

  If you are entering cycle information from the Entry Form, the <PgUp>/<PgDn>
commands used to view the form for the next/prior physician still work, but
are not displayed due to space limitations.

  Press <F2> to view cycles entered for all you physicians simultaneously.
 28-4
Cycle Start date entry
  For each physician, the CYCLE START column is used to enter the date of a
day matching the first day in that physician's cycle sequence.  Entries are
made in a MM-DD-YY format, using the numerical value of the month, followed by
the day, followed by the last two digits of the year.  (For example, December
1, 1995 would be entered as 12-01-95.)  EPSKED automatically skips over the
dividing dash (-) character as you enter the date.
  Refer to a prior schedule (if any are available) when deciding on a date to
enter.  Use the date of the first day of *any* of the physician's previously
scheduled cycles.  (For example: Your schedule uses DAY, SWING, and NIGHT
shifts every day.  Your physicians work a repetitive nine day cycle of:
                 DAY-DAY-SWING-SWING-NIGHT-NIGHT-OFF-OFF-OFF
Reviewing your November 1995 schedule you note that Dr. Friedman started the
first DAY shift of this cycle sequence on November 9.  Enter 11-09-95 as his
CYCLE START date.)
 28-5
Cycle Scheduling Sequence entry
  The actual cycle sequence of shifts you want scheduled for each physician is
entered and displayed in the wide column labeled CYCLE SCHEDULING SEQUENCE.
When you enter this cycle sequence entry area, notice that above the reverse
video highlighting of the cycle sequence entry line is displayed a series of
letters.  (These letters are displayed below the line for the TEMPLATE.)
These letters represent the first letters of the written names of the days of
the week.  The SS in the series stands for Saturday and Sunday, M for Monday,
the T following an M stands for Tuesday, and so on.  The leading (first)
letter in the series corresponds to the day of the week of the Cycle Start
date you entered for the highlighted cycle sequence.  (For example, if you
entered 11-04-95 as the Cycle Start date, the displayed letters series is:
                     SSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTF
Do you recognize that this indicates that November 4, 1995, is a Saturday?)
This line of letters corresponding to the days of the week is a guide that can
be of great assistance when entering some cycle sequences (see below).
  Cycle sequence entries may include specific shifts to be scheduled for a day
in the cycle (press the Shift Reference <Letter> key matching the shift),
"off" (not available) for a day in the cycle (press <X>), or available for a
day in the cycle (press <.> or <Spacebar>).  If a physician is cycle scheduled
"off" for a day, he is off for all shifts.  Unlike manually scheduled "off"
days, however, he is not automatically off for any "Shift Off Prior To A Day
Off" shifts you may have defined in the Shift Names and Hours entry screen.
 28-6
  The cycle sequences you enter are repetitive, meaning that the first day of
the entered cycle repeats as the next day following the last day of the cycle.
Make sure you understand that entering a cycle of:
                                      X
(just a single X) results in the physician with that cycle entered being cycle
scheduled off for every day of every future schedule through the year 2079!
  Another example: To enter a cycle in which a physician is off every other
weekend, enter the date of any Saturday as the starting date for that cycle.
(EPSKED will calculate the cycle backwards or forwards from the cycle starting
date you enter, so that dates starting before the start date of your cycle can
still be cycle scheduled.)  Check that you have correctly entered a Saturday
date by confirming that the series of letters above the cycle entry area
starts with SSMT... .  Then enter as the cycle sequence:
         SSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTF
         XX............
(that is, two X's to indicate the weekend days off, and twelve periods
indicating the days available for scheduling).  Confirm your sequence entry by
noting that the series of letters above the cycle entry area immediately
*after* the last entry of the cycle sequence starts with SSMT... .
  As a general rule, if the next day of the week after the end of your entered
cycle is the same as the first day of the week of the cycle, the cycle will
repeat with an identical day of the week for each of the sequence entries
whenever that cycle is scheduled.  (In this example, every other weekend off.)
 28-7
  Another example: Your physicians work a cycle of four day shifts, then two
days off, then four night shifts, then three days off. If shift A is your day
shift and shift B is your night shift, then enter as the cycle sequence:
         SSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTFSSMTWTF
         AAAAXXBBBBXXX
Note that this cycle sequence will *not* repeat with an identical day of the
week for each of the sequence entries whenever future (or prior) cycles are
scheduled.  During the cycle subsequent to the one entered above, the four day
shifts in a row (AAAA in the cycle sequence) starts on a Friday rather than a
Saturday.
  If your physicians work standard cycles but with different starting dates,
the template can be used to speed cycle entry.  Enter the cycle sequence once
as a template value on the first line of the screen, then give each physician
an appropriate (different) starting date.
  Only five weeks of the maximum fifteen week cycle sequence length can be
displayed in the CYCLE SCHEDULING SEQUENCE entry area at any one time.  If you
enter a cycle sequence longer than five weeks, bright arrows are displayed
adjacent to the displayed portion of the sequence.  These indicate whether
weeks 1 - 5 of the cycle sequence are being displayed (a bright  is displayed
to the right of the sequence, pointing toward additional undisplayed entries
following the displayed sequence), weeks 6 - 10 (bright arrows are displayed
to the right and left of the sequence), or whether weeks 11 - 15 of the cycle
sequence are shown (a bright  is displayed to the left of the sequence).
 28-8
  While making cycle sequence entries, use the <Home>, <End> and arrow keys to
move the cursor and the <Insert> key to switch between overtype and insert
editing modes as needed.
  After you have made cycle entries, remember to confirm that they will be
scheduled as you intended by using the <V> (view schedule) command.  Also, if
you use more than one Day Type in your schedule, make sure you understand the
function of the cycle substitute shifts.  (From the Cycle Entry program
screen, press <*> and review the help screen for the Cycle Substitution
Table.)
  During actual cycle scheduling in the EPSKED *scheduling* program, cycle
scheduled shifts will not override off shifts (shifts that your physicians
have specifically requested off) or hand scheduled shifts (shifts that you
have manually scheduled prior to computer scheduling).
29
Cycle Scheduling Preview - Schedule Selection
  You have requested viewing of a schedule created using the cycles you
configured.  EPSKED is now prompting you to select the schedule that you want
to view.  EPSKED then automatically displays the proper calendar.
  Below the screen title (Cycle Scheduling Preview - Skedule Selection) are
displayed the starting dates of three preselected schedules, each numbered to
its left with a bright yellow <1>, <2>, or <3>.  If you desire to preview
cycle scheduling for one of these three schedules, press the associated
number.
  If the schedule you desire to view is not shown, you may enter a specific
date; alternatively, press the <PgUp> or <PgDn> keys to change the schedule
selection to the three schedules immediately earlier or later than those
currently displayed, then make a selection as above.
  To enter a specific schedule, look at the bottom portion of the central
window where a flashing cursor is present, adjacent to the word "Month:".
Type the first three letters of the name of the month in which the desired
schedule starts (e.g., "FEB" for February).  The display of the remainder of
the name of the month is completed by EPSKED, and the cursor then moves down
adjacent to the word "Year:".  Type the last two digits of the year that you
desire to schedule (e.g., "95" for 1995).  For monthly schedules, the schedule
is immediately displayed.  For four and six week schedules, the displayed,
preselected schedules change to ones that bracket the month that you entered.
Select the desired schedule by pressing the <1>, <2>, or <3>.
 29-2
  If, while entering the year you decide to go back and change the name of the
month you selected, press the <Up Arrow> and the cursor returns to its
original position next to the word "Month:".
  If you decide you do not want to view a schedule, press the <Home> or <Esc>
to return to either the Cycle Entry screen or the Entry Form.
  EPSKED can extend your cycles either backward or forward in time, so that
the month that you select can be before or after the Cycle Start date of any
of your cycles.  EPSKED accepts dates from 1980 to 2079.
30
CONFIGURATION - View Sample Cycle Schedule
Overview of the Sample Cycle Schedule screen
  To view your shift cycles being used to create a schedule, you have pressed
<V> from the cycle entry screen, then selected the schedule that you want to
preview.  Cycle scheduling is now displayed on the program screen.  If EPSKED
found problems with two physicians being cycle scheduled for the same shift or
with a shift not being used on the intended scheduling day, an explanation and
options were displayed.  If a problem did occur, recheck your cycle start
dates and sequences and make sure that you understand the use of cycle
substitute shifts.  (Cycle substitute shifts are entered from a screen
accessed from the Cycle Entry area by pressing the <*> key.)
  Individual physician cycle schedules can also be highlighted from the
current screen (press the <*> key), allowing you to review the cycle
scheduling of both shifts and days off for each physician.  If there is a
conflict in which two physicians would be cycle scheduled for the same shift,
the first physician alphabetically has been scheduled.  During actual cycle
scheduling in the EPSKED scheduling program, cycle scheduled shifts do not
override shifts a physician has requested off or hand scheduled shifts.  (Off
shifts and hand scheduled shifts are entered in the scheduling program.  If
you are doing your initial configuration of EPSKED and do not yet understand
these terms, do not be concerned about them now.)
 30-2
 Sample Cycle Schedule Screen Description
  The schedule is displayed in a calendar-like fashion, with either Sunday or
Monday at the far left of each week, depending upon which you configured as
the "Leftmost day of the skedule" in the General Format screen.  For some
monthly schedules, the last one or two days of the month may be displayed in
the upper left hand corner due to space limitations on the monitor.  (When the
completed schedule is printed on paper, these days are printed at their normal
position at the bottom left hand corner of the calendar.)
  On the right margin, vertically oriented, is displayed the date of the
currently displayed schedule.
  The display lines within each day of the schedule are filled with blank
lines representing the appropriate shifts for that day as designated in your
original Day Type configuration entries.  Each unscheduled shift is
represented as a white line with a small terminating square at either end
(■───────■).  If your configuration required that two shifts share a display
line, each of the shifts is represented by a shorter line, terminated by a
small square on the left end only.  A slash mark (/) is used to emphasize the
separation between the two shifts displayed on the same line (■───/■───).
  If any shifts have been cycle scheduled, the white line and square are
replaced with the name of the cycle scheduled physician, with a bright red
tilde (~) displayed adjacent the name.  (The tilde is used in the scheduling
program to designate cycle scheduled shifts.)
 30-3
 Sample Cycle Schedule Screen Description (continued)
  In addition to the calendar display, there are two other blocks of
information present.  The position of these blocks on the screen varies
depending on where space is available surrounding the calendar display.  These
blocks display prompts for the available commands for this screen.

Command Summary
  The following commands are available (as prompted in the menu blocks):
<*> - Hilite one doctor
  Press the <*> key to modify the display to highlight a selected physician's
individual schedule.  This allows you to easily review the cycle scheduling of
both shifts and days off for each physician.  Help information is available
from that screen by pressing <F1>.
<Esc> - to cycle entry
  Press <Esc> to return to the cycle entry screen.
<PgDn> - next sked   <PgUp> - prior sked
  Press the <PgDn> key to display the schedule that immediately follows the
currently displayed schedule.  For example, if the March 1994 schedule is
displayed, press <PgDn> to view cycle scheduling for the April 1994 schedule.
  Press the <PgUp> key to display the schedule that immediately precedes the
currently displayed schedule.  For example, if the March 1994 schedule is
displayed, press <PgUp> to view cycle scheduling for February 1994.
31
CONFIGURATION - Sample Cycle Hilite
Overview of the Sample Cycle Hilite program screen
  The Sample Cycle Hilite program screen helps you review the cycle schedules
of each individual physician.  Shifts for which an individual physician is
scheduled are highlighted in reverse video so that you can easily observe
their distribution within the schedule.  A bright red solid line (▐ )
displayed on both sides of a day indicates that the day has been cycle
scheduled off (the physician is not available to work).
  In addition to this modified calendar display, there are four other blocks
of information present: the date of the schedule, the "Name:" prompt, the menu
block and the name of the currently highlighted physician displayed in
flashing letters.  The position of these blocks on the screen varies depending
on where space is available surrounding the calendar display.
 31-2
Command Summary
  The following commands are available from the Sample Cycle Hilite program
screen:
Doc name - to hilite
  Type the unique two letter abbreviation of the name of the physician whose
schedule you desire to highlight (usually this is first two letters of their
last name).  The cycle schedule for the indicated physician will be displayed.
<Tab> - Hilite next doc
  Press the <Tab> key to highlight the schedule of the next physician
alphabetically.  Use this option if you desire to review all of your physician
schedules.  (Repeatedly pressing the <Tab> key sequentially displays each
physician schedule in alphabetical order.)  The <Shift+Tab> moves to the prior
physician alphabetically.  If a physician's cycle scheduling was interrupted
due to some problem (double scheduling or a shift not being used on a day it
is to be cycle scheduled), his cycle schedule will not be complete.  Any days
cycle scheduled off are still marked by bright red solid lines (▐ ) on either
side of the day.  Please note, however, that during actual scheduling from the
scheduling program, cycle off shifts will *not* be not be considered off if
cycle scheduling is interrupted because of problems described above.
<Esc> - clear hilite
  Press the <Esc> key to clear all highlighting and return to Cycle Schedule
entry area.
32
CONFIGURATION - Cycle Substitution Table
Overview
   When a shift in a cycle sequence is already filled, or not used on a day
that EPSKED expects the shift to be cycle scheduled, substitute shifts can
instead be cycle scheduled.  This feature is needed to solve a problem that
sometimes arises during cycle scheduling when different shifts are scheduled
on different days of the week (i.e., you are using different Day Types).  For
example, suppose your schedule uses twelve hour day and night shifts, but you
decide to extend the day shift to a fourteen hour day shift on weekends to
provide additional coverage.  Your shifts are lettered A = 12 hour day shift,
B = 12 hour night shift, and C = 14 hour day shift.  For a physician to have
a twelve day cycle of:
           Day-Day-Day-Day-Off-Off-Night-Night-Night-Night-Off-Off
you want him scheduled for the 12 hour day shift on weekdays and the 14 hour
day shift on weekends.  If you enter his cycle sequence as AAAAXXBBBBXX, a
problem occurs on weekends when the 12 hour day shift (shift A) is not
available for scheduling, but you want him scheduled for the 14 hour day shift
(shift C).  The purpose of the Cycle Substitute Table is to provide for this
situation.  In the example here, shift C (the 14 hour day shift) is entered as
a substitute shift for shift A (the 12 hour day shift).  The cycle sequence
remains the same.
  On this screen, inform EPSKED of any substitute shifts that can be cycle
scheduled if a shift in the cycle sequence is already filled or not used on a
day.
 32-2
Screen description
  In the center left of the screen is a window titled "Cycle Substitution
Table", containing two columns.  The left column is labeled NORMAL CYCLE SKED
SHIFT and is a fixed listing of the names of all of the shifts used by your
schedule.  The column to the right of this is labeled SUBSTITUTE SHIFT LIST
and is the entry and display site for any substitute shifts you may wish to
designate.
  Substitute shifts are displayed directly to the right of the shift for which
they can substitute in a cycle sequence.  Substitute shifts are indicated by
their shift letter (see the Shift Reference listing displayed on the screen
immediately to the right of the Cycle Substitution Window).  More than one
substitute shift may be entered for each corresponding normal cycle shift in
the left column.  When the shift that normally would be cycle scheduled is
already filled or not used, EPSKED searches for a substitute shift by checking
from left to right through the listed substitute shifts until it finds a shift
that can be scheduled.  For this reason, if you enter more than one substitute
shift and have a preference for which substitute shift should be checked
first, enter them in priority order from left to right.
  The active data entry site in the Substitute Shift List column is
highlighted in reverse video, with the word "none" displayed if no substitute
shifts have yet been entered.
 32-3
  The following commands can be used from the Cycle Substitute entry screen:
<Enter><Tab><> - move highlight
   Use these keys to move the reverse video highlighting of the data entry
   area until it is to the right of the normal cycle shift for which you want
   to enter substitute shifts.
<-><-><Home><End> - move cursor
   Use these keys to move the blinking cursor to the left or right within the
   data entry area.  Remember that substitute shifts should be entered in
   priority order (see previous help screen).
<Space> - clear entry
   Press the <Spacebar> key to erase any shifts you have entered as cycle
   substitute shift.
<Esc><PgUp> - back to Cycle Entry
   Press <Esc> when you have finished making entries.  You will be returned to
   the Cycle Entry area.

  The <Del> and <Backspace> keys can be used as editing keys in conjunction
with the right and left arrow keys while the <Insert> keys toggles between
insert and overtype editing modes to assist you with entering your shifts in
any needed order.
33
CONFIGURATION - Personal Physician Information Entry
  (If you pressed <F1> from the *Entry Form* to view this help screen, you may
want to press <Esc> now, return to the form, then press <F2> to display the
expanded physician information area that the remainder of this screen
discusses.  Press <F1> from that screen to return here.)
  One of the functions of the EPSKED *scheduling* program is printing an
individual physician schedule for each of your physicians.  This printout
includes an isolated printing of all of the shifts scheduled for that
physician as well as a numerical summary of the shifts and hours contained in
that individual schedule.  At the bottom of the individual physician schedule
printout, a physician information area is available where such information as
physician home telephone numbers, meeting reminders or memos distributed only
to your physicians can be printed.
  The Personal Physician Information Entry screen allows you to enter any
standard information that you want printed on the individual physician
schedules.  You will have the opportunity to make modifications specific to an
individual schedule just before printing from the scheduling program.  The
information entered is printed only on the individual physician schedules, not
on the master schedule.
  Automatic formatting is available for entry of telephone numbers, but does
not need to be used (press the <Alt> key to erase the telephone number entry
display).  (When telephone numbers *only* are be shown on the current screen,
you can print a telephone roster by pressing <#> as shown in the prompts at
the bottom of the screen.)
 33-2
  Options for memos only, telephone numbers, or both memos and telephone
numbers are provided, with the number of usable lines dependent on space and
printer settings.
  Some of the editing commands used to enter the information are:
  The right and left arrow keys move the position of the cursor (the small
flashing "_" which indicates where the next character you type will be
placed).
  The <Delete> (or <Del>) key deletes the character overlying the cursor.
  The <Backspace> key deletes the first character to the left of the current
cursor position and moves the cursor one position to the left.  (This key may
be labeled only as "-" on some keyboards.)
  The <Home> key moves the cursor to the beginning and <End> key moves the
cursor to the end of the current line.
  The <Insert> key toggles between the insert and overtype editing modes.
While in the overtype mode, the cursor is displayed larger than normal.
  <Ctrl+Del> (press and hold down the <Ctrl> key, then press the <Del> key)
clears information from an entire highlighted line.
  <Ctrl+Backspace> undoes all changes made since entry to a line (it restores
the line to its original appearance).
  <Ctrl+ -> moves the cursor one word to the right (or one set of numbers to
the right if you are entering telephone numbers).
  <Ctrl+ -> moves the cursor one word to the left (or one set of numbers to
the left if you are entering telephone numbers).
34
CONFIGURATION - (Physician) Bias
Overview
  From the Physician Information Menu you have pressed <B> to select the "Bias
for summary categories" entry option.  The Bias entries entered on this screen
have two purposes:
 ■ Create a scheduling constraint equivalent to the shift preferences (Can't
   Do, Dislike, Prefer, and HiPrefer) but for specific summary categories
   rather than for simple shift preferences.  This allows you to customize
   physicians scheduling preferences (including Can't Do) for shifts as
   specific as TUESDAY DAY shifts.  An example is shown on the next screen.
 ■ Automate adjustments in the long term balance of physician scheduling so
   that cumulative summaries of shifts worked equalize over periods as long as
   several years.  This type of bias entry is more intuitively made from the
   cumulative summary screen of the scheduling program, so only the shifts
   preference related application is described below.

  Bias values are either positive or negative and are assigned to individual
physicians in selected summary categories.  When possible, the quantity of
shifts scheduled for that physician in positively biased categories are
increased in number and the quantity of shifts scheduled in negatively biased
categories are decreased in number.  More information about biasing is
available in the scheduling program.  Of most interest here is "double
negative biasing", which prevents EPSKED from scheduling a physician for any
shifts included in the affected summary category.  For example...
 34-2
Example of double negative biasing
  Suppose you have a physician who cannot work any DAY shifts on Tuesday and
you have configured a TUESDAY DAY summary category.  A double negative bias
placed by his name in the TUESDAY DAY category (press the minus key twice)
makes him unavailable for computer scheduling for *all* TUESDAY DAY shifts on
*all* future created or retrieved schedules.  (Cycle scheduling could be used
to automatically make the physician OFF every Tuesday, but he would be off for
the entire day rather than just for a specific shift.)

Bias - Screen Description
  The bottom three lines of the bias screen display prompts for the program
screen commands.  These commands are explained below.
  Displayed on the remainder of the screen are several columns of information.
The far left column, titled "Physician Name", alphabetically lists the names
of the currently active physicians.
  To the right of the Physician Name column are up to six columns of summary
information.  The top two lines in each column display the title you
designated for each summary category.  Below the title lines are displayed the
bias entries in that category for each physician; the values shown on the same
line and to the right of each physician name are the values pertinent to that
physician.  A single numerical value within the summary display has been
highlighted in reverse video.  This highlighted value is the current data
entry site where bias values are entered.
 34-3
Bias - Screen Commands
<+>=more or <->=fewer shifts
  Increase (positive) bias entries are made by pressing the <+> key when
highlighting a summary category in which you want to increase a physician's
scheduled shifts or hours.  Decrease (negative) bias entries are made by
pressing the <-> key when highlighting a summary category in which you want to
decrease a physician's scheduled shifts or hours.  Entries are marked by
display of an up arrow (positive bias) or down arrow (negative bias).
  Two levels of positive biasing are available -- single positive and double
positive.  Positive biased shifts are preferentially scheduled during
computerized schedule revision for the associated physician in the selected
summary category.  Single positive biasing may result in more okay (fewer
preferred) shift sequences as defined by your shift relations entries.  Double
positive biasing also preferentially increases shifts scheduled for that
physician in the selected summary category, though this may result in more
disliked shift sequences.  Double positive bias entries are made by pressing
the <+> key -- press once for single positive biasing (regular up arrow) or
twice for double positive biasing (bright up arrow).
  Similarly, there are two levels of negative biasing -- press the <-> key
once (regular down arrow) for single negative biasing, or twice (bright down
arrow) for double negative biasing.  Pressing the <+> or <-> keys will add or
subtract from the current bias setting.  (For example, to go from double
positive bias to single positive bias, press the <-> key.)
 34-4
Summary Category Bias Entry - Screen Commands (continued)
<Del>-clear (the <Spacebar> key will also work)
   Clears a single highlighted bias value.
<Ctrl+Del>
   Press and hold down the <Ctrl> key, then press the <Del> key.  This clears
   *all* bias information for *all* physicians
<Arrow> - move hilite
   Use the arrow keys to move the highlighting to the individual summary
   values that you wish to bias.
<letter>
   Press the first letter of the physician's name that you wish to bias.  The
   highlighting moves to the appropriate line.
<Esc> - done
   Once you have completed your bias entries, press <Esc> to return to the
   Physician Information Menu.
<F2> - other bias screens
   If you have created more than six summary categories, press <F2> to view
   the other undisplayed summary categories.

Important note:
  Bias entries made from this screen are applied to *all* new and retrieved
schedules.  The "permanent" bias entries made here can be altered from the
scheduling program, and temporary changes made for individual schedules.
35
CONFIGURATION - Enter Relationship Model Name
Enter *changed* Model name
Enter name for *NEW* Model
  EPSKED initially creates a single shift relations model assigned the name
*STANDARD*.  Eight additional models can be created, allowing shift sequences
to be individualized by physician.  The name of the currently displayed model
is shown in the upper left hand corner of the screen, oriented vertically.

  If you pressed <+> to create a new model, type a name for the new model you
are creating, then press <Enter>.  EPSKED copies the shift relations from the
*STANDARD* model (or whatever you may have renamed the original model) to the
newly created model, then allows you to enter modified relationships specific
to the newly created model.

  If you pressed the left arrow key while the data entry highlighting was in
the "ON THE SAME DAY?" column, a window is displayed containing the current
Model name.  Type a new name, then press <Enter>.

  The choice of name is up to you, though since a maximum of ten characters
may be used there is little room for a descriptive name.  Suggested is either
the name of a physician who uses the shift relations model or a sequence of
letters composed of the first two letters of the names of the physicians you
expect to use the sequence.  (For example, if doctors BAKER, FRIEDMAN and
JONES use the sequence, you could name the model either BAKER or BAFRJO.)
36
Problem: "You cannot use that Schedule Period..."
  You just selected a new schedule period value. There is a problem using that
schedule period because your monitor does not have enough usable display lines
to completely display your schedule.
  Do you remember the "Format Display of Schedule" screen where you indicated
on which lines in a day you wanted your shifts displayed?  (To get to that
screen, use selection <F> from the Main Menu, then selection <D> from the
Format Menu.)  The display line assignments you gave your shifts on that
screen cannot be used with your monitor for the selected schedule period.

  The maximum usable display line depends upon the type of monitor and the
schedule period you have selected.  The maximum values are shown on the chart
on the following screen.
 36-2

            Maximum Usable Display Line for Shift Placement

                                     Monitor Type
                        ╔══════════╤════════════╤═════════════╗
                        ║   VGA    │    EGA     │   CGA/MCA   ║
            ╔═══════════╬══════════╪════════════╪═════════════╣
            ║ 1 month   ║    9     │     6      │      4      ║
  Schedule  ╟───────────╫──────────┼────────────┼─────────────╢
    Period  ║ 4 weeks   ║    9     │     6      │      4      ║
            ╟───────────╫──────────┼────────────┼─────────────╢
            ║ 6 weeks   ║    6     │     5      │      2      ║
            ╚═══════════╩══════════╧════════════╧═════════════╝

  The number of shifts that can be displayed each day is twice the maximum
line number in the chart, up to a limit of twelve shifts.  Usually, you can
resolve your difficulty by redoing your shift placements to use half lines to
display shifts.  If you schedule more shifts each day than your monitor can
display, you need to use a different monitor to run EPSKED.

  To reconfigure the display positioning of your shifts, use selection <F>
from the Main Menu, then selection <D> from the Format Menu.
37
CONFIGURATION - Schedule Request Key
  One of the functions of the EPSKED scheduling program is the printing of a
request form, used by your physicians to advise you of their availability for
the current schedule.  The printed request form appears like a calendar, with
the names of the shifts that need to be scheduled printed on each day.
  Instructions are printed at the bottom right hand corner of the printed
request form.  A sample day of the printed request form and instructions:

    ╒══════════╕     ****[ INSTRUCTIONS ]***********************************
    │  - 1 -   │     * Print your name & requested hours at top of sheet.  *
    │DAY       │     * Draw an 'X' through any DAYS you need to be OFF.    *
    │SWING     │     * Draw a LINE through any SHIFTS you need to be OFF.  *
    │NIGHT     │     * CIRCLE any shifts you NEED to be scheduled for.     *
    │  .....   │     * Describe any special requests at bottom of page.    *
    │Clinic day│     *                                                     *
    │Clinic eve│     *                                                     *
    ╘══════════╛     * (To be scheduled: #### hours & ### shifts)"         *
                     * "  >>>> PLEASE RETURN REQUESTS BY (date) ! <<<<     *
                     *******************************************************

  EPSKED creates the standard instructions as shown.  You can edit the first
seven lines of text.  The bottom two lines are printed with the ###'s replaced
by the actual values for the schedule, and the "(date)" replaced by a due date
for the requests, entered just before you print the actual request form.
38
CONFIGURATION - Shift Length in Hours Entry
 For general screen info, highlight a *Shift Name* entry, then press <F1> 
Shift Length in Hours  -  Details
  For each shift, enter a value for the number of hours that a physician
working the shift should be credited for.  The shift length in hours may be
any value from zero to fifty hours.  (Example: If a shift is scheduled from
9AM - 5PM = eight hours, press the <8> key, then press <Enter> to proceed.
Half hour increments to the shift length can be added or subtracted by
pressing the <+> or <-> keys.
  Shift Length in Hours entry should be uncomplicated, with a one caveat:
 ■ Once your shifts have been defined and you have exited this screen, you can
   return and the change shift length values but a warning message is
   displayed if you make any changes.  Be aware that any change you make
   affects *all* previously saved schedules.  (Example: Your night shift is
   shift C.  Suppose you change your schedule so that your night shift
   increases from 8 to 10 hours in length.  If you simply change the length of
   shift C from 8 to 10 hours, this change affects all previously schedules
   that used shift C, even if they were scheduled when the length of shift C
   was only 8 hours.  This may be acceptable if you have no use for your old
   schedule files, but if you use EPSKED to calculate a cumulative summary
   (for example the total hours worked in a year for each physician) the
   result would not be accurate.  A better way to modify your schedule for the
   longer night shift is to configure a new night shift, such as NITE10, with
   a 10 hour length, updating other configuration screens for the change.)
39
CONFIGURATION - Weekend Shift Designation Entry
 For general screen info, highlight a *Shift Name* entry, then press <F1> 

Weekend Shift If On Friday?...Sunday?  -  Details
  Many emergency physician groups keep separate track of the number of weekend
shifts worked by each physician and attempt to distribute them equitably.
EPSKED can keep separate weekend statistics and automatically balance weekend
shift scheduling, but to do so it needs to know which shifts to include as
weekend shifts.  For example, some physician groups consider all shifts worked
on Saturday and Sunday as weekend shifts.  Others might include night shifts
or evening shifts worked on Fridays as weekend shifts, but might not consider
Sunday night shifts as weekend shifts.

  By default, all Saturday shifts are considered weekend shifts.  As a "best
guess", EPSKED initially regards all shifts scheduled on Sunday but no shifts
scheduled on Friday as being weekend shifts.  To customize EPSKED for your
schedule, follow the screen directions to indicate which shifts on Friday and
which shifts on Sunday are weekend shifts for your schedule.
40
CONFIGURATION - Shift Scheduling Priority Entry
 For general screen info, highlight a *Shift Name* entry, then press <F1> 

Scheduling Priority  -  Details
  The scheduling priority of shifts can be entered as HIGH, NORMAL, and LOW.
The EPSKED automated scheduling program tries to fill all shifts that need to
be scheduled in a day, but it may not be possible to do so (such as when there
are six shifts to be filled, but only five physicians available to work them).
Under these circumstances, HIGH priority shifts are preferentially scheduled
even if this requires leaving a NORMAL or LOW priority shift unscheduled.
(Example: a HIGH priority shift might be a night shift if this is the hardest
for you to fill later on a "volunteer" basis.  A LOW priority shift might be
a BACKUP shift, since you would want other shifts filled first before worrying
about filling that shift.  Other shifts would have a NORMAL priority.)
41
CONFIGURATION - Shift Off Prior To A Day Off?
 For general screen info, highlight a *Shift Name* entry, then press <F1> 
Shift Off Prior To A Day Off?  -  Details
  Before creating an individual schedule, the EPSKED scheduling program gives
you the option of indicating which shifts each physician wants Off (i.e., has
requested not to work due to vacations or other obligations).  The "Shift Off
Prior To A Day Off?" feature is designed to save you time when you are
entering this information, as explained in the following example:
  If a physician has requested Off for the *entire* day (all shifts) on a
Wednesday, he would usually want to also be Off for the night shift on
Tuesday, the preceding day.  If the night shift had been marked "Yes" in the
"Shift Off Prior To A Day Off?" column, EPSKED will automatically mark him off
for the Tuesday night shift, saving you the trouble of making that entry.  You
can, of course, override this automated entry if you desire.  Usually the
"Shift Off Prior To A Day Off?" feature is used for night shifts.
  You do not need to make any entries in the "Shift Off Prior To A Day Off?"
area -- you may want to wait until you have had some experience with the
scheduling program.

  Press <Esc> after you have finished entering information on the Shift
Names and Hours Screen.  If you originally selected the <A> option from the
Main Menu, your display will change to the Shift Relation Entry screen.
From that screen you will inform EPSKED about how your shifts relate to each
other -- the second step in customizing EPSKED to your schedule.
42
Problem exiting the configuration program
  You have either pressed <X> to exit back to the skeduling program or pressed
<*> to exit to DOS.  EPSKED has analyzed the configuration information that
you have provided and found information missing.

  The missing information may either be:
 ■ required information, in which case the error message states that "EPSKED
   requires this information", or
 ■ useful information that allows EPSKED to create or print better schedules,
   but which is not necessary, in which case the error message states that
   "EPSKED prefers having this info."

  If you press any key (except <F1> or <!>) you will be taken to the section
of the configuration program where you may enter the requested information.

  If you press the <!> key (that's the <Shift> key and the <1> key at the same
time), you will:
 ■ exit to DOS if you are missing required information, or
 ■ exit configuration and load the scheduling program if you are missing
   useful (but not required) information.

  Don't worry!  No matter which option you select, all information you have
 already entered is saved when you exit the program!
43
End of EPC30.HLP file - COPYRIGHT 1995 BY BYTEBLOC SOFTWARE