How to setup recurring Diary Templates
Diary Template Sets let you define a repeating schedule of appointment slots and apply it to the diary for future months. This article covers creating and managing template sets in the Diary Template Manager.
Applied templates are more than a diary layout tool. They are the availability HealthTrack publishes: the online booking portal and the next available booking search only offer times where an applied template exists.
For one-off templates created directly in the diary, see the Usability Guide article How to make Booking Templates.
Access the Diary Template Manager
- Navigate to Admin > Diary & Booking > Diary Template Manager.
- The first time you open this screen, you are prompted to create a template set. After that, the template manager opens to the screen below.
Create a new template set
- Click Manage.
- Click New in the New Template Set screen.
- Enter a Template Set Name.
- Set the Cycle Length (e.g. 14 for fortnightly).
- Select the Mode as Location or Staff.
- Select the Restart Cycle on New Month checkbox if you want each new month to begin on the first day of the cycle.
- Click Save, then Close. The template diary is now ready to populate.
Keep the number of template sets as low as possible - multiple overlapping sets are difficult to manage.
Add templates to the cycle
- The template diary displays the full cycle. Each day column shows the time slots for that day.
- In the Template section on the left, select the details for the template slot you are about to add:
- The required fields are dependent on the Mode selected when creating the Template Set.
| Mode | Required fields |
|---|---|
| Location | Booking Type and Doctor |
| Staff | Booking Type, Location, and Room |
- Double-click a time slot in the template diary to add a template.
- Repeat for all slots, changing the Template section settings as needed.
- To copy a completed day to other days, select the Copy Templates button in the Actions section.
Templates appear as transparent coloured blocks - similarly to a booking, but without patient details.
Apply templates to the diary
- Select the Diary Actions button to push templates to the diary for a specific date range.
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Delete Applied Templates and Apply Template Set | Removes existing templates for this set in the date range, then applies the current template set. Use this when applying or updating a template set. |
| Delete Applied Templates | Removes existing templates for this set in the date range only - does not apply new templates. |
| Power Delete | Removes all templates (regardless of set) for a location or doctor, in the date range. Irreversible - use with caution. |
- Select Delete Applied Templates and Apply Template Set.
- Set the From Date and To Date.
- Click Delete & Insert.
- Confirm the prompt. A message confirms when templates have been added.
Delete Applied Templates and Apply Template Set removes the existing templates in the date range first, then re-inserts the set. Check the From Date and To Date before running it - the wrong dates will wipe availability across that range before anything is re-applied.
Power Delete is irreversible. Verify the location, doctor, and date range before clicking Power Delete.
Availability stops when the applied range ends
The To Date you choose when applying a template set is the end of your published availability. Templates are only created up to that date, and nothing extends them automatically - there is no background process that tops them up.
When the applied range ends:
- The online booking portal stops offering appointments for the affected doctors and locations. Patients see no bookable times past that date, with no warning to your practice.
- The next available booking search returns nothing beyond that date.
- The diary shows no template slots from that date onwards.
The online booking portal only receives templates dated within the next 12 months, and only for booking types, doctors and locations that are enabled for online booking. Applying a set further than 12 months ahead will not make those later dates visible online until they fall within the 12-month window.
If patients report they cannot book online past a certain date, or staff cannot find availability beyond a certain date, this is the most likely cause. To fix it, open the Diary Template Manager, select the set, and re-apply it over a further date range using Diary Actions > Delete Applied Templates and Apply Template Set.
Set a recurring reminder in your practice calendar to re-apply template sets before the current range ends, so online booking is never interrupted.
Edit a template set
- To edit a template set, open the Diary Template Manager and select the set from the drop-down list at the top.
- Make the required changes, then re-apply the set using Diary Actions > Delete Applied Templates and Apply Template Set.
Applying an updated template set deletes existing templates for that set in the selected date range and replaces them. Bookings are not affected.