We looked for rota software because we wanted to save time and reduce the amount of mistakes made.
How long did your rotas take to create before you started using OmniRota?
Previously rotas were produced weekly only one week in advance. It was a very time consuming job ensuring that annual leave was considered, cover was sufficient and that the rotas were fair. It would often take over two hours for the doctors’ rota and the same again for the receptionists.
Is your rota particularly complicated?
We have four full time partners and three part time and have to distribute on calls fairly across all doctors based upon sessions worked. We also have two care homes to look after, minor operation surgeries, and training surgeries all of which must be considered when planning the rota and arranging on calls. We also have eight receptionists, who all work different hours, and have to ensure there is always sufficient cover for front and back reception, particularly at busy times and over lunches.
What prompted you to look at rota software and what did you hope to get from it?
We felt that the task of doing the rota was taking up too much time. There was also too much room for error as everything had to be calculated manually with reference to a separate record of annual leave. We wanted something that would save us time, ensure that rotas were equitable and, of course, accurate.
What benefits have you gained from using OmniRota?
The OmniRota is so much quicker to produce, and I can now do 4/5 weeks in advance in less time than it previously took to do one week. As the annual leave is managed within the software this is automatically considered when producing the rota. The rota automatically allocates on calls fairly, based on the programmed rules and I can easily produce reports to confirm this, if required.
How did you find the set-up process?
We contacted Omni and they asked for an outline of the rules we would require, they then set everything up for us and we trialled it to check it was working as expected. They were happy to make any further amends that we requested until it was exactly what we wanted. The process was very quick and the team were on hand whenever we had any questions. It has been better than we anticipated and has definitely saved us time, and also ensured that workload is evenly distributed across our practice team.
What do you think of OmniRota now that you have it, do you find it easy to use?
We are very pleased with the software, and can’t imagine going back to doing the rotas manually. It’s very easy to use, and the team are always on hand and respond very quickly if we have any questions.
If you’ve had any problems, how have you found the ongoing product support offered?
The product support has been excellent, in most cases we have received a response to any questions or rule change requests within twelve hours, often within a couple of hours. They have also been happy to answer even the smallest question quickly and helpfully.