Are you planning to start a new self-roster?
Here is what you need to think of and prepare before starting:
Type of self-roster - selection or preference-based. Refer to this article for more information about each type.
The rosters that will be included in the self-roster, for example: 1st on-call and/or 2nd on-call.
The quota - whether the self-roster will include a quota or no quota. If it includes a quota, then how is it determined for each doctor, for example, is it an equal distribution for each doctor?
The staff participating in the self-roster. You can do an extract directly from HosPortal for an easy reference. It is important to have the staff list updated on HosPortal - thus adding new staff, ending roles, and adding to the exemption list is a key step in the self-roster process.
If required, list the doctor(s) that should be excluded from the self-roster. This is different from the exemption list, as their names will only be unticked from the specific self-roster period, however, they are still able to do the roster (not completely exempted).
Target date - there are three main dates of importance to consider:
The date for which you would like to have the self-roster to start and end.
The date by which you want to finalise your rosters. We recommend the final roster be published 2-3 weeks before the first date on the self-roster.
The dates over which you want your staff to select their shifts/preferences (we call this the window period).
If you'd like to learn more about creating and managing self-rosters, please check this article, which you might find helpful.
To manage the self-roster timelines, we recommend first identifying the date you want the first shift published, then counting backward 4–6 weeks.