Managing Your Calendar
Best practices for setting availability and managing your booking schedule
Setting Your Availability
Creating Availability Blocks
Availability blocks define when patients can book appointments with you. You can create one-time blocks or recurring schedules.
Steps:
- 1Navigate to your provider dashboard
- 2Click on "Availability" in the sidebar
- 3Click "Add Availability" to create a new block
- 4Select the date range and time slots
- 5Choose service types available during this block
- 6Set whether appointments require your confirmation
Recurring Schedules
Save time by setting up recurring weekly schedules instead of creating individual blocks.
Steps:
- 1When creating availability, enable "Recurring Schedule"
- 2Select which days of the week to repeat
- 3Set the time range for each day
- 4Choose an end date for the recurring pattern (or leave indefinite)
- 5Save and the system will auto-generate all future slots
Managing Time Off
Blocking Time for Holidays
Block specific dates when you're unavailable to prevent new bookings during holidays or personal time.
Steps:
- 1Go to your availability calendar
- 2Select the date(s) you want to block
- 3Click "Block Time" in the calendar toolbar
- 4Add a reason (optional, visible only to you)
- 5Confirm to prevent new bookings for those dates
Emergency Time Off
If you need to cancel availability that already has bookings, you'll need to handle existing appointments.
Steps:
- 1Cancel or reschedule existing bookings first
- 2Notify patients as early as possible
- 3Block the time once all bookings are handled
- 4Consider offering alternative time slots
Best Practices
Set Realistic Appointment Durations
Account for consultation time plus notes and preparation. Most providers set 30-60 minute slots.
Include Buffer Time
Leave 5-10 minutes between appointments for running late, notes, or unexpected situations.
Limit Same-Day Bookings
Require bookings at least 2-4 hours in advance to give yourself preparation time.
Block Admin Time
Reserve specific times for administrative tasks, patient follow-ups, and lunch breaks.
Review Weekly Schedules
Check your upcoming week every Monday to ensure everything is accurate and make adjustments.
Sync with Google Calendar
Enable two-way sync to automatically block times when you have external commitments.
Google Calendar Integration
Connect your Google Calendar for two-way synchronization. When enabled, Medbookings will:
- Automatically add new Medbookings appointments to your Google Calendar
- Block booking times when you have external events in Google Calendar
- Update both calendars when appointments are cancelled or rescheduled
- Generate Google Meet links automatically for online consultations
Enable integration in Settings → Calendar Integration