title: A customizable, scalable scheduling and reporting system.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Scheduling is essential for running a facility smoothly and for summarizing activities in use reports. The Penn State Hershey Clinical Simulation Center has developed a scheduling interface that uses off-the-shelf components, with customizations that adapt to each institution's data collection and reporting needs.
  
  
  METHODS
  The system is designed using programs within the Microsoft Office 2010 suite. Outlook provides the scheduling component, while the reporting is performed using Access or Excel. An account with a calendar is created for the main schedule, with separate resource accounts created for each room within the center. The Outlook appointment form's 2 default tabs are used, in addition to a customized third tab. The data are then copied from the calendar into either a database table or a spreadsheet, where the reports are generated.Incorporating this system into an institution-wide structure allows integration of personnel lists and potentially enables all users to check the schedule from their desktop. Outlook also has a Web-based application for viewing the basic schedule from outside the institution, although customized data cannot be accessed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The scheduling and reporting functions have been used for a year at the Penn State Hershey Clinical Simulation Center. The schedule has increased workflow efficiency, improved the quality of recorded information, and provided more accurate reporting.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Penn State Hershey Clinical Simulation Center's scheduling and reporting system can be adapted easily to most simulation centers and can expand and change to meet future growth with little or no expense to the center.
authors.affiliation: From the Penn State Hershey Clinical Simulation Center (J.L.W., B.J.W., L.A.M., R.T.S.), and Technical Services Engineering (R.A.), College of Medicine, Pennsylvania State University, Herhsey, PA.
authors.forename: Jody L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.forename: Beverly J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Whitman
authors.forename: Lisa A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Mackley
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Armstrong
authors.forename: Robert T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Shotto
mesh_terms: D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D004282:Documentation; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D006739:Hospital Administration / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling / Q000458:organization & administration; D014584:User-Computer Interface; D057188:Workflow