Overview
This guide provides users with clear, step-by-step instructions to configure, manage, and monitor Duty Assignment for automated exam distribution within the platform.
Duty Assignment is a menu item in the platform that provides an auto assignment tool to create facility and facility group level exam assignments for Radiologists. When an exam enters the system, it is matched against active-duty criteria and automatically assigned to an eligible radiologist — no manual triage required. This ensures the right exams are routed to the right radiologists efficiently, improving turnaround time and workload balance.
Before you Begin
Confirm all prerequisites are met before configuring any duties:
Prerequisite | Requirement |
|---|---|
Permissions | You have the required Duty Assignment permissions |
Facility Setting | Duty Assignment is enabled at the facility level |
Radiologist Privileges | Radiologists have active privileges/licenses for the facility |
Auto-Assignment | Auto-Assignment is enabled for radiologists (required for automatic routing) |
Key Concepts
Concept | Description |
|---|---|
Duty | A set of criteria paired with a group of radiologists. When an incoming exam matches the criteria, it is eligible for automatic assignment to those radiologists. |
Group-Level Duty | Created at the group level. Automatically applies across multiple facilities. Managed centrally — not editable at the facility level. |
Facility-Level Duty | Created within a specific facility. Fully customizable and editable at the facility level. |
Queue Depth | Defines the maximum workload (RVUs) assigned to a radiologist at a given time. Assignment respects this limit, except for high-priority cases such as Critical and Stroke exams. |
Criteria | The matching rules that determine which exams qualify for a duty. Includes Exam type, Patient demographics, Place, People, and Coverage. |
Auto-Assignment | A radiologist-level setting that must be enabled for that radiologist to receive automatic exam assignments through Duty. |
Auto-Assign to Offline Radiologists (NEW) | A duty-level checkbox, unselected by default, that allows a duty to auto-assign exams to radiologists whose status is OFFLINE. Commonly used for dummy/routing accounts that dispatch exams to external reading groups. Does not override a radiologist's personal Auto-Assignment switcher. |
Creating a Group-Level Duty |
|---|
Group-level duties are created at the group level and automatically apply to all associated facilities. They are managed centrally and cannot be edited at the facility level. |
Step 1 — Navigate to Duty From the top navigation bar, select Duty, then choose My Group's Duties.
Step 2 — Create the Duty
Step 3 — Add Radiologists and Activate
NOTE: Group-level duties cannot be edited at the facility level. All changes, including the Auto-assign to Offline Radiologists checkbox, must be made at the group level. |
Creating a Facility-Level Duty |
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Facility-level duties are created within a specific facility and are fully editable at that level. Use these when routing rules need to be tailored to a single facility's workflow. |
Step 1 — Navigate to the Facility
Step 2 — Configure and Save
Step 3 — Add Radiologists and Activate
NOTE: Unlike group-level duties, facility-level duties can be edited directly within the facility at any time. |
Defining Duty Criteria
Criteria determine which incoming exams are eligible for a given duty. Combine multiple criteria types to create precise, targeted routing rules.
Criteria Type | Available Filters |
|---|---|
Exam | Type, modality, priority, status, tags |
Patient | Age group, sex |
Place | Facility |
People | Referrer, technologist |
Coverage | Available if enabled in your environment |
Adding and Removing Radiologists
Radiologists are assigned to duties through the Radiologist table within each duty. You can also monitor availability and workload from this view.
Assign or Remove a Radiologist
- To assign: Check the box next to the radiologist's name in the Radiologists table.
- To remove: Uncheck the box.
To verify: Confirm that Auto-Assignment is enabled for each assigned radiologist. Radiologists without Auto-Assignment enabled will not receive automatic assignments.
What You Can Monitor from This View
Column | What It Shows |
|---|---|
Online / Offline Status | Whether the radiologist is currently active on the platform |
Current Workload | Number of exams currently assigned to the radiologist |
Queue Depth Utilization | How close the radiologist is to their maximum RVU limit |
Routing to External Reading Groups via Offline Accounts (NEW)
Some facilities route exams to an external reading group using a dummy or routing radiologist account rather than assigning directly to an individual on-site radiologist. These routing accounts are intentionally kept offline — they are not actively logged in, but exist solely to trigger downstream routing to the external group.
Prior to Release 13.0.0, Duty Assignment would not auto-assign exams to any offline radiologist, which unintentionally blocked this routing pattern. The Auto-assign to Offline Radiologists checkbox restores this workflow without changing default behavior for standard on-site coverage.
Setting Up an External Routing Duty
- Create or open the Group-Level or Facility-Level duty used for external routing.
- Assign the dummy/routing radiologist account in the Radiologists table.
- Check the "Auto-assign exams to Offline Radiologists" checkbox for this duty.
- Confirm the routing account's Auto-Assignment switcher is enabled.
- On the routing account's radiologist profile, set "Unassign automatically assigned exam" to No — this keeps the exam assigned to the routing account until the external group processes it, rather than un-assigning it back to the queue.
NOTE: The Auto-assign to Offline Radiologists checkbox does not override a radiologist's personal Auto-Assignment switcher. Both must be enabled for offline routing to work. Manual assignment of exams is never affected by this setting.
Decision Matrix
Auto-assign to Offline Radiologists | Radiologist Status | Radiologist Auto-Assignment Switcher | Exam Auto-Assigned? | Notes |
Off |
Online |
On |
Yes |
Normal auto-assignment |
Off |
Online |
Off |
No |
Radiologist opted out |
Off |
Offline |
On |
No |
Existing behavior |
Off |
Offline |
Off |
No |
No assignment |
On |
Online |
On |
Yes |
Normal behavior |
On |
Online |
Off |
No |
Radiologist opted out |
On |
Offline |
On |
Yes |
New routing workflow enabled |
On |
Offline |
Off |
No |
Radiologist opted out |
Activating Duties
Use the Status toggle on any duty to enable or disable it instantly. This is useful for ad-hoc coverage changes.
How Assignment Works
When an exam enters the workflow, the system evaluates it through the following sequence:
Step | Check |
|---|---|
1 | Is Duty Assignment enabled for this facility? |
2 | Does the exam match active-duty criteria? |
3 | Are eligible radiologists available (privileges, auto-assignment, queue)? |
4 | Assign using assignment logic below |
Assignment Logic
Scenario | Outcome |
|---|---|
Single radiologist available | Assigned directly |
Multiple — equal availability | Random selection |
Multiple — different availability | Most available radiologist selected |
No radiologist available | Assignment retried automatically |
Critical or Stroke exam | May bypass queue depth limits |
"Available" radiologists include offline routing accounts only when the duty's Auto-assign to Offline Radiologists checkbox is enabled for that duty. See the Decision Matrix above.
Monitoring and Audit
Use the built-in dashboard to track performance in real time. All metrics update continuously as exams move through the workflow.
Metric | Description |
|---|---|
Overdue Exams | Exams past their due time |
Due in < 10 min | Exams nearing their deadline |
Assigned | Exams with a radiologist assigned |
Unassigned | Exams awaiting assignment |
Audit Trail
All assignments are recorded in the Audit Trail, including the duty name, radiologist, timestamp, and assignment method. Use the Audit Trail to investigate unexpected assignment behavior or verify compliance.
Editing and Deleting Duties
Action | Description |
|---|---|
Group-Level Duties | Editable at the group level only. Changes apply to all associated facilities. |
Facility-Level Duties | Editable directly within the facility. |
Deleting a Duty | Removes the duty from future assignment workflows. Exams already assigned are not affected. |
Troubleshooting: Duty Not Assigning Exams
Check | What to Verify |
|---|---|
Duty status | Confirm the duty Status toggle is set to Active |
Radiologist assignment | Confirm at least one radiologist is assigned to the duty |
Auto-Assignment | Verify Auto-Assignment is enabled for assigned radiologists |
Queue depth | Check whether all assigned radiologists are at queue capacity |
Criteria match | Ensure the exam's modality, priority, and facility match the duty criteria |
Offline routing account (NEW) | If exams should route to an offline account, confirm the duty's "Auto-assign exams to Offline Radiologists" checkbox is selected, the account's Auto-Assignment switcher is enabled, and the account's "Unassign automatically assigned exam" profile setting is No |
Quick Reference
Task | What to Verify |
|---|---|
Create Group Duty | Duty → My Group's Duties → New Duty |
Create Facility Duty | Duty → [Select Facility] → New Duty |
Assign Radiologists | Open duty → Radiologists table → Check box |
Activate / Deactivate | Duty Status toggle (manual) |
Monitor Performance | Dashboard → Live metrics tiles |
View Audit Trail | Audit Trail module — all assignments logged with duty details |
Edit Group Duty | Must be done at group level only |
Edit Facility Duty | Editable directly within the facility |
Enable Offline Routing (NEW) | Open duty → check "Auto-assign exams to Offline Radiologists" checkbox |