Chapter 4: OPD Appointments, Calendar & Token Queue

Managing outpatient traffic effectively is crucial to eliminating hospital waiting room chaos. This chapter explains appointment scheduling, calendar management, and the live walk-in token queue.

1. Scheduling an OPD Appointment

To book an appointment for an outpatient:

Navigate to OPD > OPD Appointment > New Appointment.
Select or search the patient by UHID or Mobile Number.
Choose the Consulting Doctor and Department / Specialty (e.g. General Medicine, Cardiology, Orthopedics, Pediatrics).
Select the Appointment Date and available Time Slot.
Select the Consultation Type:

- First Visit - Follow-up / Re-visit - Post-Operative Check - Emergency Walk-in

Enter chief complaint notes (e.g. Fever for 3 days, chest pain on exertion).
Collect the consultation fee (if applicable) and click Confirm & Print Token Slip.

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│               OPD TOKEN APPOINTMENT SLIP               │
│                                                        │
│   Hospital: Shahu Maharaj Hospital                     │
│   Date: 31-Aug-2026 10:30 AM                           │
│   Token No: [ #14 ]                                    │
│   Patient: Rajesh Kumar Verma (UHID-2026-08492)        │
│   Doctor: Dr. S. K. Kulkarni (MD, Medicine)            │
│   Consultation Room: Cabin No. 04 (1st Floor)          │
│   Status: Scheduled / Waiting                          │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

2. Multi-Doctor Visual Appointment Calendar

The OPD Calendar view (booking_opd_calendar.php) provides an interactive scheduling matrix:

Calendar Views: Switch between Month, Week, Day, and Doctor Resource View.
Color-Coded Status Blocks:

- 🟢 Green: Completed Consultation - 🔵 Blue: Confirmed / Scheduled Slot - 🟡 Yellow: Patient Arrived / Waiting in Lounge - 🔴 Red: Urgent / Emergency Slot

Drag-and-Drop Rescheduling: Easily drag an appointment to a new time slot or different doctor with instant confirmation prompt.

3. Real-Time Token Queue Monitor

Front desk staff and nursing desks can track live patient flow through the OPD Queue List:

Calling Next Patient: Updates the waiting room digital display board.
Mark Status: Update status to In-Consultation, Completed, or No-Show.
Average Wait Time Analysis: Displays real-time bottlenecks per consulting room.