Hospital medicine & specialty call

Cardiology groups and cath labs scheduling software

This is written for cardiology practice administrators and cath lab schedulers. Scheduling here commonly runs into disputes over compensation for STEMI call versus regular clinical work - the kind of problem a shared spreadsheet doesn't solve on its own. Below: the shift patterns programs like this typically use, and how RotaBay's generator handles the parts that create the most friction.

Typical patterns

How this schedule is usually built

Dedicated STEMI / interventional call rotation

Common pattern

Many groups run a separate call rotation specifically for STEMI and other emergent interventional cases, distinct from general cardiology consult/clinic call, so interventionalists aren't also fielding routine cardiology calls while on STEMI duty.

Weeklong STEMI call blocks

Common pattern

Rather than rotating STEMI call nightly, some institutions assign it in week-long blocks, so an interventionalist is on call for STEMI for a full week at a time before rotating off.

General cardiology call folded into broader coverage

Common pattern

In smaller hospitals or groups, general (non-interventional) cardiology call may be folded into a broader internal medicine or hospitalist call structure rather than staffed as a standalone rotation.

Cath lab standby team paired with on-call interventionalist

Common pattern

STEMI call for the physician is typically paired with a standby cath lab team (nursing/tech staff) who also need to be reachable and able to arrive within a defined response window.

Shift structure

A typical week's shift types

DADay clinic / cath08:0017:00
STSTEMI call17:0008:00
WEWeekend call08:0008:00
BABackup call17:0008:00

RotaBay

How RotaBay handles it

Disputes over compensation for STEMI call versus regular clinical work

Fairness-weighted generation

Nights, weekends and holidays carry a higher fairness weight than a plain day shift, so the generator spreads the unpopular slots evenly across the group instead of always landing on the same few people.

Fairness fights over how often each interventionalist draws STEMI call in a given month

Swap requests with an audit trail

When someone needs to trade a shift, they request it from the published page and it's applied with a full audit trail - no more chasing a manual spreadsheet edit at 11pm.

Coordinating physician call with cath lab team availability so both can respond within the expected window

A published who's-on page

Every schedule publishes to a no-login page the whole team can check from a phone. Disputes over who's actually on the hook end before they start.

FAQ

Common questions

Many groups run a dedicated STEMI/interventional call rotation separate from general cardiology call, assigned either nightly or in week-long blocks depending on the institution.

A closer look at the pattern

Weekday call + weekend call template →

Overnight home call on weekdays plus a heavier weekend rotation — common in surgical groups.

Generate a cardiology groups and cath labs schedule free

Set your shifts and rules, RotaBay builds a fair, rule-compliant schedule in seconds - free to start, no card.