Below are a set of FAQ or "Frequently Asked Questions" about the CLWRota Rota Management System.
Each department has different needs. For some, an integrated leave book and rota are key, for others activity reports and inter-week analysis are important. Less obvious factors behind the power of this system is its innovative technique for dealing with recurrent sessional activity and for quickly reassigning resources to meet changing circumstances.
Will it replace our department administrators?
CLWRota is designed to make your department run much more smoothly and to let people know where they are expected to be. It also helps plan department activity better, reassign work quickly and accurately, and provides useful reports on past performance.
However, CLWRota will never replace staff who know the specifics of your department, and the special knowledge that is required to keep things running well. CLWRota does not attempt to double-guess humans about the best way of doing things, it is simply a powerful tool for assisting people in generating accurate rotas quickly and easily.
How does it work?
CLWRota is a web based application that works through your internet browser. The system is hosted on our servers in a London data centre.
Our servers are backed up at least once daily. We run lots of corporate servers and have considerable experience in this area.
Departments using our service do so over a secure https connection using a high-quality commercial security certificate.
There is a short description of how the system works on the About page.
Can I only access CLWRota from the NHS?
No, CLWRota is a web application and can be accessed from anyone with the correct security credentials anywhere on the internet. This means consultants can book leave from home, or check their rota from abroad, while trainees can check their activity for the afternoon equally easily from mobile devices or department workstations.
Access to the system is made over a secure web connection (https) encrypted using a commercial security certificate. Users need either a general 'guest' access password that is regularly changed, or a specific password in the case of consultants, trainees and Rota Masters.
Why focus on Anaesthetics and Radiology?
We can provide CLWRota for a number of different types of department, but we are focussing on Anaesthetics and Radiology because these departments are typically big, complex, and session-based. Initially we are looking for departments of 20 or more consultants.
Are there problems using the system from the NHS?
There can be problems accessing websites from the NHS or anywhere else on the internet due to routing or traffic congestion problems. However CLWRota is a web service and can be accessed from anyone who has the correct security credentials anywhere on the internet, providing resilience.
CLWRota's servers can be added to your hospital or Trust's list of approved web services, improving response times in case of a fault.
Is CLWRota in use anywhere?
As of January 2008, CLWRota has been running the Rota continuously for over 9 months at South Manchester University Hospital Trust (SMUHT).
A number of other Trust-level anaesthetics departments are currently evaluating the system to see if it suits their needs.
The Clinical Director and Consultant Rota Master as SMUHT are happy to discuss their use of the system with other interested parties.
How is it supported?
Ongoing support and improvement of CLWRota is an essential part of our proposition.
The Campbell-Lange Workshop is a web development and outsourced IT provider based in London. We provide email support as part of our standard package, and can provide consultancy, training and telephone support if required.
We maintain our own servers and ensure that data is backed-up and that emergency procedures are in place to cope with machine failures.
How much does it cost?
Costs are on an annual or monthly per-user basis for all enabled Consultants and Trainees in the system. As many other users, such as surgical department staff or theatre staff, may use the system as is desired at no extra cost.
Small additional costs are payable for a security certificate, and text messaging alerts. Standard email alerts are part of the main package costs.
Why have SMS and email alerts?
SMS and email alerts will help save trainees and consultants time when sessions change close to their start date.
SMS and email alerts will be provided as a separate cost.
Who developed the system?
The system was developed by Campbell-Lange Workshop Ltd together with SMUHT Anaesthetics department. Campbell-Lange Workshop Ltd own all the intellectual property.
Can CLWRota link to any other systems?
CLWRota does not at present link to any other systems, although we will be providing a web services API in a future version, to allow other systems to either consume information from CLWRota, or to insert information automatically.
