Forecasting in Planbase uses historical patient interactions—appointments, SMS messages, and async visits—to predict demand and determine staffing needs.

To access forecasting, click "Forecasts" in the left sidebar. The forecast graph shows historical and predicted patient volumes, while the staffing graph translates forecasts into staffing requirements based on configured SLAs.

Definition: SLAs (Service Level Agreements) in Planbase group patient interaction data from sources like EHRs, scheduling platforms, ticketing systems, and call centers. They include performance metrics used to calculate required clinical and administrative staffing.

Examples of Integrations: Common integrations include platforms like Healthie, MedPlum, EPIC (EHRs), patient scheduling systems and communication platforms like Zendesk and Intercom. Planbase pulls historical data from these sources to forecast future patient interactions and staffing needs.

For more information about how to configure SLA see this article here

Forecast Graph Overview: The forecast graph presents a visual representation of projected patient volume. A solid line indicates forecasted demand, while a dashed line represents actual patient volumes.

Staffing Graph Overview: Below the forecast graph, the staffing graph provides a breakdown of how many staff members are needed based on the forecasted patient volume. The staffing requirements are calculated using SLAs, which define key performance metrics such as average appointment duration, target wait times, and expected patient volumes.

Adjusting Intervals: You can change the data aggregation interval by selecting options like 15-minute, hourly, day parts, or daily from the dropdown.

Date options: In the upper left-hand corner, you can adjust the date range you’re viewing.

Making adjustments: You can manually adjust your forecasts by clicking the Add Adjustment button, dragging to select the period you want to adjust, naming your adjustment, choosing applicable SLA (and other filters if applicable), and then choosing how you would like to adjust the forecasts.

Adjustment Types: There are a number of different adjustment types that allow you to scale the forecasts for different situations. See the video below for more detail on selecting the adjustment type:

For details on how use forecasting and staffing requirements when building a schedule see this help article

For more details on configuring SLAs, see the SLA guide.