NextOnCall quick start
For providers who take call. Five things to do before your first shift.
Full guide: nextoncall.com/help
Install the app
Use the link in the welcome text your practice sent, or search NextOnCall in the App Store or Google Play. It's free for you.
Sign in with your cell number
Use the number your practice added you with. You'll get a 6-digit code by text; there's no password. No text after a minute? Ask your practice to check your number.
Say yes to notifications and the microphone
Without them, calls and shift reminders can't reach you in the app. In the app, Settings should say "Notifications enabled".
Set up your phone
- iPhone: keep the ringer on while on call, and allow NextOnCall in your Focus modes (Settings → Focus → Apps).
- Android: turn on Full screen notifications (the app's Home screen has a Turn on button if it's off). Never Force stop the app. Samsung: keep NextOnCall off the "sleeping apps" list (Settings → Battery).
Choose your shift reminder
In the app: Settings → Notify me when my shift starts: at start, 30 minutes or 1 hour before.
Take a test call
Ask your practice to call its NextOnCall number during one of your shifts: once with the app open, once with your phone locked.
When you're on call
- Calls ring in the app like a phone call, even if it's closed.
- Miss it? Your cell rings next, showing the practice's number. If a voice asks you to press 1, press any key.
- Need backup? Tap Escalate on the call screen to hand the call to the next person up.
- Call a patient back from the app's Call tab. They see the practice's number, never your cell.
- Voicemail: you get a "New voicemail" notification. Listen on the Call tab.
- Caller notes are shared with your practice. Keep medical details out of them.
Trading a shift
- Schedule tab → tap the day → Request coverage (give it away) or Swap shift (trade).
- Answer teammates' requests on Home → Swap shift.
- The shift changes hands as soon as you both agree.
Good to know
- One phone at a time: signing in on a new phone signs the old one out.
- Logged out? Your on-call calls ring your cell until you sign in again.
- Wrong shift? Your practice's office staff manage the schedule.
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