Unscheduled Visits & Procedures: Required Workflow
What You Need to Know
Why is this important?
Study Teams must ensure that all unscheduled visits and/or procedures are accurately tracked, linked, and billed in alignment with the protocol, coverage analysis, and study contract. Failure to follow this workflow may result in charges defaulting to standard of care and being billed to the patient or insurance incorrectly.
What qualifies as “unscheduled”?
An unscheduled visit or procedure is any encounter or service that is not pre-built on the OnCore calendar or APeX research timeline at the time of service or documentation.
Common examples include:
Repeat or additional procedures due to inconclusive or incomplete results
Visits or procedures required to maintain protocol timing (e.g., repeat scans)
Evaluation or treatment related to adverse events (including Emergency Department visits or admissions)
Additional procedures performed based on clinical judgment
Required Workflow
Document in OnCore
Unscheduled visit or admission:
Add in the Additional Visits tab and include all associated procedures
Document the visit purpose (e.g., AE, rescheduled visit)
Unscheduled procedure during a scheduled visit:
Add as Additional Procedures within the scheduled visit
Document the reason (e.g., AE, prior inconclusive results)
Invoice the sponsor per the contract and coverage analysis, if applicable. If using OnCore Financials, add to an invoice via Visit Variations.
Link in APeX
Link the encounter to the appropriate research timeline timepoint
Follow the steps in this Q&A for unscheduled events (with or without a dedicated timepoint)
Accurate linkage ensures charges route correctly and do not default to standard billing.
Notify Research Revenue Cycle
Email the Research Revenue Cycle Supervisor (Erik Morris) as soon as the unscheduled visit or procedure is identified so charges can be reviewed and routed appropriately. Include relevant details.
Key Reminders
Unscheduled services are not automatically billable to the study; billing must align with the contract and coverage analysis
Missing or delayed OnCore/APeX documentation may result in incorrect patient billing and needed rework
Early identification and routing are critical to prevent downstream billing errors
Refer to OCTA’s website for current guidance documents and update your bookmarks as needed
Helpful Resources
- OnCore: Unscheduled Visits and Procedures
- OnCore: Subject Visit Tracking
- APeX: APeX Research Timelines Q&A
- Common Billing Tasks Checklist
Questions?
Please check our website for more information or contact us at [email protected].