Business Guidelines Best Practices

Last updated: February 12, 2026

Business Guidelines are instructions for our scheduling agent, Casey. Here are some tips when filling out the questions:

Be Specific

Bad: "Handle call-outs appropriately" Good: "If a caregiver calls out with less than 4 hours notice, immediately text the on-call scheduler at [number], log the call-out in EMR as 'Caregiver called out sick - [timestamp]', then attempt to reach backup caregivers in this order: [list]."

Casey does best with more detail.

Cover Edge Cases

Bad: "Clock out the caregiver if they don't show" Good: "If caregiver doesn't show by 15 minutes after shift start, call them. If no answer after 2 attempts (5 minutes apart), clock them out and mark as NCNS. Exception: If this is their first NCNS in 6 months, wait 30 minutes."

Edge cases will happen. If you don't cover them, Casey will either ask for clarification or try to find the best outcome.

State Priorities

Bad: "Keep clients happy and follow their preferences" Good: "Priority order: (1) Client safety - never leave without coverage. (2) Follow caregiver preferences when possible. (3) If no preferred caregiver available, prioritize reliability over preference match."

When goals conflict, tell Casey which one should win.

Define Your Terms

Bad: "For high-priority clients, respond immediately" Good: "High-priority clients = tagged 'VIP' in EMR or medical complexity 4-5. For these, respond within 15 minutes even outside business hours."

Make Casey fluent in your agency’s language.

Use Examples

When something's nuanced, show examples.

Emergency situations:

  • Client fell and is injured

  • Caregiver had car accident on way to shift

  • Family member calls about safety concern

Urgent but not emergency:

  • Schedule change request for next week

  • Client wants to add extra shift

State Guardrails

"Never call a client after 9pm unless: (1) genuine emergency, (2) client explicitly requested late contact, or (3) following up on their message sent after 9pm"

Casey is very diligent, so this make sure they never go too far.

Common Mistakes

  1. Writing for humans not AI - Casey can't "use judgment" without knowing what that means for your agency

  2. Assuming context - "call the usual contact" → who? Give name and number

  3. Rushing through it - this is training material, not a form. Treat each section as teaching Casey about a unique topic that deserves depth and detail