War-game a modality schedule freeze by proving each freeze lane has a named owner, a measured age-out, and a reverse path before draft holds start governing every scanner claim.
Modality schedule freezes fail when "frozen" means a calendar flag without a decision artifact, when teams dual-count a draft hold as both blocked and live, and when high-demand scanners still pin to one thin scheduling desk because the lane inventory is incomplete. The review needs one written inventory of freeze lanes, one owner who can deny a risky shortcut, and a documented consequence when a failed freeze ages past the deadline.
Define the freeze in writing
State which modality classes the freeze covers, the effective date, which freeze lanes change, how versions are stored, and what happens to studies already in flight. Name the clinics that feel it first and the access promises that depend on coherent modality handling. If the memo mixes a modality schedule freeze with a transfer center SLA and a preop clearance ladder, split them.
Write the decision you will make if the war game finds nothing new. Also write the reverse criteria: the missed lane, access gap, or study deadline that would force a modality rollback within a stated window.
Likely cracks in the freeze
- A high-demand scanner stays soft while the aggregate modality dashboard stays green.
- Two teams claim the same lane ownership and neither can force a freeze at week end.
- A restore has already left a desk without a trusted modality state.
- The primary modality export lags beyond the planned observation window.
- An operator skips a freeze gate because a referral cutoff is near.
For each crack, require detection time, scanner impact, containment, and the authority to force a modality schedule rollback. Commands and export links belong in the runbook.
Adversarial review of the freeze
Feed Pingpong the freeze memo, the lane exhibits, and seating briefs for imaging ops, clinic ops, transfer center, and radiology. First pass steelmans the freeze. Later passes attack from those seats. Final pass turns surviving objections into phased lane rules, mitigations, or a changed recommendation. Agreement across passes is not proof. Keep the objections that still have evidence gaps.
Pair with the imaging ops lead seat, a transfer center SLA, the clinic ops lead seat, and a preop clearance ladder. More operating decisions live in the war-game decisions hub.
Ship the freeze only when approved and blocked modality labels can be reproduced from stored schedule exports without a verbal override.