Reminders
When they go out, who gets them, and why one did not arrive.
Reminders go out automatically before a visit. You choose how many; the schedule follows from the count.
| Reminder count | Sent |
|---|---|
| 1 | 24 hours before |
| 2 — the default | 24 hours and 2 hours before |
| 3 | 72 hours, 24 hours and 2 hours before |
Which appointments qualify
Two conditions, both necessary:
- The appointment is confirmed. Pending, cancelled and completed visits are not reminded about.
- The patient has an email address on file. There is nowhere to send it otherwise.
This is the answer to almost every "why did my patient not get a reminder?". Check the state and check the email address, in that order.
No double-sends
The sweep runs hourly and each appointment carries a counter of what it has already been sent. An appointment moved, or a sweep that runs twice, does not produce a second copy of the same reminder.
What is in one
The time, the clinic, the doctor — and, where you allow it, links that let the patient cancel or move the visit themselves. Those links are the difference between a cancellation and a no-show.
If your no-show rate is high, look at reminder count and self-service together rather than separately. Two reminders with no way to act on them is a notification, not an offer.
Text messages
Reminders are email today. If your patients are unreachable by email, that is worth telling us — it is the kind of thing that decides what gets built next.
Common questions
- Can I change the wording?
- Not per clinic today. The content is your clinic name, the time, the doctor and the actions the patient is allowed to take.
- Does the patient get a reminder if I move the appointment?
- They are notified of the change, and the remaining reminders fire against the new time.
- Can I turn reminders off entirely?
- Set the count to zero. Consider self-service links first — most clinics that want fewer reminders actually want fewer no-shows.