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Notifications and Reminders

Updated

Overview

Lobbie provides a comprehensive set of notification options to keep both staff and patients informed about key activities such as appointment scheduling, form assignments, reminders, and telehealth sessions. This guide explains how to access and configure these notifications for optimal communication.

Note: The patient record must have an email and/or mobile phone configured for notifications to be delivered.

Note: When an appointment is created, notifications are immediately queued based on the notification settings at that time. If settings are changed afterward, those changes will not affect already scheduled notifications. To apply updated settings, cancel and re-create the appointment.

Note: Self-scheduled appointments will follow the notification settings defined for the associated calendar configuration.

 

 

Accessing Notification Settings

  1. Log in as a user with Admin privileges.
  2. Click the gear icon in the top navigation bar.
  3. Select Notifications from the menu.

Key Notification Types

Form Assignment without an Appointment:

  • Use case: When manually assigning forms to a patient directly using the "Send Forms" button from the Forms Dashboard (Pen icon on the left navigation bar) or the patient profile.
  • Delivery: SMS and/or email with a direct link to complete forms.
  • How to Trigger:
    • Click Send Forms on the patient’s profile or the Forms Dashboard.
    • Choose SMS/email options and send.

Recommended: Always keep these enabled for immediate delivery of forms.

 

Form Reminder without an Appointment:

  • Use case: When manually assigning forms to a patient directly or via form packets.
  • Delivery: SMS and/or email with a direct link to complete forms.
  • How to Trigger:
    • Click Send Forms on the patient’s profile or the Forms Dashboard.
    • Choose SMS/email options and send.

Recommended: Always keep these enabled for immediate delivery of forms.

 

Appointment Notifications

New Appointment Created:

Sends a branded email and/or SMS immediately when an appointment is scheduled, including:

  • Appointment details
  • Location with Google Maps link
  • Add-to-calendar links (Google, Apple, etc.)
  • Link to complete forms

Internal Appointments (No Patient Notification)

Use case: When staff want to add an appointment to the calendar for internal use (e.g., "Review lab results for Mike") without notifying the patient.

How to Enable:

  • When creating or editing an appointment, uncheck the "Send patient notifications" box.
  • This suppresses both SMS and email notifications to the patient, while keeping the event on the calendar for staff visibility.

Form Reminders:

Sends repeated reminders until forms are completed. Frequency (e.g., every 3 days) is configurable under Automations. This is disabled by default.

Appointment Confirmation:

Includes a one-click link for patients to confirm their appointment. Status updates in Lobbie when confirmed. Defaults to 24 hours in advance of an appointment.

Appointment Cancellation:

Allows patients to cancel in advance, giving your team time to rebook or adjust the schedule.

Appointment Rescheduling:

Optional link allowing patients to reschedule their appointment immediately after cancellation. Requires self-scheduling to be configured.

 

Remote Check-In

  • Sends a check-in link via SMS prior to the appointment (e.g., 15 minutes before).
  • Uses geo-fencing to ensure the patient is near the facility.
  • Controlled under Location Settings → Check-In Minutes and Confirmation Hours.
  • Defaults to 60 minutes before.

 

Room Ready Notification

  • Sends a notification when a staff member assigns the patient to a treatment room.
  • Lets patients know it’s time to come inside if they’ve been waiting in their car.

 

Telehealth Notifications

  • For appointment types marked as Telehealth, Lobbie sends a link 30 minutes prior to the session.
  • Set the telehealth video room link under the Telehealth URL field under the practitioner's user settings (e.g., Zoom, Doxy.me).
  • Forms Required Option: You can choose whether the telehealth link is sent only after forms are completed.

Note: Lobbie does not provide native video calling, but supports linking to third-party services.

 

Branding & Customization

Notifications are fully branded with your location’s identity:

  • Add your logo, organization name, reply-to email, and from name.
  • Set these under Settings → Branding.

This branding appears in all patient-facing communications, including emails and calendar invites.

 

Disabling Notifications by Service Type

You can enable or disable notifications for specific service types:

  1. Go to Service Types
  2. Toggle notifications on/off as needed

This is helpful if you want different behaviors for initial consultations vs. follow-ups or lab visits.

 

Automations for Reminders

Under the Settings → Automation, you can configure two automatic patient reminders:

  1. Reminders for patients to complete their forms
  2. Reminders for patients to confirm their appointment

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