From v12.8 EXACT enables a dental business with a single server and multiple practice locations (premises) to create a separate online booking website for each configured Location.
Example:
ShinyTeeth has a single central server for practices in three different suburbs.
Before EXACT v12.8 ShinyTeeth had no elegant means for patients to book appointments online for just their local suburban practice.
However, from v12.8 the practice is able to split out three different websites / locations, so that a patient can book online for an appointment in just one of those locations.
ShinyTeeth sets this up in the online booking Web Setup, with either customised appearance for each location/booking website, or with a common corporate appearance across locations/booking websites.
The Online Booking site for each location is configured with its own address, phone number and description, but the practice Email address is the same across all Locations.
Within patient communications EXACT is able to generate patient recall URLs, planned Online Booking links and Marketing URLs for these specific Locations.
(Configure - > Practice Settings > Enable Locations)
Configure > Online Appointments > Web Setup window > Enable Location
Practices with multiple existing Locations will have those locations listed in the Web Setup, but without being configured or enabled.
Each Location is an Online Booking blank slate:
Once they tick to Enable Locations, the pre-configured Locations appear in the Enable Locations dropdown list:
Each Edit Appointment window has the Location field situated just above the Planned Treatment window:
«patient.PreferredLocationName»
«patient.PreferredLocationAddress1»
«patient.PreferredLocationAddress2»
«patient.PreferredLocationAddress3»
«patient.PreferredLocationPostCode»
«patient.PreferredLocationPhone»
EXACT applies the following logic in using Preferred Locations versus other locations:
IMPORTANT: To use locations effectively, Providers and Patients should have Preferred Locations specified, and practitioners should habitually record Preferred Locations for new patients.
Online Booking Providers | The Provider Details tab has a Pref Location field.
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Patients who book online | The Patient Details tab has a Pref Location field.
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Combined Recalls | For Combined Recalls, EXACT uses location options in this order:
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Family Recalls | For family recall, EXACT uses the main contact patient's location in this order:
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Marketing Campaign | For marketing campaigns EXACT uses locations in this order:
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From EXACT v12.9 practitioners who log in to a Location and use the Appointment Workflow will see only that Location's patients on the Departure Task List (Exit Workflow). Patients who are booked for a different Location will not display.
From EXACT v12.9 EXACT has merge fields specifically for using the Preferred Location in patient correspondence.
The patient's preferred location has been added as a merge field, enabling sites with multiple locations to auto-generate patient recalls per Location.
These merge fields can be used in Email, SMS and EasyPost Letters.
This functions as a "switch" to switch as follows:
(From EXACT v12.10)
«patient.PreferredLocationName»
«patient.PreferredLocationAddress1»
«patient.PreferredLocationAddress2»
«patient.PreferredLocationAddress3»
«patient.PreferredLocationPostCode»
«patient.PreferredLocationPhone»
Each patient's Preferred Location can be specified in the Patient File Details tab:
In patient correspondence templates for Easypost Letter, Email and SMS, you can then use merge fields to automatically include Preferred Location in the correspondence.
Prior to EXACT v12.3 the EXACT online booking system had two primary setup areas: Providers and booking Reasons.
These were treated separately, with no cross-matching of providers to reasons (the booking reason could map only to All Dentists or All Hygienists so there was no way to book Provider B for Reason 5).
For example, a practice has many Providers, only one of whom is an Implant Specialist. When their patients booked an Implant Consultation the only option was to book with any of the Providers; they couldn't specifically book with the Implant Specialist.
From EXACT v12.3 onwards:
From v12.3 Providers can be pre-associated with Booking Reasons within EXACT.
The configuration allows for a generic option for all Providers, but also allows for the complex options that are necessary for customers who are not taking up online booking.
For example, a patient booking an Implant Consultation online can be assigned to either Provider B or Provider C, both of whom specialise in implants.
For example, for an implant consultation a patient may be assigned to Provider B for a 10 minute consult or Provider C for a 15 minute consult.
For example, for implant consultations Provider B can be booked for Mondays and Tuesdays, and Provider C for Wednesdays and Thursdays.
If you are a CURRENT patient, the software will recognise you through the unique link and set your Patient Type as Existing.
If you are a NEW patient, you will be presented with a questionnaire that includes First Name, Last Name, Date of Birth, Phone Number, Mobile Number, Email address, Date of last dentist visit, Last dentist location, and Information about your immediate dental needs. Some of these fields are compulsory, and will be indicated as such on the page.
You will see a 'Please Wait' message while the Email or SMS is being sent.
Once sent to you (the patient), you will see a verification code screen online:
If the code is correct, the Deposit and Book now screen appears:
You will briefly see an acknowledgement of payment:
While the software adds your appointment to the dental practice Appointment Book you will see a submission notice: 'Your appointment is submitted, but not confirmed'.
When the appointment has been successfully scheduled in the practice Appointment Book you will see the scheduled message: "Your appointment is scheduled. We look forward to seeing you."
See also: The patient booking has various consequences in the dental practice
EXACT automatically does the following with an online booking by a patient:
EXACT creates a patient file for any New online patients.
Online Bookings appear in the appropriate place in the appointment book, where practitioners can open them to see all booking details, and online bookings also appear in the Online Bookings tab in the Appointment Book:
Practitioners can open the patient file's Patient Transaction details to view payments, including the Authorisation IDs for online payments:
In the View Transactions window patient payments have the prefix "OLB" in the Particulars column, followed by the Authorisation ID (AuthID):
Double-click the payment to view details of the Authorisation ID in the Comment field. Double-click the payment to view details of the Authorisation ID in the Comment field. This Authorisation Code matches records in the Stripe banking software for the practice.
IMPORTANT: The amounts stated in EXACT are before service charges by the third party banking, so these amounts are not exactly the same as those going into your bank account.
EXACT automatically creates an emailable payment receipt.
View the email from File > Email... : Outbox tab
NOTE: This Receipt is based on an editable Email Template: .OLB_RECEIPT_EMAIL.
View patient online payments in the View Transactions window for that patient, with the prefix "OLB" in the Particulars column, followed by the Authorisation ID (AuthID):
Double-click the payment to view details of the Authorisation ID in the Comment field. This Authorisation Code matches records in the Stripe banking software for the practice.
Online Booking icons display in the top right corner of the appointment:
New Patient online booking | |
Existing patient online booking | |
Recall Appointment online booking | |
Planned Treatment online booking |
New Patients are not yet registered within EXACT. They access the booking website from various sources including online search, word of mouth and marketing information.
On the booking website new patients can book into the appointment gaps per Provider that have been made available for this purpose by means of the New Patient online bookings setup.
Data sent to EXACT Patient File
When a NEW patient successfully books an appointment on the portal, the software sends the following information to populate a new Patient File in EXACT:
Data | Mandatory? | Field in EXACT |
First name | Yes | First Name |
Last Name | Yes | Family Name |
Date Of Birth | Yes | Birth date |
Land line number | No | Hm Ph |
Mobile number | Yes | Mobile |
email address | Yes | |
When last visited the dentist | No | Appointment notes |
Where last seen | No | Appointment notes |
Information about your immediate dental needs | No | Appointment notes |
Receptionists can see the new patient booking
Receptionists can see new patient bookings in the appointment book and in the Online Appointments tab.
Appointment Book:
Statistics are tracked in the Feature Usage Report
New Patient booking statistics are tracked in in the Feature Usage Report:
Existing Patients are already registered within EXACT. The booking website is a convenient means for them to self-book appointments.
On the booking website existing patients can book into the appointment gaps per Provider that have been made available for this purpose by means of the Existing Patient online booking configuration.
Receptionists can see the existing patient booking
Receptionists can see Existing Patient bookings in the appointment book and in the Online Appointments tab.
Existing Patients recording new information
What happens when existing patients enter information that contradicts records (such as a changed Email address)?
The new details don't automatically overwrite current details, but are stored in the "Notes about this appointment" area, accessible when you Edit the appointment.
Recall patients are recalled by means of EXACT automation, and the recall includes a link to the booking website.
Overview of the process
The Recall Patient online booking functions as follows:
Receptionists can see the recall patient booking
Receptionists can see recall patient bookings in the appointment book and in the Online Appointments tab.
Appointment book:
Apart from the appointment time search by the patient, the whole process can be performed automatically, freeing practice personnel from these administrative tasks.
Statistics are tracked in the Feature Usage Report
Recall Patient online booking statistics are tracked in in the Feature Usage Report:
Your Practice may not necessarily be fully automated for recalls, in which case you need to manually recall patients.
EXACT will automatically detect if there is an outstanding list to run, and display the list for you.
A message will display for each of the months in the specified period, informing you how many patients met the recall parameters.
The main screen displays figures and a colour graphical display per month:
Example of a 'My Recalls Procedure':
The Month View displays the details of its recall patients.
! You can optionally filter the list and then perform bulk actions on the resulting patients.
This screen has all of the tools that you need to contact the listed patients.
Hyperlinks | Note: all line entries in this screen are hyperlinks. The functionality is the same as for the Appointment Book Recalls Tab. |
Month Selector | Use this to change the month. |
Column headers | The default sort order is Last Name, alphabetical. Click a column header to sort the list by that parameter. |
First Name / Last Name | Click a First or Last name to open the Patient Information tab. You can then edit any Patient fields that need updating. |
Dates | These are the Recall dates. Coloured icons represent the same colour recall statuses as for the Effectiveness Tooltip display. Click any of these dates for editable information for the recall. If you edit these fields and click Update, it will immediately update the display. |
Prior contacts with patients are recorded as icons in the Prior Contacts Column. Click a Prior Contact icon to display details of the contact. | |
Click any of these hyperlinks to display a contact screen from which to contact the patient. A small star behind the icon indicates the preferred method of contact. | |
Home Address. Recall is by letter | |
Business phone | |
Home phone | |
Home phone, SMS | |
Mobile phone | |
Mobile phone, SMS | |
Workaround: This is a workaround for an issue where a practice tries to send a patient an online booking URL for just a Hygienist booking, but the patient receives a URL for Hygienist plus Dentist booking.
PLEASE NOTE:
- The eMail/SMS Template must contain the [Recall.URL] Merge field.
- You cannot use Administration>Manage Recalls - this list will always send a URL for booking DENTIST and HYG Recall appointment if there are dates set in both fields on the Patients Recall Tab.
Multiple eMails/SMS reminders are then generated to be sent to All Patients on the list. These include only a Hygiene Recall URL Link within the message, for patients to book their Appointment via the Online Recall System - Even if they have both a Dentist and a Hygienist Recall set in their Patient File.
To send an Email directly from the Patient File
If you send an eMail directly from the Patient File you will see this Screen:
You can then again choose either Dentist Recall, Hygiene Recall, or both.
PLEASE NOTE:
- The eMail/SMS Template must contain the [Recall.URL] Merge field.
- You cannot use Administration>Manage Recalls - this list will always send a URL for booking DENTIST and HYG Recall appointment if there are dates set in both fields on the Patients Recall Tab.
A patient can book planned treatment online if that patient's Provider has been appropriately configured.
Receptionists can see planned treatment patient bookings in the appointment book and in the Online Appointments tab.
Appointment Book:
PROVIDER procedure
A) Double-click the Appointment to open the Edit Appointment window.
B) Check (tick) the Book this Appointment checkbox and complete all other details in the screen.
C) Check that the appointment has an Expected Time (duration), calculated automatically as the sum of the services' Estimated Times.
D) Click OK.
RECEPTIONIST procedure
NOTE: EXACT will pop up a warning if the Receptionist clicks the online bookings button without having these contacts recorded:
In this case the Receptionist can either open the Patient File to record the details, or click the Collect Email and Mobile prompt in the Departure Task List:
TIP: When both the Collect prompt and the online bookings button both appear, first collect the contact details:
The following processes then occur:
The booking URL is populated with details of the planned treatment booking requirement, ready for patient booking.
PATIENT procedure
Once the patient confirms, the software prompts the patient to check for a confirmation message.
RECEPTIONIST monitoring
The Online Appointments Tab displays all patient online bookings, and provides a means for Practice users to manage these bookings.
This tab only appears for a user when
Online bookings will remain in this list until the appointment date/time has been reached.
The content in some the columns is hyperlinked, as explained below.
Once in use the tab will look similar to this:
Column: Tick Box | A tick box to indicate that the actions for dealing with the appointment have been carried out. |
Column: Appointment | Appointment Date / Time / Provider code / Notes icon. Click Date-Time to display the Edit Appointment window. Click the Notes icon to display the notes that the patient entered when making the appointment on the portal. |
Column: Name | Possible Duplicate Record icon | Patient long name. CALL ME indicator: If the patient has indicated that they want a call back the row appears in Red and the word CALL ME displays next to the patient name. Click the Name to display the Edit Patient window (so long as there is no possibility of a duplicate record.) If there is a possible duplicate, follow the procedure for Creating New Patient Records from online appointments. |
Column: Type | This is the type of appointment generated by a patient. New: New Patient (not registered at the Practice) requesting an appointment. Existing: A registered patient making an unplanned appointment. Recall: Patient using the recall link Planned treatment: Treatment has been planned by a clinician. |
Column: Make Contact | Email icon. Click to email the patient. Mobile phone icon and number. If CTI has been set up you can click to dial the patient. If not set up, click to display the Call Patient dialogue. Landline phone icon and number. If the booking was made via an online recall, the landline number displayed is the patient's home number, or if the patient does not have a home number, this is a work number. Telephone status indicators. These are customisable status indicators that will vary across Practices. Initially they are grey, but they can be clicked to change colour and thereby indicate status. |
Show (drop down) | Optionally filter by choosing one of the Show options and the From date. The list will always sort by date and time |
Select (tick) to display completed bookings. |
The EXACT software has a mechanism for defining the minimum mandatory patient fields that must be recorded for a patient record.
EXACT ignores this setting when creating a New patient from an online booking.
Existing Patients recording new information
What happens when existing patients enter information that contradicts records (such as a changed Email address)?
The new details don't automatically overwrite current details, but are stored in the "Notes about this appointment" area, accessible when you Edit the appointment.
There is a possibility that the newly created record may belong to a patient that already has a record with the practice.
To avoid any duplications, the system checks for matches at the time the new record is created:
Matching First Name AND Last Name
and/or
Matching Date of birth
and/or
Matching Mobile number
and/or
Matching email address
If any of these conditions are met, the duplicate record warning displays in the Online Appointments Tab, and the matching records display in red text:
See further down this page for a list of details that are merged.
You will see the Duplicates button become available:
The top portion of the screen displays the new patient details and the bottom portion of the screen displays the existing records that could possibly be the same patient.
Specific fields in the existing record that match the new record display in red text.
(Optionally click the View Patient button to view the patient file).
... to display the Merge Patient Details:
(To cancel the merge and return to the Possible Duplicate Patient screen, click the Cancel button).
You will see a request for confirmation, with a warning that the operation is irreversible:
Selecting Yes causes the following system to do the following:
NOTE ON MANUALLY MERGING TWO PATIENTS:
When EXACT merges an online booking Patient with an existing Patient record, the new record is automatically deleted.
However, if a practitioner manually merges two patients by means of the Merge button in the Patients File, the source patient file is NOT deleted, so in this case the practitioner needs to manually mark the source patient file as ‘Inactive’.
Patient fields:
Patient records: