Which messages a patient gets, and by which channel, is set on their record, not clinic-wide. A patient who says they never got the reminder is usually explained here.
The settings
Found under Communication preferences on the patient's Details, in edit mode. They override the clinic's defaults for this one patient.
- Automatic messages: None, SMS, Email or SMS & Email. This is the channel for everything ClinyPal sends on its own: confirmations, reminders, follow-ups, recall reminders, waitlist offers and the change notice when an appointment is moved. None means the patient is told nothing automatically; staff have to call. A cancellation notice is the one exception: it's sent by email, or SMS if there's no email, even for a patient set to None, so nobody turns up to a canceled slot.
- Appointment confirmation emails and Cancellation emails: two further switches to stop those particular emails for a patient who's asked not to get them.
- Marketing messages: separate Email and SMS consents. A patient without the consent is left out of every broadcast on that channel, however the audience is chosen. Patients can withdraw it themselves from the unsubscribe link in a broadcast.
- Privacy policy: No response, Accepted or Rejected, for clinics that record it.
How the pieces fit
A message is only sent when every layer allows it: the appointment type has a template for that event and channel, the patient's Automatic messages include the channel, and for SMS the clinic has credit and the patient has a mobile number. If a patient says they never got a reminder, check those in that order, then their communication log to see what was actually sent.
The clinic's default for new patients is set under General Settings, Communication. Changing it there only affects patients added afterward unless you choose Apply to all patients, which overwrites every patient's Automatic messages setting, including ones set by hand, and can take several minutes.