Frequently asked questions

Quick answers to the questions front-desk staff and practice owners ask most about Recall & Reminders. Each answer points you to a fuller article when you want the details.

Getting started

What does Recall & Reminders actually do?

It brings patients back automatically. You set up a recall once — who it reaches and what it sends — and it works through your patient list on its own, reaching out by email, SMS, AI voice call, or a call from your team. It can book overdue patients, confirm appointments, follow up after treatment, chase balances, and reactivate lapsed patients. See Getting started with Recall & Reminders.

What’s a “recall”?

A recall is one complete, automated outreach program. It has a goal (what you want it to achieve), an audience (which patients it reaches, split into segments), and a sequence (the timed journey of messages). Once it’s active, it enrolls matching patients and works through the sequence for each one. See Getting started.

Where do I start?

Open the Library and pick a ready-made recall. Hygiene recall and Appointment confirmation are the easiest first wins. Click Configure and follow the build flow. See Recall library.

Does anything send before I’m ready?

No. Nothing sends until you click Activate on the final review screen. Until then your recall is a draft. See Building & activating a recall.

Building a recall

How do I choose which patients a recall reaches?

In the Audience builder, you describe the patients you want in plain language and Elva turns each description into a segment with a live patient count. You can have several segments per recall. See Audience builder.

How do I decide what messages a recall sends?

In the Sequence builder, you lay out the journey of messages — which channel, what content, and how long to wait between steps — for each segment. See Sequence builder.

What are the goal types?

Eight: Book appointment, Confirm appointment, Collect payment, Schedule treatment, Reactivate patient, Clinical safety, Collect information, and Engagement. The goal shapes the recall’s results, funnel, and call outcomes. See Getting started.

What’s the difference between Scheduled, Event, and Hybrid recalls?

It’s when a recall starts for a patient. Scheduled fires on a schedule (every 6 months since the last cleaning). Event fires the moment something happens (an appointment is booked, a balance appears). Hybrid uses an event to enroll the patient, then runs scheduled steps from there. See Getting started.

Can I build a recall from scratch?

Yes. Click Create custom in the Library and you’ll start in the Audience builder with a blank slate. See Recall library.

I started a recall but didn’t finish — is it lost?

No. Your work is saved as a draft. Click Resume draft on the recall in the Library or Recalls list and you’ll pick up exactly where you left off. See Building & activating a recall.

Activating and running

What happens when I click Activate?

The recall goes live: it starts enrolling matching patients and sending messages within minutes. You’ll confirm in a dialog first, because this is the point where real messages begin going out. See Building & activating a recall.

Why is the Activate button greyed out?

There are errors that must be fixed first — for example, a sequence step with no message selected. The activation check lists them; fix them in the Audience builder or Sequence builder. Warnings, by contrast, don’t block activation. See Building & activating a recall.

How do I stop a recall that’s running?

Go to the Recalls list and switch the recall’s toggle off. It stops enrolling and sending immediately, and its setup and history are kept so you can switch it back on later. See Recalls list & Dashboard.

Does switching a recall off delete it?

No. It keeps all its configuration, history, and results. Switching it back on resumes it without rebuilding. See Recalls list & Dashboard.

Messages and channels

Which channels can a recall use?

Four: Email, SMS, AI voice (a call handled by Elva), and Human call (a call your team makes from the queue, with a ready-made script). A sequence can use any mix, in the order you design. See Sequence builder.

Where do I edit the actual message wording?

In the Templates page. Each message a recall sends is a reusable template you can edit, preview, and test. See Template library.

Can I see a message before patients get it?

Yes. Open a template and click Preview to see it with sample patient details, or Test send to send yourself a copy marked [TEST]. No patient is contacted. See Template library.

How do I make messages match my practice’s style?

Use Brand & voice settings to set your colors, tone (Warm, Professional, or Friendly), reading level, and sign-off. They apply across all your recalls. See Brand & voice settings.

What’s a smart tag?

A placeholder like the patient’s name or your practice name. Type {{ in a template field to insert one; it fills in the real value for each patient when the message sends. See Template library.

Calls and the queue

Why do some patients need a human call?

When the automated steps don’t land — an unanswered AI voice call, an escalation, or a step designed to route to a person — the patient lands in the Human call queue with a ready-made script for your team to use. See Human call queue.

How does my team work the call queue?

Open a call, read the script and patient context, tap the call button to dial, take notes during the call, then record the outcome with one of the buttons. Recording the outcome closes the call and updates the patient’s place in the recall. See Human call queue.

What does “snooze” a call mean?

When an outcome means “try again later,” you choose how long to wait (1 hour up to 1 week). The call leaves the queue and comes back automatically when the wait is up. See Human call queue.

Results and reporting

Where do I see how a single recall is performing?

On its Recall report — open it by clicking an active recall on the Recalls list. It shows the recall’s KPIs, a conversion funnel, per-segment and per-step results, and the patients who entered. See Recall report.

Where do I see the whole picture?

On the Dashboard — revenue, messages sent, patients reached, top recalls, channel breakdown, and recent activity across every recall. See Recalls list & Dashboard.

How do I check whether one patient got our message?

Go to Message logs, search for the patient, and open the message to see its content, any reply, and a timeline of what happened (sent, delivered, opened, and so on). See Message logs.

Can I read or hear what was said on an AI voice call?

Yes. Open the voice message in Message logs and click View transcript to read it or Play recording to listen. Recordings load only when you ask for them. See Message logs.

Can I export the message history?

Yes. Apply any filters you want in Message logs, then click Export to CSV to download the full filtered set as a spreadsheet. See Message logs.

Patients

What does a patient see when they tap a link?

A patient landing page branded to your practice — either a list of times to book or their appointment to confirm. They tap, and they’re done. There’s no login. See Patient landing pages.

What happens if a patient opens an old link?

The page explains clearly — for example, that the invitation has expired or the appointment is already booked — and shows your phone number so they can call. There’s nothing for you to fix. See Patient landing pages.