We’ve introduced several enhancements to the Communications Center to improve how practices manage conversations, track message activity, and collaborate across teams.
These updates provide better organization, clearer visibility into message status, and more efficient tools for handling patient communication.
Conversation Panel Behavior
When the Communications Center opens, the right panel remains blank until a conversation is selected. This reduces visual clutter, prevents accidental responses in the wrong conversation, and encourages an intentional workflow.
Enhanced Filtering Capabilities
A new filter dropdown has been added, allowing users to quickly narrow down conversations.
Users can filter by:
Type: All, Open, Closed
Status: Read, Unread, Responded, Unresponded
Assignment: Assigned to Me, Unassigned
Improved Message Status Visibility
Understanding the difference between Unread and Unresponded is critical for managing your inbox effectively:
Unread: The message has not been opened by any team member. This represents brand-new incoming communication.
Read: The message has been viewed by a team member.
Responded: A reply has been sent from the practice.
Unresponded: The message has been opened, but no reply has been sent. This often indicates a follow-up is still needed.
The Unresponded filter is one of the most important tools for preventing missed follow-ups. A team member may open a message, get interrupted, and never reply — Unresponded surfaces those gaps.
The system also displays which user viewed the message, improving team accountability and helping prevent duplicate responses.
AI Agent Mode Indicator
The AI Agent status is now visible directly in the Communications Center header. When active, you'll see an After Hours badge indicating the AI Agent is handling incoming messages outside of business hours. You can click the gear icon to adjust AI Agent settings, including Reply Mode and Default Snooze Time.
Note: This feature is currently in Alpha and will not be visible to all practices.
Sorting & Search Improvements
Users can now:
Sort conversations from oldest → newest or newest → oldest
Search conversations by patient name
Access Communication Settings (templates) via the gear icon
Pinning Conversations
Users can pin conversations to keep them at the top of the inbox.
Common use cases:
High-priority patients
Ongoing treatment discussions
Same-day follow-ups
Conversation Actions
Right-clicking a conversation (or clicking the three-dot menu) reveals the following actions:
Assign: Assign the conversation to a specific team member
Move/Mark: Move to a different inbox or mark the status
Pin: Pin the conversation to the top of the list
Block: Block the phone number
Users can also apply actions in bulk using multi-select for end-of-day cleanup or batch assignments.
Internal Notes
Internal notes can now be added within conversations.
Important:
Notes are not visible to patients
Notes do not sync to the PMS
Notes do not appear in the Patient Overview
Quick Actions
Quick Actions are grouped under a single button for a cleaner interface. Available actions include:
Send Treatment Plan
Send Form
Request Payment
Send Review Request
Automation & Closure Rules
A dedicated settings page under Settings → Communication → Automation and Closure Rules allows practices to configure how inactive conversations are
automatically closed. This can be accessed from the gear icon next to New Message. See the Automation & Closure Rules article for full details.