Overview
Patient notifications (emails or texts about upcoming appointments) are an essential feature—but they require patient consent. This article explains how notifications work in a HIPAA-compliant way, how patients can configure them, and what staff members should watch out for.
Why a Patient Might Not Receive Notifications
It’s not always that a patient turned off notifications—often, they simply never turned them on. According to HIPAA guidelines, patients must explicitly consent to receiving notifications related to their healthcare.
How Notification Consent Is Handled
When Staff Create the Patient Chart
You’ll be prompted to confirm whether the patient has given verbal consent to receive notifications. Only after confirming should you enable their notifications.
When Patients Book Their Own Appointments
After booking, the patient is immediately guided to the “My Forms” page. Before even completing their informed consent to treatment, they are asked to turn on notifications.
Notification Preferences Page
Patients can configure:
Email notifications
Text notifications
Or both
If notifications are disabled, the patient portal shows a large red exclamation mark as a reminder.
Key Visual Cues for Staff
Bell Icon in the Patient Chart
A colored bell in the upper left-hand corner helps indicate a patient’s notification status. If a patient isn’t getting notifications, consider checking the bell and confirming their settings.
Best Practices for Staff Members
Don’t enable notifications without consent. This can violate HIPAA.
Reach out to patients to ask if they’d like to enable notifications, especially if they’ve turned them off.
Check notification preferences from the patient chart—if a patient has disabled them, it will be indicated.
Remember: You legally cannot require patients to receive notifications for appointments.
More Control for Patients
Patients can:
Turn notifications on/off easily
Adjust preferences without logging in
Avoid “notification fatigue” by customizing what they receive