What Are Automations
Automations let your clinic send messages automatically based on real events in your EMR or patient journey — like a new appointment being booked, a visit being canceled, or lab results being received.
They replace manual follow-ups and repetitive outreach tasks, ensuring patients get timely, consistent communication every time.
Think of each automation as a rule:
When something happens (Trigger), check certain conditions (Filter), then do something (Action).
What Clinics Can Do With Automations
Automations can handle a wide range of use cases, such as:
Sending reminders or confirmations after appointments are booked
Following up on no-shows or canceled visits
Notifying patients when results or forms are ready
Sending referral instructions or post-visit feedback surveys
Handling recurring workflows, like prescription refills or eligibility checks
With a few automations configured, your clinic can automate over half of its routine patient communications — freeing up staff time for higher-value work.
Core Components
Every automation follows the same three-step structure:
| Component | What It Does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Defines when the automation runs — such as when an appointment is booked or a referral is received. | “When an appointment is created in EMR” |
| Filter | Adds conditions to narrow down which records or patients it applies to. | “Only if appointment type is ‘Virtual’” |
| Action | Defines what happens — such as sending an SMS, email, phone call, fax or creating a follow-up task. | “Send SMS reminder to patient” |
You can chain multiple filters and actions within a single automation to create complex, multi-step workflows.
Automation Settings
Automation Settings control when automations run, how messages are delivered, and how appointment updates sync with your EMR.
You can configure things like:
Messaging Hours – Define when Phelix can send automated calls, texts, or emails. Messages created outside this window are queued and sent during active hours.
Automation Groups & Daily Limits – Organize automations by workflow (e.g., Reminders, Results) and prevent the same group from running more than once per day.
Appointment Rules – Auto-confirm or cancel same-day visits, block reconfirmations for canceled appointments, and sync the latest status with your EMR (Accuro only).
Delivery Flow – Decide how messages are prioritized when multiple contact methods exist (e.g., send SMS first, then email).
How to Get Started
Navigate to Automations
Go to Control Panel → Outreach Agent → Automations.
You’ll see a list of all active and draft automations.
Default Automations
Every account includes a few pre-built automations for common workflows, such as:
Appointment Bookings
Appointment Confirmations
Appointment Cancellations
Appointment Reminders
Post-Visit Surveys
Document based automation that creates a task in the EMR
Sending patient intake forms once a referral is received
You can edit or duplicate these to fit your clinic’s workflow.
Create a New Automation
Click + New Automation to open the builder.
You’ll configure:
Trigger: When the automation should run
Filter: Which patients or events it should apply to
Action: What happens next — send a message, assign a task, or update a record
Next Steps
Once you’re familiar with the basics: