Scheduling for Minors with FlexSchedule

8/25/2023 - Available only in versions 5.19.0 and above

Flex now has enhanced handling for FlexSchedule users who are scheduling for patients other than themselves - for example, children, spouses, etc. There is no setup required on your end as Flex will handle all the details for you! In the outline below, we will cover a variety of circumstances this functionality will improve!

There is no change to the existing flow of online scheduling until a user has gotten to the step to enter patient details. One a user has selected an appointment type, a provider if applicable, and a time, they will be presented with a popup window asking if they are booking for themselves or someone else. Example below.

If a user selects "Scheduling for me" - the previous flow will remain the same. The patient will enter their details on the following page and we will add their appointment to the PMS as we always have! 

If a user selectes "Scheduling for someone else" another prompt will open for them and request THEIR information and relationship to the patient. It is made evident here that this information is for the scheduling person and is NOT the patient's information.  (There is also a date of birth validation, ensuring they are seperate, to improve accuracy which is discussed in more detail below.)

A few critical notes:

• The mobile number entered here is where Flex will send the verification text to confirm the user's identity prior to booking the appointment. The assumption is that this person and the patient may have different mobile numbers (for example, perhaps Parent A is booking the appointment but Parent B is the main point of contact for the family, so Parent B's phone number is listed in the patient information) and we would want to ensure the verification code goes to the device of the person scheduling.
• If the user selects that they are NOT the legal guardian or parent, Flex will NOT add their information to Open Dental as a patient but will capture the details of the user in the appointment note so you have a reference for who booked the appointment. For example, perhaps a spouse is scheduling for the patient and you want to ensure those details are captured. 
• If the user selects that they ARE the legal guardian or parent, Flex will look for an existing match in your patient base. If we find a match, we will add the minor patient to the family containing the legal guardian/parent. If we don't find a match, we will create a new family for the minor patient and add the parent as their legal guardian AND guarantor in the PMS. 
• If they progress forward, and need to return to edit details, the back button (pictured below) can be used to edit the information. 

• If a user chooses the selection that they are booking for someone else, there is a validation on the date of birth to ensure they are different to avoid any confusion on whose information belongs in designated sections of the scheduling flow. If a user enters the same birthdate for themselves and the patient, they will see a popup in the browser as pictured below.
  
  

Data Import to PMS:

• If patient is a minor
  • A match is identified in the PMS for the parent/guardian and the minor patient is added to the family with the parent/guarantor
  • A match is not identified in the PMS for the parent/guardian and a new family is created with the minor patient as the status of Child and the parent/guardian is added as a non-patient guarantor. 
    
• If patient is not a minor
  • The scheduling party's information is not used to create a patient in the PMS as this patient does not need to be affiliated with the non-minor patient
• Always, the details of the person scheduling are added to the appointment note for reference purposes
  

For a video webinar on new FlexSchedule features, check out this resource: New FlexSchedule Features Webinar.

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If you have questions, please contact Flex Support.

Thank you!