Your First Appointment

Scheduling the Appointment

Start by opening the Appointments module from the sidebar. You'll see a calendar view of your day, week, or month — toggle between views using the buttons in the top-right corner.

To create a new appointment, click on any empty time slot. A booking panel slides in from the right:

1. Select patient: Search by name or phone number. If the patient is new, click Add new patient to create a record inline.
2. Choose appointment type: Consultation, cleaning, root canal, extraction, follow-up, or a custom type you've configured.
3. Set duration: The default duration comes from your treatment template, but you can adjust it for this specific appointment.
4. Assign chair: If you have multiple operatories, select which chair the patient will be in.
5. Add notes (optional): Any context the front desk or assistant should know — "anxious patient", "needs X-ray", etc.
6. Click Confirm to book the appointment.

Patient Check-In

When the patient arrives, open the appointment from the calendar and click Check In. This updates the patient's status to "In Chair" and starts the appointment timer. The front desk and clinical staff can see at a glance who's waiting, who's in the chair, and who's ready to leave.

Patient statuses flow through the following stages:

Scheduled → Checked In → In Chair → Treatment → Ready to Leave → Completed
     ↓             ↓           ↓          ↓             ↓
   Waiting      Arrived    Seated    In Progress    Discharge

If the patient has outstanding forms — medical history update, consent forms, or insurance verification — a badge appears on the check-in button. Click it to review and collect signatures on a tablet or at the front desk.

Treatment Notes

During or after the appointment, open the patient's clinical record and click Add Treatment Note. Odento's treatment note editor includes:

• Chief complaint: What brought the patient in, in their own words
• Examination findings: Clinical observations, probing depths, mobility, recession
• Diagnosis: ICD-10 coded diagnoses with auto-suggest from your input
• Treatment performed: Procedures done during this visit, linked to the treatment plan
• Prescriptions: Medications prescribed, with dosage auto-filled from the drug database
• Next steps: Follow-up instructions, next appointment recommendation

Post-Appointment Workflow

Once treatment is complete, Odento's workflow engine takes over. Clicking Complete Appointment triggers a cascade of automated actions:

1. Invoice generated: Based on the procedures performed, an invoice is drafted with pricing from your templates
2. Patient notification: A WhatsApp message is sent with post-care instructions specific to the procedures performed
3. Follow-up scheduled: Based on the treatment type, a follow-up reminder is created (e.g., 7 days for extraction, 6 months for cleaning)
4. Lab order triggered (if applicable): If the treatment requires a lab case (crown, denture, etc.), a lab work order is drafted for your review
5. Records updated: The patient's medical record, treatment history, and ABDM-linked records are updated

Appointment completed at 11:15 AM
  ✓ Invoice #INV-2025-0142 drafted (₹2,500)
  ✓ WhatsApp post-care instructions sent
  ✓ Follow-up reminder: 7 days (extraction aftercare)
  ✓ Lab order drafted: Crown #36 — Zirconia
  ✓ Medical record updated
  ✓ ABDM record sync: pending patient consent

Reviewing and Sending the Invoice

Navigate to Billing to review the auto-generated invoice. Adjust line items if needed — add materials, modify quantities, or apply a discount. When you're satisfied, click Send to deliver the invoice to the patient via WhatsApp with a Razorpay payment link.

Scheduling the Follow-Up

The follow-up reminder appears in your Tasks list on the day it's due. Click it to review the patient's record, then call or message the patient to schedule the follow-up appointment. You can also configure Odento to automatically send a WhatsApp message asking the patient to book online.

Next Steps

You've completed a full appointment cycle. To go deeper:

• Patient Management — learn about medical history, allergies, and demographics
• Treatment Plans — create reusable treatment templates and pricing
• Billing — invoices, payments, GST, and insurance