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NixDent Help Center

A booking didn't appear in Open Dental

Who can do this: Front desk, Office Managers and Owners.

When the AI books an appointment, it checks your schedule and then sends the booking to Open Dental. The appointment appears in Open Dental a short time after the call, not at that instant. If something is wrong, the appointment can be late, in the wrong place, or missing.

Step 1. Is it just a delay?

Section titled “Step 1. Is it just a delay?”

Wait a few minutes, then refresh Open Dental’s schedule. Check the right day, provider and operatory.

Step 2. Look at the call

Section titled “Step 2. Look at the call”
  1. Open AI Receptionist → Call Logs and open the call.
  2. Check the Status. Booked means the AI believed it booked. Message Taken or Needs Staff means it did not book. It collected details for you to follow up.
  3. Read the transcript near the end. Note the exact time the AI confirmed and the provider named.

If the AI never said the patient was booked, no appointment was made. Call the patient.

Step 3. Is the connection healthy?

Section titled “Step 3. Is the connection healthy?”

Look at the top bar.

Step 4. Find the patient

Section titled “Step 4. Find the patient”

New patients created on a call can be hard to spot.

  1. Search Open Dental by the patient’s phone number and by last name with alternative spellings. The AI writes what it heard.
  2. Check for a duplicate: the same person may have been matched to an existing record.
  3. In NixDent, open Patients and search the same way.

Step 5. Check it didn’t land somewhere unexpected

Section titled “Step 5. Check it didn’t land somewhere unexpected”
  • Operatory. The AI only books in the rooms chosen in Booking rules. If none are chosen, it may use any active room.
  • Provider. Same, for providers.
  • Time zone. A wrong Office Timezone in Offices can shift times.
  • Closed day. The AI will not book on a closure or on a day with no hours. If you see a booking on such a day, tell NixDent.

Step 6. Read the appointment note

Section titled “Step 6. Read the appointment note”

The AI adds a note to the appointment with the reason for the visit. Open the appointment in Open Dental and read it. It helps front desk staff greet the patient.

If it’s still missing, tell NixDent

Section titled “If it’s still missing, tell NixDent”

Click Request on any Settings page, or use Practice offline if showing. Include:

  • the office and the date and time of the call
  • the last four digits of the caller’s phone (not the name or date of birth)
  • the time and provider the AI confirmed
  • what you see in Open Dental, if anything

Stop it happening again

Section titled “Stop it happening again”
Section titled “Related pages”