# Every missed call is a patient who booked next door > Most missed calls at a clinic happen at the same few moments: the OPD rush, lunch, after closing and on Sundays. Count them for one week, put a rupee value on them, then cover those moments first. WhatsApp reminders and an easy way to move the slot cut down no-shows. - Page: https://www.brandbakery.tech/industries/clinics/missed-calls - Last updated: 2026-10-21 Breadcrumb: [Home](https://www.brandbakery.tech/) > [Industries](https://www.brandbakery.tech/industries) > [Clinics and healthcare](https://www.brandbakery.tech/industries/clinics) > Missed calls and no-shows ## Where the calls go missing Look at your call log for one week. The missed calls bunch up at the same hours almost every day. - **The OPD rush.** The front desk is checking in the patient standing in front of them. The phone rings out, and the caller tries the next clinic on Google. Fix: Calls that ring past three rings go to a second line that answers and books. - **Lunch and doctor changeover.** The desk is short-staffed for an hour. Callers asking about timings or fees get no answer, or a hurried one. Fix: Timings, fees and doctor availability answered from a list you approve. - **After closing and on Sundays.** People call when the toothache or the worry finally wins, often late in the evening. Nobody picks up until morning, and by then they have booked elsewhere. Fix: The call is answered and the first morning slot is booked before they hang up. - **WhatsApp messages.** Patients message the number on your Practo or Google listing to ask about timings or fees. The reply goes out the next day, after they have booked somewhere else. Fix: Questions answered and the slot booked in the same chat, at any hour you allow. - **The no-show.** A patient booked yesterday and did not come. The slot sat empty, and nobody called to rebook. Fix: One WhatsApp message the same day offering two new slots. ## Put a rupee value on one week You do not need a study. You need your own call log for seven days and three numbers you already know. - **Calls missed a day:** 6 - **Of those, wanting an appointment:** 1 in 3 - **First consultation fee:** ₹600 - **Working days a month:** 26 That is 2 lost consultations a day and about ₹31,200 a month in first-visit fees alone, before any treatment those patients would have gone on to take. These are example numbers, not figures from any clinic. Your call log shows the first number; your front desk can estimate the second. ## Fewer empty slots, without nagging A no-show is often a patient who forgot or had a clash. Make it easy to come, and easy to move the slot instead of skipping it. - Confirm on WhatsApp the moment the slot is booked, with the doctor, the time, the fee and a location pin - Remind the evening before, with a one-tap option to move the slot - Remind again two hours before for morning slots - If a patient misses the slot, offer two new times the same day, once, and stop there - Give freed slots to patients waiting for an earlier date - Send reminders as approved WhatsApp templates, only to patients who gave their number for the booking ## Ways to stop missing calls Each of these fixes part of the problem. Pick by the moments your call log shows. - **A second receptionist.** Fixes: The OPD rush, with a person who knows your patients. Falls short: Office hours only. A full salary, leave and training, and late-night calls still ring out. - **Forwarding to the doctor's mobile.** Fixes: No call goes completely unanswered. Falls short: The doctor is with a patient. Calls get cut short or missed, and nobody books the slot. - **An IVR menu ("press 1 for…").** Fixes: Sends each call to the right desk. Falls short: Someone still has to pick up and book. A busy line stays busy. - **Missed-call alerts and callbacks.** Fixes: Cheap, and nothing is forgotten. Falls short: Callbacks happen when OPD lets up, often hours later, after the patient booked elsewhere. - **An AI receptionist.** Fixes: Answers every call and WhatsApp at any hour, books the slot and sends reminders. ₹10,000 a month after a ₹30,000 setup, with 1,000 minutes, flat. Falls short: Takes no medical questions. Your booking rules, fees and doctor timings have to be written down first. ## Questions ### How do I find out how many calls my clinic misses? Your phone system or mobile call log already has it. Count unanswered incoming calls for seven days and note the hour of each. If you use a landline without a log, ask your telecom provider for a missed-call report, or run calls through a virtual number for a week. ### What reduces patient no-shows the most? A confirmation at booking, a reminder the evening before with an easy way to move the slot, and a quick offer of new times when someone misses. Making it easy to reschedule turns many no-shows into a moved slot instead of a lost patient. ### Can I send appointment reminders on WhatsApp? Yes, through the WhatsApp Business API, as approved message templates, to patients who gave their number for the booking. Replies within 24 hours of the patient's last message can be free-form. ### Will an AI receptionist answer medical questions? No. It books, reschedules and answers timing and fee questions you approve. Anything about symptoms, medicines or reports goes to your doctor or staff, and anyone describing an emergency is told to call emergency services or go to the nearest hospital. ### Do reminders and callbacks fit the NMC advertising guidelines? Confirmations, reminders and a callback to a patient who asked are patient service, not advertising. The National Medical Commission's guidelines of 6 October 2026 restrict promotional campaigns, review requests, discounts and claims about doctors, so keep those out of every message. This is a plain reading, not legal advice. ### What does an AI receptionist cost for a clinic? Brand Bakery's AI Receptionist is ₹10,000 a month after a ₹30,000 setup, including 1,000 minutes of calls, then ₹9 a minute. The fee is flat and never tied to the number of patients, which keeps it clear of the NMC rule on payments linked to patients. ## Start Bring a week of your call log to a 20-minute call. Abhishek shows you where the calls go missing and what covering those hours would cost. Request a callback at https://www.brandbakery.tech/contact?service=ai-employees. --- Brand Bakery is a design-first digital studio in New Delhi. Start an enquiry at https://www.brandbakery.tech/contact or email support@brandbakery.tech. This is the Markdown copy of https://www.brandbakery.tech/industries/clinics/missed-calls; the site index for language models is https://www.brandbakery.tech/llms.txt.