Portal - Messages Tab

The Messages tab allows the patient to message directly into the office. This messaging provides a secure method of sending information back and forth between the office and the patient. If the patient provides an email address when setting up the portal access, a notification will be sent to the patient's email every time a new message is received. The messages tab will also display a red badge with the number of unread messages within the portal. 

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When the patient selects the messages tab a history of messages will be displayed. Messages that are unread will be highlighted in red. The messages will show the Subject, Patient, Recipients, and the Date of the last message. 

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Clicking on the link of a message will display the entire message and allow the patient to respond back to the office. The interface is very simple as works like a basic emailing service. 

Not only can patients respond to a message in the portal but he or she can also compose a message from scratch. A new message can be started by clicking on the Compose Message button under the messages tab. 

The following screen will appear after selecting to Compose Message. This window once again follows the basic email options. The patient is required to enter in a recipient, a subject, the patient it is regarding and a message. Simply type the message and click Send Message. 

All incoming messages will be displayed in the Messaging ability within MacPractice. A Provider can disable the ability to receive Direct Messages from patients by unchecking the "Available to Receive Patient Messages" checkbox in their User record in References Ability > Users.