Appointment requests: triaging the booking queue
Where appointment requests come from, the approve / decline flow, and how to keep the queue from becoming a backlog.
- Updated
- Updated
- Reading time
- 5 min read
- Tags
- requestsbookingtriagequeue
When you have not turned on full self-booking — or you have, but for new-patient visits only — patient booking signals land in the appointment requests queue instead of going straight onto the calendar. This article is the queue and how to work it down.
Where requests come from
Three sources feed the same queue: the patient portal booking form (when the visit type is set to "request, do not auto-book"), the AI Frontdesk (calls where the patient asked to book a visit type that requires staff approval), and your public site's contact form (the same form prospective new patients use). Each request carries the source so you can spot which channel is dominating your week.
The queue page
Maria Lopez
30-min med check · This week · afternoons
“New side effect since last visit”
PortalUnknown - new patient
Intake · 60 min · Apr 28 - May 5 · any morning
“Establishing care, new to the area”
AI FrontdeskDavid Kim
Telehealth follow-up · Tomorrow · evening
“Quick lab results review”
Public siteApprove opens the booking flow pre-filled. Decline saves a polite reason - common ones become quick-replies.
Sidebar → Appointment requests. Filter by status (Pending / Approved / Declined) and by provider. Pending sorts oldest first by default — the patient who asked first should hear back first. Each row shows the source (portal, AI Frontdesk, public site) so you can spot which channel is dominating your week. The queue paginates 25 at a time; cursor-based, so refreshing does not lose your place.
What a request shows
Patient name (or "Unknown — new patient" if the requester is not yet on file), the requested provider (or "Any"), the requested date and start/end window, the visit type they asked for, the reason they typed, and any attachments (a photo of an insurance card, a referral letter). For new patients, the request also shows the contact info they submitted so you can sanity-check it before they exist as a chart.
Approving a request
Approve opens the booking flow with the request pre-filled. Confirm the slot (you can offer a different time than they asked for — the patient sees the offered time and accepts or declines), pick the location, and submit. The request transitions to Approved; the patient gets a confirmation through the same channel they reached out on (portal notification, SMS, or email).
Declining
Decline closes the request with a reason. Common reasons (not accepting new patients, insurance not in-network, requested visit type not offered) are saved as quick-replies — pick the right one and the patient gets a polite, accurate explanation rather than a silent dismissal. Declined requests stay searchable in case the patient calls about it later.
When you need more info
There is no formal "needs more info" status in the queue today. The pattern that works: tap Message patient from the request, ask the question, and leave the request Pending until they reply. Their reply lands in your secure inbox tagged to the same request so you can come back to it.
Who works the queue
Triaging requests requires managecalendar. New patient creation on approval requires addnewpatients. Front-desk staff are typically given both; clinical staff often only get managecalendar and rely on front desk for the new-patient piece.
Keep reading
Configure patient self-booking
Decide what visit types patients can self-book, with what guardrails.
Visit types, formats, and what each one schedules
A reference for every type of slot you can put on the calendar — in-person vs virtual vs hybrid, intake vs follow-up, blocked time, on-call, and group sessions.