July 10, 2019

How does the front desk let the clinical staff know that a patient has arrived and is ready to be seen? There are many ways, from headsets to hollering down the hall. Dentrix Ascend has an automated method that works as long as you pay attention to your device or computer screen. The trick is that the front desk has to update the patient appointment status, and each user has to define his or her own notification parameters.

How to:

1. Click the dropdown under your username, and select Notifications.

2. Optionally, select whether you would like a sound to accompany the visual pop-ups. To do so, click the Choose a Notification Sound dropdown, and select a sound. Click the Play button to preview the sound; after which, you can keep that sound or try another. You will obviously need speakers or headphones or some way of hearing your device. To not use a sound, select None.

3. Select the checkbox next to your name if you are a provider or the name of the provider(s) you will be assisting today. It must be the appointment provider in order to receive any notification because notification triggers are based on an appointment status change. Selecting a provider is optional if you would rather subscribe to an operatory.

4. Select the checkbox next to the operatory names where you will be working today—if your office works that way. This is optional if you are following a provider no matter where they (or you) are working today, or this is a great choice if you do all your work in just one or two operatories.

5. Select the checkbox next to the appointment status(es) for which you would like to receive a notification.

Notifications you have subscribed to appear in real time, in the lower-right corner of whatever page you’re on:

Additional Information

  • Because clinical staff can also set an appointment status, for example to Checkout, a front person might consider subscribing to that notification.
  • You must subscribe to at least one provider or operatory in order to subscribe to any status changes.
  • Notifications appear only when you are logged in to Dentrix Ascend at the time an appointment status change occurs.
  • For more information about interacting with notifications, read Handling notifications.
  • These notifications are distinct from patient-specific notifications that you can create in the Notes tab of a patient’s Patient Information page.