Question 1

What exactly does Coherent do?

Accepted Answer

Coherent provides a dedicated patient relationship management function for private clinics. We proactively follow up with patients across their entire lifecycle — including new enquiries, stalled leads, active care drop-offs, cancellations, DNAs, and recall — using human-led, multi-channel communication (WhatsApp, SMS, email, and phone). Our role is to keep patients on-track, warm, and actively managed, so fewer people quietly drift away after great care.

Question 2

Is Coherent software or a service?

Accepted Answer

Coherent is both. Behind the scenes, we use technology to track patient status, signals, and follow-up logic. But what clinics value most is that a real, dedicated person owns the follow-up, rather than relying on automations or busy front-desk staff. We don't just send messages — we manage outcomes.

Question 3

What doesn't Coherent do?

Accepted Answer

A few important boundaries:

• We don't run paid ads or marketing strategy
• We don't send generic newsletters or broadcast campaigns
• We don't provide clinical advice (we escalate clinical questions back to your team)
• We don't replace your PMS or EMR

We focus on relationship ownership and continuity, not marketing or clinical decision-making.

Question 4

Is Coherent suitable for all clinics?

Accepted Answer

Coherent works best for clinics that:

• Have meaningful patient volumes
• Care about experience and continuity
• Want fewer drop-offs without adding headcount

If that's you, it tends to be a strong fit.

Question 5

Will the dedicated person handle all new leads?

Accepted Answer

They can, but we don't assume this by default. Most clinics perform best with a simple split:

• In-house team handles the first response (e.g. answering phones instantly)
• Coherent takes ownership of second response and ongoing follow-up for leads that don't immediately convert

If you already use lead systems or automations, we'll either pick up where they stop, replace them, or refine them based on what we see in your conversion data.

Question 6

At what point do you pick up leads that didn't convert?

Accepted Answer

We take over leads once they hit an agreed inactive condition, for example:

• Enquiry created but no booking after X hours/days
• Consultation completed with no next step
• Quote or treatment plan issued with no response
• Lead marked contacted but no outcome

These handover rules are defined with you upfront to avoid overlap or duplication.

Question 7

Do you answer inbound phone calls?

Accepted Answer

In some clinic setups, yes — but it's not our default. We're not positioned as a generic answering service. Our value is in follow-through, re-engagement, and conversion ownership. Most clinics keep inbound calls in-house and rely on Coherent to ensure no lead, patient, or opportunity falls through the cracks after that first interaction.

Question 8

Do you handle patient recall?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We manage recall for patients based on agreed conditions, such as:

• X months since last appointment
• No future booking
• Discharged patients due for follow-up

Recall is run as 1:1, relational outreach, not bulk marketing campaigns, using the channels most appropriate for each patient.

Question 9

Do you pick up cancellations and DNAs?

Accepted Answer

Yes — if this is in scope. A common setup is:

• Cancellation or DNA occurs
• No rebooking within X hours/days
• Coherent takes ownership to rebook or resolve

This ensures there is always a clear owner for these moments, rather than relying on best intentions at the front desk.

Question 10

How far back in our patient list can you go?

Accepted Answer

As far back as your data quality allows. Most clinics start with:

• Recent drop-offs (last 3–6 months)
• Then expand to older patients over time

We typically work in phases to prioritise the highest-likelihood reactivations first.

Question 11

What is patient recall?

Accepted Answer

Patient recall is the proactive process of reaching out to patients who are due to return — for example, those overdue for a check-up, review or repeat treatment — to bring them back into care before they lapse. At Coherent, recall runs as personal, 1:1 outreach across WhatsApp, SMS, email and phone rather than bulk reminders, so each patient is contacted in the way most likely to get them rebooked.

Question 12

How do you improve patient retention?

Accepted Answer

Patient retention improves when no one quietly drops out of care unnoticed. The most effective levers are consistent follow-up after appointments, fast re-engagement when someone cancels or doesn't show, timely recall when patients are due back, and clear two-way communication throughout. Coherent owns this follow-through for clinics — a dedicated person backed by technology keeps every patient warm and on-track, so fewer drift away after treatment.

Question 13

What is patient engagement software?

Accepted Answer

Patient engagement software helps clinics keep patients informed and connected between visits through communication, follow-up and recall. Coherent Engage identifies patients who need attention and supports human-reviewed outreach for agreed workflows such as overdue recalls, unanswered enquiries and cancellations. No-show follow-up is planned rather than live.

Question 14

What is an AI receptionist for clinics?

Accepted Answer

An AI receptionist is software that handles routine front-desk communication for a clinic — fielding enquiries, following up and helping patients rebook — without tying up reception staff. Coherent isn't a generic AI receptionist or answering service: rather than simply covering inbound calls, we focus on follow-through, re-engagement and ownership of the patient relationship, combining technology with a dedicated person so outcomes are actively managed, not just messages answered.

Question 15

What is patient communication and why does it matter?

Accepted Answer

Patient communication is the ongoing, two-way contact between a clinic and its patients — across WhatsApp, SMS, email and phone — before, during and after care. It matters because most patients drop off not from poor treatment but from gaps in communication: an unanswered enquiry, a missed recall, no follow-up after a visit. Coherent manages this communication end-to-end so patients always feel looked after and nothing falls through the cracks.

Question 16

What is patient follow-up?

Accepted Answer

Patient follow-up is the proactive outreach that keeps a patient moving through their care journey — chasing a new enquiry that hasn't booked, re-engaging after a cancellation or DNA, checking in after treatment, or resolving an outstanding balance. Coherent takes ownership of this follow-up across the entire patient lifecycle, so it isn't left to busy front-desk staff or one-off automations.

Question 17

What is patient drop-off (patient leakage)?

Accepted Answer

Patient drop-off — sometimes called patient leakage — is when patients quietly stop engaging with a clinic: enquiries that never book, patients who cancel and never rebook, or people who simply don't return when they're due. It's usually invisible day-to-day but adds up to significant lost revenue. Coherent prevents this by keeping every patient actively managed and following up before they drift away. You can estimate your own losses with our free patient leakage calculator.

Question 18

Is Coherent clinic management software?

Accepted Answer

Not exactly. Clinic management software — a PMS or EMR — runs your bookings, records and day-to-day operations. Coherent doesn't replace those systems; it layers on top of them to own the patient relationship: follow-up, recall, re-engagement and communication across the whole journey. We integrate with your existing clinic management software rather than competing with it.

Question 19

We already use automations (e.g. CRM, recall tools). Do we need to remove them?

Accepted Answer

No — and we don't recommend ripping anything out on day one. Most clinics:

• Keep existing automations initially
• Layer Coherent on top to handle replies, nuance, objections, and follow-through
• Gradually consolidate or retire tools as Coherent assumes ownership

Our long-term aim is to reduce the operational burden of managing multiple systems, not add to it.

Question 20

Is Coherent just running scripts or sequences?

Accepted Answer

No. Automations are good at coverage. They are poor at ownership. Coherent handles:

• Replies
• Context
• Objections
• Clinical escalations
• Rebooking logic
• Knowing when not to push

This is relationship management, not message scheduling.

Question 21

Can the dedicated person do other outreach, such as local business partnerships?

Accepted Answer

Not as standard. Our coordinators are designed around patient lifecycle management. That said, we are developing referral and partnership workflows, and we're always open to discussing specific use cases.

Question 22

How do you measure performance and value?

Accepted Answer

We are conservative and transparent.

• Reactivations are tracked based on actual bookings resulting from Coherent outreach
• Revenue is reported as money actually spent in clinic, not theoretical lifetime value
• No double-counting of patients
• Reporting can be pulled directly from your PMS where available

If you prefer alternative views (e.g. appointment-based averages), we align reporting with how you already measure performance.

Question 23

Is Coherent just about short-term conversions?

Accepted Answer

No — and this is important.

Coherent's purpose is to keep patients continuously managed, warm, and engaged throughout their entire care journey.

• Some outreach leads to immediate bookings
• Some preserves relationships, intent, and trust
• Some prevents patients from drifting away altogether

That compounding effect is what most clinics are missing — and why Coherent goes beyond a transactional "call X patients, convert Y" model.

Question 24

What does a typical onboarding look like?

Accepted Answer

We:

1. Map your patient lifecycle and current leakage points
2. Define clear ownership rules and handovers
3. Integrate with your systems
4. Start with one or two high-impact workflows
5. Expand gradually

This ensures minimal disruption and clear ROI.

How can we help?

About Coherent

Lead Management

Patient Recall & Retention

Patient Engagement & Key Terms

How It Works

Performance & Onboarding