Communication · Live Chat & Messaging

One inbox for every patient conversation.

Live website chat, two-way SMS, and a unified front-desk inbox - tied to the PMS patient record so your team answers in seconds with full context. Booked appointments write back into Dentrix, Open Dental, or Eaglesoft in real time.

  • ● Web chat + two-way SMS + GBP / IG DMs
  • ● Auto-match to PMS patient record
  • ● Shared inbox with assignment + notes
  • ● TCPA / CASL compliant by default
Inside the module

What it does, end to end.

Unified front-desk inbox

Web chat, SMS, missed-call text-back, and review responses all land in one shared inbox with assignment, internal notes, and read receipts.

PMS-aware conversations

Every incoming number auto-matches to the patient in Dentrix / Open Dental / Eaglesoft - chart, balance, and recall status visible in the same pane.

Website chat that books

The widget hands off to AI Voice Agent or online scheduling when the patient is ready to book - confirmed appointments write back into your operatory.

AI co-pilot, human in control

AI drafts replies in your tone and summarizes long threads. The front desk reviews and sends - auto-reply is opt-in and scoped to non-clinical questions.

Broadcast SMS, the safe way

Send recall, reactivation, and promo blasts to PMS-segmented audiences with built-in opt-in capture, STOP handling, and quiet-hours enforcement.

Mobile app for after-hours triage

Office manager gets push notifications for urgent threads, can reply or escalate, and the full transcript is saved to the patient timeline.

The deep dive

What practice owners actually need to know.

Why patients message instead of call

More than 70% of patients under 45 would rather text a dental practice than call - and most will silently bounce to a competitor that offers chat if yours doesn't. Live Chat & Messaging gives your practice a single, PMS-native conversation layer that covers website chat, two-way SMS, and (where available) Google Business Profile messages and Instagram DMs.

Every conversation is tied back to the patient record in Dentrix, Open Dental, or Eaglesoft - so the front desk sees prior visits, balance, recall status, and treatment plan in the same pane as the chat. No tab switching, no lost context, no "let me pull up your chart."

One unified inbox for the front desk

Web chat, SMS, missed-call text-back, review responses, and booking confirmations all land in one shared inbox. Conversations can be assigned, snoozed, tagged, and resolved - the same workflow your team already uses for email - without forcing patients into a portal login.

  • Shared inbox with assignment, internal notes, and read receipts
  • Auto-match incoming numbers to the PMS patient record
  • Saved replies for common questions (insurance, hours, new-patient paperwork)
  • Mobile app so the office manager can triage after hours
  • Full transcript saved to the patient timeline for HIPAA-aligned audit

Website live chat that actually books

The website widget is built for booking, not deflection. Patients can ask a question, request an appointment time, or check insurance fit - and the conversation can hand off to AI Voice Agent, online scheduling, or a live human depending on hours and intent. Booked appointments write back into the PMS in real time.

Outside business hours, the widget switches to async mode: it captures the request, replies via SMS the next morning, and keeps the thread continuous so the patient never has to repeat themselves.

Two-way SMS, broadcast, and campaigns

Every patient phone number in the PMS becomes textable on day one. The front desk can answer individually, the marketing workflows module can send recall and reactivation broadcasts, and Xcare IQ can segment audiences ("all hygiene patients overdue 90+ days in the M1J postal code") for one-off promotions.

TCPA and CASL compliance is built in: opt-in capture at booking, automatic STOP / HELP handling, quiet-hours enforcement, and a per-practice consent ledger you can export for audit.

AI assist without losing the human

An optional AI co-pilot drafts replies in the office's tone, summarizes long threads, and suggests next actions ("book hygiene," "send treatment plan," "escalate to doctor"). The front desk reviews and sends - the AI never auto-replies to a real patient unless the practice explicitly turns it on for after-hours coverage.

When AI does answer (typically 6pm-8am), every message is tagged, every escalation routes to on-call, and a morning digest lands in the office manager's inbox so nothing slips.

Where Live Chat fits in the Xcare stack

Live Chat & Messaging is the conversation layer; Missed-Call Text-Back, AI Voice Agent, Online Scheduling, and Review Generation all push into and pull from the same inbox. That means a patient who calls, hangs up, gets a text back, books online, and leaves a review is one continuous thread - not five disconnected tools.

The result: faster response times, fewer missed bookings, and a measurable lift in front-desk capacity without adding headcount.

How it works

From PMS sync to booked patient.

Step 01

Drop the widget, port the number

One snippet on your site enables web chat. We provision a textable number that mirrors your office line - or hot-swap your existing one with zero downtime.

Step 02

Sync to your PMS

Read-only sync matches every incoming conversation to the patient record. The front desk sees chart, balance, recall, and prior threads in the inbox.

Step 03

Answer, book, and write back

Conversations resolve in the inbox; bookings write back into Dentrix, Open Dental, or Eaglesoft; transcripts save to the patient timeline.

FAQ

Practice owners ask.

Does Live Chat & Messaging work with Dentrix, Open Dental, and Eaglesoft?

Yes. Every conversation auto-matches to the PMS patient record so the front desk sees chart, balance, and recall status in the same view as the chat - no double entry.

Is two-way SMS to patients HIPAA and TCPA compliant?

Yes. Consent is captured at booking, STOP / HELP / quiet hours are enforced automatically, and a per-practice consent ledger is exportable for audit. PHI in messages is stored encrypted and tied to the patient timeline.

Can the AI answer patients on its own after hours?

Only if you turn it on. By default the AI drafts replies for the front desk to review. After-hours auto-reply is opt-in, scoped to non-clinical questions, and every message is tagged and surfaced in a morning digest.

What channels does it cover?

Website live chat, two-way SMS, missed-call text-back, and (where supported) Google Business Profile messages and Instagram DMs - all in one shared inbox.

You're early - and that's the point

See this module run on your data.

Connect your PMS read-only and we'll mirror the last 90 days into a free Patient Revenue Report inside 14 days. No commitment.