The "All Messages" view displays all of the Patient Channels that a user has access to across Artera. Patient Channels are sorted by the time of the most recent activity in a Patient's Channel. Users can sort Patient Channels by date (newest or oldest) and filter by status, "Open", "Closed", "Needs Action", or any combination thereof. 

To access the "All Messages" view: 

1. Select Inbox in the navigation bar.

2. By default, you will land on the "All Messages" view. The number displayed here indicates the amount of Patient Channels that are in the "Open" status. 
   
   

NOTE: The "All Messages" view displays Patient Channels, not patients. A patient only appears in this view if they have conversation history in Artera or an appointment that has synced from your EMR into Artera. If you searched for the patient and they exist in Artera but have no conversation history, select the Open Channel button beneath their name. Then, choose the Practice and line to begin messaging. 
Patients with no conversation history and who cannot be searched for in the "All Messages" view can be manually added to Artera if the "Add Patient" feature is enabled for your Enterprise. Connect with your Customer Success Representative to learn more.

Sorting and Filtering in the All Messages View

Sorting

The "All Messages" view defaults to displaying "Open" and "Needs Action" Patient Channels. To view "Closed" Patient Channels or a combination of these statuses, use the dropdown menu located below the search bar.

By default, all views sort Patient Channels from newest to oldest activity, meaning the Patient Channels with the most recent activity display at the top of the list. To reverse the sorting order and view the oldest Patient Channels first, select the three-dot Actions menu beneath the search bar and choose "Oldest first." 

Filtering

Narrow the list of Patient Channels in this view using the search box. The search bar lets you find patients by their name, patient ID (MRN), phone number, date of birth (MM/DD/YYYY), or a combination of these items. Keyword searches for Patient Channels automatically scan all statuses ("Open", "Closed", and "Needs Action"), bypassing any active status filters. Once the search is cleared, the "All Messages" view resets to the default "Open" and "Needs Action" statuses. 

You can combine keyword searches with filters for a precise search.  To access additional filter options, open the filters panel by selecting the button to the right of the search bar. Here, you can filter by Practice, line, Location, or Provider. Applied filters will display any Patient Channels ever associated with the filter(s). This includes patients with historical appointments scheduled with that Location or Provider, as well as those with future scheduled appointments. 
NOTE: Users can filter by any Resources available in the Practices they have access to. 

Users can also filter their view to only see Patient Channels that have unresolved Internal Mentions and/or starred Patient Channels.

Once filters are selected, choose Apply Filters. A green “Filters applied” success message will appear, the filters panel will display the amount of filters you have applied, and you will automatically return to the “All Messages” view. This view will now display the list of Patient Channels that match your chosen criteria. 

It is very important to clear your filters when ready. To do this, select the filters panel, choose Clear All, then select Apply Filters.

Saved Views

Saved views offer a powerful way to quickly access your filtered lists of Patient Channels that you frequently use. Instead of reapplying the same filters repeatedly in the "All Messages" view, you can create and save a customized view, then reload it with a single click whenever needed. Click here to learn about how to create a saved view. 

Sending Communication from the All Messages View

Send one-off messages to individual patients from the "All Messages" view. To do so, follow the steps below:

• Navigate to the "All Messages" view.
  

• Locate the Patient Channel you want to message by conducting a patient search and using the available sorting and filtering options.

• Select the Patient Channel that you want to communicate with. 
  NOTE: Only one Patient Channel can be selected at a time with this form of outreach. For bulk outreach options, see the "Bulk Actions in All Messages View" section below.
  

• By default, text outreach is selected. Type your message in the communication box and leverage the appropriate Smart Phrase(s) to help personalize the outreach. 
  NOTE: You can also send call or email messages from the Patient Channel. To do so, select the Text drop-down menu and choose Call or Email.

• If your message does not contain any PHI, select the lock icon to "unsecure" the message. This means the text will be sent to the patient unsecured and will be delivered as a plain text. However, if your message contains PHI, it is important that it is sent securely to the patient. By default, all messages are sent as secured links. Click here to learn more. 
  

• When ready, click Send Secure or Send Unsecure, depending on whether the message contains PHI. 
  NOTE: The message will be sent to the patient from the line displayed in the top-left corner of the Patient's Channel, beneath their name. To use a different line, select the drop-down menu and choose a different Practice & line combination. The options listed are Practice & line combinations that have been used to contact the patient before. To send the message to the patient from a new line not displayed in this menu (but that you have access to), select Open New Channel.
  
  

Actions in All Messages View

Use Bulk Actions to take action on up to 1,000 Patient Channels at once. The Actions menu is available beneath the search bar in the “All Messages” view. It is a three-dot menu with two available actions: "Close/Open Channels" and "Bulk Message". This article will focus on the bulk action of closing or opening Patient Channels. Click here to learn about Bulk Messaging from the "All Messages" view.

Close/Open Channels

The "Close Channels" or “Open Channels” Bulk Action allows users to close or open up to 1,000 Patient Channels simultaneously. This feature is useful when there are many open Patient Channels that no longer require further action, or there are closed Patient Channels that need to be re-opened for patient outreach.

To change Patient Channel statuses in bulk:

1. Navigate to the "All Messages" view and sort your view by the status of the Patient Channels you want to update. For example, if you want to close Patient Channels in bulk, then sort by the "Open" status. 
   

2. Select the three-dot Actions menu below the search bar and choose Close Channels. 
   

3. Select the Patient Channels you want the bulk action to close or choose "Select all" to select up to 1,000 Patient Channels at once.
   

4. Select Close Channels. A green success message with the number of Patient Channels impacted will display.
   

NOTE: You cannot close Patient Channels that have an unresolved Internal Mention. If you attempt to do so, the following error message will display: "X channels could not be closed because of unresolved mentions. Resolve all mentions to close the channels" where X is the amount of Patient Channels that could not be closed due to unresolved Internal Mentions.

To change the status of a single Patient Channel from "Open" to "Close", for example, select that Patient Channel from the "All Messages" view. Then, select the Open button located in the top-right corner of the Patient Channel and choose Close. This will set the Patient Channel status to "close" and only affects the individual Patient Channel you are viewing.

Channel Statuses

Within the "All Messages" view, you can navigate between Patient Channels placed in Artera's three different statuses, "Open", "Closed", and "Needs Action". 

Open	"Open" Patient Channels are active and may require manual intervention to resolve. Patient Channels typically open when a patient messages into the line. These Patient Channels are identified with a solid green dot. By default, Patient Channels in the "Open" and "Needs Action" statuses are displayed in the "All Messages" view.
Needs Action	"Needs Action" Patient Channels are considered to be pending. These Patient Channels are identified with a solid red triangle featuring an exclamation mark. There are several ways a Patient Channel can be marked as "Needs Action". Read below to learn more. To view "Needs Action" Patient Channels, select "Needs Action" from the Status drop-down menu.
Closed	"Closed" Patient Channels are inactive and no longer need attention. Patient Channels can be closed automatically through Inbound Message Triggers or manually. These Patient Channels are identified with a hollow grey dot featuring a check mark. To view "closed" Patient Channels, select "Closed" from the Status drop-down menu.

How do Patient Channels Open Automatically?

Default or Practice Setting

Depending on how the Actions to Reopen Patient Channel setting is configured, specific appointment statuses, like "cancel," can cause the Patient Channel to open automatically. 

Patient Responses

Generally, inbound messages from patients will open Patient Channels that were previously closed. 
NOTE: If a Patient Channel is currently in the "Needs Action" status with an unresolved Internal Mention, the Patient Channel will remain in the "Needs Action" status (it will not change to "Open") even if the patient sends a message. 

Responses to Confirmation Messages

Generally, a patient confirming their appointment will not cause the Patient Channel to open automatically unless the patient sends in a message that falls outside of the patient confirmation keywords. 

Inbound Message Triggers

Inbound Message Triggers can impact why a Patient Channel may or may not open when a patient messages in. During implementation, most Practices configure Alternative Language Confirmations that allow patients to text in responses other than "Y" to confirm their appointment (e.g. “sounds good”). These Triggers are set up to confirm the visit and close the Patient Channel. 

Patient Channels will automatically open if a response contains any text beyond the standard confirmation keywords defined in your Inbound Message Triggers. For instance, a reply like 'John will be at his appointment' will cause a Patient Channel to open to ensure staff can review any context or critical details, like  a reported fever, that a standard automated confirmation might miss.

How are Patient Channels marked as "Needs Action?"

There are several reasons why a Patient Channel will be marked as "Needs Action." See below:

• A Patient Channel is automatically marked as "Needs Action" when an Internal Mention is created. 
• Inbound Message Triggers configured with the "Mark as Needs Action" Action will automatically mark the Patient Channel as "Needs Action" when an inbound keyword matches the Trigger's parameters.  
• If a message to a patient is marked as undelivered. 
  NOTE: The "Reopen Patient Channel when SMS Delivery Fails" Default Setting must be enabled. Click here to learn more.
• Users can manually set a Patient Channel to "Needs Action" by selecting the status from the drop-down menu in the top-right corner of the Patient Channel.
  NOTE: A Patient Channel can only be marked as "Needs Action" if it is currently open.

How do Patient Channels Close Automatically?

If there are no unresolved Internal Mentions, a manual outbound message to the patient will automatically close a Patient's Channel. If there are unresolved Internal Mentions, an outbound message to the patient from the mentioned user/User Group or Enterprise User Group will resolve the Internal Mention and close the Patient Channel. Click here to learn more.

Additionally, Inbound Message Triggers set up with the "Close Channel" Action will also automatically close the Patient Channel when an inbound keyword matches the Trigger's parameters. 

When will a Closed Patient Channel Remain Closed?

If the patient sends an inbound message to Artera, the Patient Channel will remain closed if the last outbound message contained the {eventConfirmText} or {eventConfirmLink} Smart Phrases and the patient responded directly to that message with any of the Patient Confirmation Keywords. 

As discussed above, your Inbound Message Triggers and configuration of the "Actions to Reopen Patient Channel" setting will factor in whether the Patient Channel remains closed.

User Collaboration Alerts

In the "All Messages" view, you can see when other Artera users are viewing a Patient Channel. A user's initials in the top-right corner of the Patient Channel card indicate that they have it open. However, this does not mean that they are taking any action.

If more than three users are viewing the same Patient Channel, you will see "4+x" where x is the number of additional viewers.

If you are viewing a Patient Channel where another user is already sending a message, a notification will appear to let you know the patient is being addressed.