PatientNow Deposit and Cancellation Policy Calls

Policies callers hear before they commit

Surgical practices often require a deposit to hold an operating date. Med spas may charge a fee for missed injectable appointments or ask for a card on file at booking. Callers ask about these policies before they book, after they book, and especially when they want to cancel.

A clear, consistent answer protects the schedule and the relationship. A vague or apologetic one invites arguments later, and it leaves your front desk defending a rule nobody explained properly in the first place.

Deposits exist for a reason. An empty operating room or a no-show in a long injector block is costly, and a well-explained policy is how the practice protects that time without sounding defensive about it.

Saying the policy the same way every time

Katie uses the policy language you approve: how much notice is required, what the deposit covers, whether it is refundable or applied to the procedure, and what happens on a late cancellation. She does not soften it, add exceptions, or promise refunds.

That matters when a patient later says nobody told her. Every call ends in a structured summary of what the caller asked about, so your team can see that the policy came up and what the caller wanted to know.

You can also ask Katie to mention the policy whenever she takes a consult or procedure request, so it is never a surprise later.

Deposits are paid through your channels

Katie does not handle card numbers. When a caller is ready to pay a deposit, she explains how your practice collects it and directs the caller to your billing line or payment link. Your staff confirm receipt in PatientNow as usual, and the patient gets a confirmation from your normal process.

Keeping deposits in your existing channels means your refund rules, receipts and accounting stay exactly where they are today. If a caller asks whether she can pay in person instead, Katie gives the answer your practice has set.

Disputes and exceptions go to a person

Some policy calls are really requests for an exception. Katie records them for the manager who decides, and the caller is told who will follow up. When a dispute touches something clinical, such as a result the patient is unhappy with, the summary says so, and your clinical team can be looped in alongside the manager.

Typical exception requests:

• A patient asking to waive a late cancellation fee because of illness
• A surgical patient asking whether a deposit transfers to a new date
• A dispute about a charge the patient does not recognize
• A request for a refund on an unused deposit