WhatsApp in Dentiflow — User Guide
Updated
On this page
- What WhatsApp in Dentiflow does
- Before you start
- Choosing your number
- Connecting your number, step by step
- Who can see your WhatsApp conversations
- Who pays for the messages
- The 24-hour window
- Templates: ready-made messages
- Sending a WhatsApp to a patient
- Setting up appointment reminders
- Quick answers
- The WhatsApp page says "WhatsApp is currently unavailable".
- The inbox says "WhatsApp is disabled for this clinic".
- How do I start a new chat with a patient?
- Will the patient know I have read their message?
- Why does a chat show a phone number instead of the patient's name?
- A message says "Not sent".
- Can I change or disconnect our number?
- Useful links
What WhatsApp in Dentiflow does
Dentiflow connects your clinic's WhatsApp number so your team can chat with patients from one shared inbox on the computer, instead of passing a phone around. It can also send appointment reminders on WhatsApp for you, and lets you send ready-made messages to a patient in a couple of clicks.
Read this guide from top to bottom the first time: what you need, which number to use, how to connect it, what it costs, and then day-to-day use.
Before you start
Have these four things ready before you connect.
- Clinic admin access in Dentiflow. Only the clinic owner or an admin can connect WhatsApp.
- A phone number for the clinic. Either a number already on the WhatsApp Business app, or a brand-new number that has never been on WhatsApp. Never use a personal number (see the next section).
- A Facebook account. Connecting opens a Meta (Facebook) window where you log in and choose or create your business.
- A debit or credit card. Meta charges your clinic directly for the messages you send, so you add a card in your Meta account. Without one, Meta can stop delivering your messages.
If you connect an existing WhatsApp Business number, also keep the phone with the WhatsApp Business app next to you. You will scan a QR code with it.
Choosing your number
Use a number that belongs to the clinic: either the WhatsApp Business number your patients already know, or a brand-new one. Each clinic connects one number.
| A number already on the WhatsApp Business app | A brand-new number | |
|---|---|---|
| Choose it if | Patients already message the clinic on this number | You are starting fresh |
| Where you can use it | Dentiflow and the WhatsApp Business app on the phone |
Dentiflow only Want to use it on the phone too? Set the number up on the WhatsApp Business app first and use it there for at least a week, then connect it to Dentiflow as an existing WhatsApp Business number. |
| Past chats | Up to 6 months of one-to-one chats are copied into Dentiflow | Starts empty |
| How you confirm it | Scan a QR code with the WhatsApp Business app | Enter a 6-digit code sent by SMS or call |
| Requirements | App version 2.24.17 or newer, used for at least a week | Never registered on any WhatsApp account |
Never use a personal number. Everyone you give WhatsApp access to can read the chats on the connected number, so it must not hold your private conversations.
If you connect an existing WhatsApp Business number
Read these three points before you connect:
- Your team will be able to read past chats. Dentiflow copies in the last 6 months of one-to-one chats. Group chats are not copied. Anyone you give inbox access to can read them.
- Some features stay in the app, and some switch off. Calls, group chats and your business profile stay in the WhatsApp Business app only. Meta also turns off disappearing messages, view-once messages and live location in one-to-one chats, makes broadcast lists read-only, and logs out WhatsApp Web and other linked devices.
- Keep the phone active. Open the WhatsApp Business app at least once every two weeks, or Meta may disconnect the number. Replies sent from the phone still show in Dentiflow, marked "Sent from phone".
Connecting your number, step by step
You set it up yourself from Clinic management → WhatsApp. If that page says "WhatsApp is currently unavailable", contact Dentiflow to activate WhatsApp for your clinic first.
- In Dentiflow, open Clinic management and click WhatsApp in the sidebar.
- Click Connect with Meta. A Meta window opens.
- Log in with Facebook, then choose or create your business when Meta asks.
-
Meta asks which kind of number you are connecting:
- Existing WhatsApp Business number: Meta shows a QR code. On the phone, open the WhatsApp Business app and scan it. Keep the app open for a few minutes while your chats are copied in.
- New number: type the number, then enter the 6-digit code Meta sends by SMS or call.
- Add your card now. Before the Meta window closes, Meta offers a button to add a payment method. Click it and add your debit or credit card, so your messages are delivered from day one.
- Back in Dentiflow, your number appears under Connected phone numbers.
- Dentiflow now sends its ready-made messages (templates) to Meta for review automatically. A banner says "Default templates are being set up for your number" for a minute or two; refresh the page until it disappears. Meta's review can take up to 3 days. Each template shows
PENDINGuntil Meta approves it, and you can use it once it showsAPPROVED. Meanwhile you can already reply to patients who message you. - Turn the switch at the top right from Disabled to Enabled. WhatsApp is now live for your clinic.
- Skipped the card in step 5? On the same page, click WhatsApp Manager (billing & insights) and add a payment method there.
To change the number later, contact Dentiflow support.
Who can see your WhatsApp conversations
At first, only the clinic owner and admins can use WhatsApp. Doctors and assistants see nothing until you give them access.
To give someone access, go to Clinic management → Users, open the menu next to the person, choose Set Permissions, and turn on what they need in the WhatsApp group:
| Permission | What it allows |
|---|---|
| Access WhatsApp Inbox | Open the inbox and read all the clinic's conversations |
| Send WhatsApp Messages | Reply in the inbox and send templates from the patient profile |
| Send Invoices / Quotations / Receipts / Prescriptions via WhatsApp | Send that document to a patient (one switch each) |
| Manage WhatsApp Configuration | Connect the number, manage templates and reminders |
| Turn WhatsApp On/Off | Switch WhatsApp on or off for the clinic |
A receptionist who answers patients usually needs the first two. Keep the last two for the people who run the clinic.
Who pays for the messages
Meta, the company behind WhatsApp, charges your card directly for the messages your clinic sends. Your Dentiflow subscription pays for the software only; it does not include WhatsApp messages, and Dentiflow never bills you for them.
| What happens | Cost |
|---|---|
| A patient messages your clinic | Free |
| You type a reply, or send a photo or file, inside the 24-hour window | The first 1,000 replies each month are free; additional replies are charged per message |
| You send a template (reminders, invoices, any message after the 24-hour window) | Always charged by Meta, from the first message sent |
The price per message depends on the type of template and the patient's country. Meta changes its prices from time to time, so check the current rates on Meta's pricing page.
To add your card or see what you have spent, use WhatsApp Manager. It is also linked from Dentiflow's WhatsApp page.
The 24-hour window
You can chat freely with a patient for 24 hours after their last message. After that, WhatsApp only lets you send a template until they write again.
Example: a patient writes on Monday at 10:00. Until Tuesday at 10:00 you can type any reply and send photos or files. If they write again on Monday at 18:00, the window now runs until Tuesday at 18:00.
When the window has closed, the inbox shows "Outside the 24-hour reply window" and the typing box is greyed out. Click the Send template button (the speech-bubble icon) next to it. Once the patient replies, the window opens again and you can type normally.
This rule comes from WhatsApp, not Dentiflow: Meta's explanation of the 24-hour window.
Templates: ready-made messages
A template is a message written in advance and approved by Meta. You need one to start a conversation with a patient, or to write after the 24-hour window. Dentiflow fills in the patient's details, such as their name and appointment time, when it sends.
For example, the appointment reminder reaches the patient like this:
Hi Maya Haddad, this is a friendly reminder that you have an appointment scheduled with Dr. Karim on Monday, November 2, 2026 at 10:00 AM. We look forward to seeing you soon. Please contact us if you need to reschedule.
When you connect your number, Dentiflow creates these templates for you, in English:
| Template | How it is sent |
|---|---|
| Appointment reminder | Automatically, on the schedule you set (see the reminders section) |
| Patient recall | Automatically, on the recall date you set |
| Invoice, Quotation, Payment receipt, Prescription | When you click Send via WhatsApp; the PDF is attached |
| Feedback request, Post-visit follow-up, Time for your next visit | When you pick it from the patient profile; patients reply with one tap |
The last three are marketing messages, which usually cost more than the others.
Meta reviews every template before you can use it. On the WhatsApp page, under Manage Templates, each template shows PENDING while Meta reviews it, then APPROVED or REJECTED.
To write your own, for example an Arabic version of the reminder, go to Manage Templates → New Template, write the message, and click Submit for review. Type @ to insert details such as @patient_first_name. Once Meta approves it, choose it under Map Templates for the purpose it should be used for.
Sending a WhatsApp to a patient
You can send WhatsApp messages from the patient's file and from billing screens, not only from the inbox:
| Where you are | What to click | What the patient gets |
|---|---|---|
| Patient profile | The ⋮ menu at the top → Send WhatsApp template | Any approved template you pick, with a preview before you send |
| An invoice | The WhatsApp icon (Send via WhatsApp) | The invoice as a PDF |
| A quotation | The WhatsApp icon (Send via WhatsApp) | The quotation as a PDF |
| A payment | The WhatsApp icon (Send via WhatsApp) | The payment receipt as a PDF |
| A saved prescription | Prescriptions tab → ⋮ → View Prescription Details → WhatsApp | The prescription as a PDF |
| WhatsApp inbox | Open the conversation → Send template | Any approved template |
A few things to know:
- Documents: use the buttons on the invoice, quotation, payment or prescription itself, so the PDF is attached.
- No phone number on file? Dentiflow asks you to add one, then sends when you click Save and send.
- Button missing? Your admin has not given you that permission (see who can see your conversations).
Setting up appointment reminders
WhatsApp reminders are off until you add a schedule, even after WhatsApp is connected.
- Go to Clinic management → WhatsApp and open the Reminders tab.
- Click Add schedule.
-
Choose when the reminder goes out:
- Hours before, for example 3 hours before the appointment, or
- Days before, at time, for example 1 day before at 18:00.
- Click Save schedules.
- Open the Map Templates tab and check that Appointment Reminder has a template selected. It shows once Meta has approved the template, which can take up to 3 days after you connect.
From then on, every new appointment has a Send WhatsApp Reminder? box, ticked by default when the patient has a phone number. Untick it for any patient who should not get one.
Good to know:
- SMS and WhatsApp are separate. The SMS box ("Notify Patient?") still works on its own. If both are ticked, the patient gets both messages.
- Changes are handled for you. Moving an appointment moves its reminder; cancelling or deleting it cancels the reminder.
- Last-minute bookings may get no reminder. An appointment booked 2 hours ahead gets nothing from a "1 day before" schedule.
- Replies come to the inbox. A patient's reply does not change the appointment, but it opens the 24-hour window so you can chat freely.
- Recall reminders work the same way. When you add a recall on a patient's profile, tick WhatsApp reminder and it is sent on the recall date.
Quick answers
The WhatsApp page says "WhatsApp is currently unavailable".
WhatsApp has not been activated for your clinic yet. Contact Dentiflow and we will turn it on.
The inbox says "WhatsApp is disabled for this clinic".
Turn the switch on at Clinic management → WhatsApp.
How do I start a new chat with a patient?
Open the patient's profile and use Send WhatsApp template. The conversation then appears in the inbox.
Will the patient know I have read their message?
Yes. When you open a chat in Dentiflow, the patient sees blue ticks.
Why does a chat show a phone number instead of the patient's name?
Chats are linked to a patient's file when Dentiflow sends them something, such as a reminder or an invoice. Chats a patient starts on their own show their WhatsApp name or number.
A message says "Not sent".
The reason is written under the message. If you cannot fix it, contact Dentiflow support.
Can I change or disconnect our number?
Yes. Contact Dentiflow support.
Useful links
- Meta's WhatsApp pricing
- Meta's explanation of the 24-hour window
- WhatsApp Manager, to add your card and see your spending
- Meta: using an existing WhatsApp Business app number (technical)