Introducing Optional Appointments: More Flexibility, Faster Support

We’re excited to announce a major improvement to how general practitioners collaborate with specialists on our platform: Optional Appointments.

Until now, specialist support always started with a booked appointment. But in reality, many cases don't require a scheduled meeting. With Optional Appointments, generalists can now request the help of one or more specialists directly — without needing to book an appointment upfront.

How it Works

When a generalist needs support:

• They choose the specialty and can send the request to one or multiple specialists.

• Each specialist receives a notification and can choose to Accept or Reject the case.

• The first specialist to accept becomes the expert on the case, and other requests are automatically withdrawn.

This gives generalists full flexibility:

• For urgent cases, send multiple requests to get the quickest response.

• For preferred experts, send a single request and wait for their reply.

Faster Insights with Response Time Stat

To help generalists choose the right expert, we now show a specialist's "usually responds within" time. This is calculated as a weighted moving average of their last 10 responses, so a few slow replies won’t skew the data. You’ll get a realistic idea of how quickly each specialist typically replies.

Decide Together: Appointment or Not

Once a specialist accepts a case, the chat opens immediately. From there, the veterinarians can decide if a formal appointment is needed or just solve it through chat and spontaneous calls. Like before, if an appointment is needed, the generalist can book it directly based on the specialist's availability.

New: Availability Toggle for Specialists

We’ve also added a new availability toggle to help specialists manage their presence. Need a break or going on vacation? Just toggle your availability off without touching your schedule. When you're back, toggle it back on with a single click.

We hope this feature makes your workflow smoother and more responsive. We’re always listening, so please send any feedback directly to our team@digitalclinic.vet.

Stay tuned for more updates — and thank you for building the future of veterinary care with us!