What happens when a patient texts STOP

Patients can opt out by replying to texts sent from the replyable phone number, and the system records recognised opt-out keywords for you.

Opting out

When a patient texts STOP (or STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END or QUIT) to your sending number, three things happen:

• The Marketing SMS box on their patient record is unticked automatically, so your records match reality.
• The mobile network itself also blocks further texts from that number to the patient. This carrier-level block applies to all texts, so a patient who texts STOP will not receive appointment reminder texts either. Their emails are unaffected and keep going out as normal.
• The text itself still reaches you. It appears in Messages as the patient's reply, with a note that marketing texts were withdrawn, and your clinic gets the usual new-message email notice. Nothing is cancelled automatically: a patient who replies "Cancel" or "End" to a reminder may mean their appointment, so contact them to find out.

The opt-out appears in the patient's conversation on the Messages page as a note ("Patient texted an opt-out word (STOP, CANCEL, END or similar). Marketing texts are withdrawn and their mobile network may block texts from this number until they text START. Nothing has been cancelled: contact the patient about any appointment."), and on their record under Messages, so there is a clear record of when and how they opted out. While their Marketing SMS box is unticked, the reply box on the Messages page is replaced by a note saying they have opted out, so nobody on your team can text them by mistake.

Texts sent under your clinic name cannot receive replies. They include a contact number for help and stopping texts. Your clinic must action requests made to that number. The replyable platform number is shared, so a carrier-level STOP can also block texts sent from it by other clinics.

Opting back in

No text message switches consent back on. If a patient later texts START, YES or UNSTOP, it reaches you as an ordinary reply on the Messages page and their record is left as it is. That is deliberate: a casual "yes" to "can you do 3pm?" must never count as marketing consent.

To text a patient again after they have sent STOP, two things are needed:

1. The patient texts START to the number. This lifts the network-level block; ticking a box in AesthetiClinic cannot.
2. With the patient's agreement, tick Marketing SMS on their patient record, or they tick it themselves on your booking form.

What you should do

Recognised STOP replies are recorded automatically. If the reply was "Cancel" or "End", ring the patient: they may have meant their appointment. If so, cancel it yourself as you would any other appointment; a text never cancels an appointment on its own. Action requests made through your clinic contact number yourself. Untick Marketing SMS and press Save consent to stop marketing texts. If they want appointment texts stopped too, untick Automated texts under Automated messages and press Save message settings. Casual replies that are not a recognised keyword (for example "thanks, see you then") change nothing, and simply appear as replies on the Messages page.