How an AI agent handles new-patient intake at a primary care practice

Which providers are taking new patients can change from one office to the next, and each office can accept different plans. Take a 66-year-old who just moved to be near her daughter and calls the closest office to establish care. What gets asked and written down on that call affects which visit she gets, which provider she sees, and whether the first visit gets booked. Establishing care, a sore throat, and a Medicare wellness visit are three different visits.

Hello Patient builds AI agents for healthcare. New-patient intake is one of the jobs the agents do. The agent takes the patient's first call or text, asks the questions your practice uses, creates the patient record, and books the first visit straight into your schedule. It leaves a note on the appointment with what the patient said, so your staff know the patient's plan and reason for calling before the first visit.

This page covers the part of that first call that is particular to primary care. The general new-patient call is on the AI patient intake agent page.

A new primary care patient is a new panel member, and the first call starts the file

The first call starts the record for a patient who is joining a provider's panel. Unlike an urgent care visit that ends when the patient leaves, a primary care patient may stay with the practice. The numbers you watch later, including wellness visit completion, care-gap closure, satisfaction scores, and new-patient acquisition, all connect back to that patient.

What the agent runs on a new primary care patient's first call

The agent runs the new-patient conversation in the order your practice sets. It asks why the patient is calling, which office they want, and which provider they want to see. It offers the providers and slots your practice has opened to new patients.

A new patient does not have a portal login yet, so this happens on a call or a text. The agent takes the details needed to start the record and asks which plan the patient is on, such as Medicare, Medicare Advantage, a commercial plan, or self-pay.

The agent tells the caller which plans your practice accepts at that office, using the list your practice gives it. It writes down the plan the patient named and adds it to the appointment note, so your staff have it before the visit. The AI patient intake agent page covers insurance questions on any new-patient call.

Say a man in his late fifties calls the downtown office. He changed jobs, his new plan starts on the first of the month, and he wants a doctor near work. The agent tells him which two providers at that office are taking new patients, and he picks one. It asks about his plan and tells him the office accepts it. The agent creates his record, offers him that provider's next new-patient slot, and he takes it. It notes on the appointment that his new plan starts on the first. Your front desk sees the booked visit with that note on it.

Your practice chooses which visit types the agent books directly.

Hear how a Hello Patient agent sounds.

When the new patient is on Medicare, and the first visit might be a wellness visit

The agent books the visit type your practice tells it to book when a new Medicare patient asks for a wellness visit. It also writes down what the patient said.

The Annual Wellness Visit is a Medicare visit type with its own prep and scheduling rules. A new Medicare patient may say "I need my annual physical" or "my old doctor did a wellness visit every year." Your practice decides what gets booked next. That may be a new-patient visit first and the wellness visit after, or the wellness visit first with the prep sent ahead.

A 70-year-old on a Medicare Advantage plan calls after her doctor retires, and says she wants her yearly wellness visit. The agent notes the reason as she said it and tells her whether the office accepts her plan, using your list. It creates her record and then books the visit type your practice set for that reason.

Where the record lands, in the systems a primary care group runs

The record and the appointment go into the system your practice runs. The agent first looks for the patient's record and creates one when no record exists. It then books the visit under your rules and leaves a note on the appointment with what the patient said, such as "my insurance changed."

Hello Patient integrates with the EHR, practice management, and CRM systems healthcare already runs on.

A group that grew by acquisition may run one system at one office and another at the next. The agent follows each office's own rules.

Hello Patient is HIPAA-compliant, SOC 2 Type 2 certified, and signs a BAA with every client. What the agent does on the rest of a primary care practice's calls is on the AI receptionist for primary care page.

Questions to ask a vendor about primary care intake

Ask who decides what gets booked when a new Medicare patient asks for a wellness visit. The good answer is that your practice sets the rule and the agent books to it. A vendor who says the agent "figures it out" is taking that choice away from your practice.

Ask how the agent answers "do you take this plan" when your offices accept different plans. You want to hear that it answers from the list your practice gives it for each office and adds the plan the patient names to the appointment note.

Ask who decides which providers and slots are open to new patients. You want to hear that your practice sets which providers and slots are open to new patients. The agent then offers new patients exactly those providers and slots.

Ask what the vendor writes into your EHR. Find out whether it creates a patient record and appointment or gives your staff a PDF they still have to enter.

Schedule 15 minutes with us to go through your new-patient calls, office by office. We're happy to spin up a custom demo agent for free as well.

Frequently asked questions

Can an AI agent create a new patient's record when someone calls a primary care practice to establish care?

Yes. Hello Patient's agent can create a new patient's record in the system your practice runs. Before it creates anything, the agent first looks for an existing record. If it finds none, it creates the new record with the details your schedule needs, then books the first visit and leaves a note on the appointment. The time the patient hears on the call is the time on your calendar. A caller who says "my insurance changed" can have that detail carried into the appointment note.

What visit does an AI agent book when a new Medicare patient calls a primary care office for a wellness visit?

Hello Patient's agent books the visit type your practice set for that request. Your practice decides whether that means a new-patient visit first and the wellness visit after, or the wellness visit first with the prep sent ahead. Before it books, the agent creates the patient's record, tells the patient whether the office accepts their plan using your list, and notes the reason in the patient's own words, such as "I need my annual physical."

What does an AI agent ask a new patient calling to establish care at a primary care practice?

The agent asks why the patient is calling, which office and provider they want, which plan they are on, and the details needed to start the record. Once the patient picks an office, Hello Patient's agent answers for that office, using that office's own list of accepted plans and its new-patient booking rules. It also puts the plan the patient named on the appointment note, where your staff see it before the first visit.

Why do new patients stall between calling a primary care office and their first visit?

A caller may reach voicemail, be promised a callback, or hear that the provider they asked for is not taking new patients. Hello Patient's agent books the visit on that call, so the patient ends the call with a date and time. If the requested provider is not open to new patients, it can offer the providers and slots your practice has opened instead. Your front desk sees the booked visit and the agent's note on the appointment.

Can an AI agent tell a new primary care patient from a returning one?

Yes. The agent checks for an existing patient record before it creates a new one. Hello Patient's agent typically uses details such as phone number and date of birth, based on how your practice sets up patient matching. It creates a new record when no existing record is found, so a returning patient keeps one record. When the caller is a returning patient, it books the visit under the record they have and leaves a note on the appointment.

Does an AI agent handle "do you take Medicare Advantage" for a primary care office?

Yes. Hello Patient's agent answers "do you take Medicare Advantage" from the accepted plan list your practice gives it, and that list can be different by office. It can give the answer for the office the patient is calling. When the office accepts the plan, the agent goes on to start the new patient's record and book the first visit. The agent adds what the patient said about the plan to the appointment note for your staff.