> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.routiq.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Chat and Needs a person

> Read and answer patient texts, see what needs your team, and hand conversations back to Robyn.

Every text conversation with a patient lives in **Chat**. You can watch Robyn work, step in, and hand back. Owners, admins and staff can reply. Read-only logins can look but can't send.

<iframe className="w-full aspect-video rounded-xl border-0" src="https://iframe.mediadelivery.net/embed/681521/b0df52bc-6361-4e26-befc-954be15bba30?autoplay=false&preload=false" title="Tour: Chat" loading="lazy" allow="encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; fullscreen" allowFullScreen />

## The list

Open **Chat** in the sidebar. Conversations are sorted into tabs:

| Tab | What's in it |
| - | - |
| All | Every conversation. |
| To answer | The patient wrote last, and nobody has resolved it since. |
| Needs a person | Conversations Robyn has handed to your team. |
| Active | Open conversations with your patients. |
| Resolved | Conversations someone marked resolved. |
| Leads | People who aren't in your practice system yet. |

A tab only shows when there's something in it. The list updates on its own.

## The conversation header

The top of each conversation says, in one sentence, who's handling it, with one button to change that.

| What it says | The button |
| - | - |
| "Robyn is answering this thread." | **Pause Robyn** |
| "Needs you", with the reason and when it happened | **Resolved** |
| "Sam is handling this · Robyn paused at 2:15 pm." | **Let Robyn reply** |
| "Resolved by Sam", with when | none |

More actions sit in the **More** menu: **Mark resolved**, **Take it**, **Hand back to Robyn**, **Page someone** and **Opt out**.

## Needs a person

When Robyn shouldn't or can't answer, she holds the conversation for your team. It moves to **Needs a person**, and your team gets an email. The header says why. The reasons you'll see include:

* "Asked for a person": the patient wants to talk to someone. Robyn sends one warm line, then steps back.
* "A question Robyn can't answer": something outside what she knows, or a booking request from someone your system doesn't know.
* "Sounded urgent": Robyn doesn't reply, and your team is paged straight away.
* "Wants to cancel or move an appointment only your team changes": the appointment type is switched off for Robyn in Services.
* "A booking to check in" your practice system: for example a new PracSuite booking that needs review.
* "Someone here asked for a colleague": someone on your team pressed **Page someone**.

### Dealing with it

* **Reply yourself.** Type in the box ("Reply to Sam…") and press Enter. Shift+Enter starts a new line. Your reply takes the conversation off Needs a person and pauses Robyn there.
* **Take it.** "Robyn stays quiet here while you answer." The conversation stays on Needs a person with your name on it.
* **Hand back to Robyn.** "Takes it off Needs a person. Robyn answers from here."
* **Resolved.** Press it when nothing more is needed. If the patient writes again, the conversation reopens.
* **Page someone.** "Tells whoever is set up to hear about this thread."

## Pause and Let Robyn reply

Press **Pause Robyn** to stop her replying in one conversation. Your team's replies pause her automatically. Press **Let Robyn reply** to hand it back. If your clinic is Live and the patient's last text is still waiting, she answers it. See [How Robyn texts](/robyn/how-robyn-texts#pause-robyn-in-one-conversation).

## Your replies

* Messages from your team are labelled "Sent by the clinic".
* Your replies go out straight away, at any hour, from your clinic's number. They use credits like any other text.
* If a reply can't be sent, it says "Didn't send" with the reason.
* Robyn's unsent drafts don't show in Chat. They wait in the **Message Queue**, under **Replies**, with an **Open thread** link back here.

## Opting a patient out

To stop rebooking texts to someone, open **More**, then **Opt out**. The app asks "Stop all rebooking texts to this number?" and reminds you "Robyn can still answer if they text." The header then shows who opted them out, and when. See [Opt-outs](/patients/opt-outs).

## Alerts

Your team hears about conversations that need them by email. Go to **Settings**, then **Notifications** ("Which emails the team gets, and where they go."). Only an owner or admin can change these. All four are on to start with.

| Alert | What the app says |
| - | - |
| Robyn is stuck | "She's handed a conversation to a human and is holding it until someone replies. The one not to turn off." |
| Reply waiting | "A patient texted. Whether Robyn drafted, is paused, or is off, someone should know." When your clinic is Live, it only comes when a person needs to answer. |
| A booking was made | "Robyn booked a patient in, or moved a booking to a new time. Your team's own diary changes don't send one." |
| A booking was cancelled | "Robyn cancelled a booking for a patient. The gap it leaves is often fillable if you hear in time." |

Add your team's addresses under **Who gets paged**, in **Email addresses**, and press **Send a test email** to check. "Blank means nobody hears when Robyn is stuck."

Alert emails can include the patient's first name and their message, but never their surname, number or email address. Every alert email ends with an **Update notification settings** button.

Your clinic can also send these alerts to phones through a push channel, under **Phone push**. "A push never carries who texted or what they said — only that a reply is waiting, and a tap opens the thread."


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