A psychiatry or counselling clinic can use an AI voice agent for the administrative calls that fill its front desk (booking, rescheduling, reminders, fees, directions and teleconsultation links) as long as the agent is designed with strict limits. We built a demo for a psychiatry clinic on the same appointment API a multi-branch hospital uses, and the design rules are different from a regular clinic: a calm tone, no discussion of symptoms, privacy on shared phones, and an immediate path to a person for anyone in distress. This is the AI receptionist for medical clinics, configured for mental health.
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What the agent does, and doesn't do
| Does | Never does |
|---|---|
| Book, reschedule, cancel appointments | Counsel, assess or give advice |
| Check doctor or counsellor availability | Ask about or discuss symptoms |
| Share fees, timings, directions, teleconsult links | Mention diagnoses or medicines |
| Send confirmations and reminders | Continue a booking when someone is distressed |
| Transfer to reception | Pressure anyone to book |
Rule one: the crisis path comes first
Before anything else, the agent's instructions say: if the caller expresses distress, mentions harming themselves or others, or sounds unsafe, stop the booking, respond calmly, and immediately give the clinic's emergency contact or a crisis helpline, or transfer to the on-call person. The clinic defines the exact numbers and wording, and tests them before launch. See AI-to-human transfer failures and fixes.
Privacy on shared phones
- Confirm identity first: "Kya main {{patient_first_name}} ji se baat kar rahi hoon?"
- Neutral wording until confirmed; don't name the clinic's specialty to whoever answers.
- Neutral reminders: "Aapki appointment kal shaam 5 baje hai", with no diagnosis or treatment.
- Recording notice in the greeting; see recording consent wording.
Tone
- Slow, calm, warm; short sentences; pauses allowed.
- No sales language ("great offer", "limited slots").
- Let the caller take their time; never rush to the next question.
- Offer a person at any point: "Aap chahein toh main aapko reception se jod sakti hoon."
Booking flow
- Greet with clinic name (after identity check for outbound), automated and recorded.
- Ask: new appointment, reschedule, or information?
- Ask preferred doctor or counsellor, in-person or online.
- Offer two available slots from the clinic's calendar or appointment system.
- Book, confirm, and send the confirmation or teleconsult link by SMS or WhatsApp.
Consent and data
Mental health information is highly sensitive. Collect only what the booking needs, restrict access to recordings, set retention with your compliance adviser, and follow the DPDP Act. See DPDP compliance for voice AI and the questions in 20 questions clinics ask before buying an AI receptionist.
Cost
On Edesy, calls cost Rs 4-6 per started minute depending on your prepaid top-up, with unanswered calls free. Booking and reminder calls usually take one to two minutes.
Try it carefully
Create a free account, build the booking agent with the crisis rule first, and test it with your clinical team before any patient hears it. Talk to us to connect your appointment system.