Set up appointment types in Theravo

1. Start with a small number of clear appointment types

A long list may look flexible, but it often makes booking harder. Many solo practices can begin with three basic appointment types:

• Initial consultation for new patients
• Follow-up session for patients already in therapy
• Internal appointment, bookable only by the practice

Additional types can be added when they genuinely serve a different purpose, for example:

• online session
• in-person appointment at a second location
• introductory telephone call
• self-pay initial consultation
• couples or family session
• longer appointment with a different duration

A separate appointment type is useful when at least one important rule changes: audience, duration, format, location, visibility, price or cancellation or rescheduling deadline.

Do not create a new appointment type for every small wording difference. Create one when the actual booking journey or practice rule changes.

2. Write names and descriptions from the patient's point of view

The name should make it immediately clear what is being booked. Internal abbreviations and technical labels rarely help patients.

Clear examples include:

• Initial consultation, 25 minutes
• Psychotherapy session, 50 minutes
• Online session, 50 minutes
• Follow-up appointment for existing patients

Labels such as “Calendar 1”, “Standard 50” or internal codes are less useful.

Theravo supports appointment names and descriptions in German, English and Polish. Enable only the languages your practice genuinely offers and write each version naturally. A useful description answers four short questions:

• Who is this appointment for?
• How long does it last?
• Where does it take place?
• Is there anything important to know before booking?

Example:

An initial consultation for new patients. The appointment lasts 25 minutes, takes place online and is intended for clarifying the practical arrangements for a first appointment.

Avoid diagnostic language, promises about treatment outcomes or unnecessarily detailed explanations.

3. Select the appropriate patient access

For each appointment type, Theravo can allow booking by:

• new patients only
• existing patients only
• both groups
• manual booking by the practice only

This prevents common booking errors. A public initial consultation can be restricted to new enquiries, while follow-up sessions can be available only through the patient portal. Internal appointments remain fully under the practice's control.

Practical example

This is an administrative access rule. It does not replace professional judgement and should not be used to classify patients clinically.

4. Set the session format and location

Theravo can represent appointment types that take place:

• in person
• by video
• by telephone

Where more than one format is available, patients can select from the formats offered for that appointment type. Include only options that are genuinely available.

For in-person appointments, provide a complete address or clear room information. For online sessions, the practice can enter its own video link. Theravo organises the appointment and shares the configured link, but it is not a video-conferencing platform.

5. Configure a realistic duration and buffer

Set the actual session length. Theravo can also add buffer time after the appointment. This may be useful for writing a brief note, taking a short break or preparing for the next session.

Example:

• session duration: 50 minutes
• buffer afterwards: 10 minutes
• next possible start: after 60 minutes in total

The buffer should not be presented as additional treatment time. It protects the practical rhythm of the working day.

The practice can also define default appointment duration and buffer values. Review each appointment type individually where initial consultations, follow-up sessions and other formats use different timings.

6. Decide where the appointment type may appear

Not every appointment type needs to be available through every booking channel. Theravo can make an appointment type available through:

• the public booking page
• the patient portal
• appointment suggestions from the Email Assistant
• internal booking only

A typical arrangement might be:

• initial consultation: public
• follow-up session: patient portal only
• short-notice replacement appointment: patient portal and Email Assistant
• supervision or internal meeting: internal only

This separation is often more useful than creating a large number of appointment types. It ensures that patients see only the options intended for them.

7. Define cancellation, rescheduling and administrative questions

Each appointment type can have its own rules. Check:

• Can the appointment be cancelled online?
• How many hours before the appointment does cancellation close?
• Until when may the appointment be rescheduled?
• Should an eligible paid cancellation create appointment credit?
• Should credit be restricted to the same appointment type?
• Is a short administrative question required?

The administrative question should request only information that is necessary for arranging the appointment. Theravo is not a clinical intake or record system. Diagnoses, detailed therapy histories, crisis information and other sensitive health details should not be collected through this field.

A suitable question might be:

Would you prefer this appointment online or in the practice?

or:

Is there any practical information about access or accessibility that the practice should know?

8. Show prices, but configure payments separately

An appointment type can display a price and currency. It can also be linked to a Stripe product and a one-time price, with payment required before confirmation where appropriate.

This guide deliberately focuses on the appointment structure. Connecting Stripe, selecting the correct price and testing the payment journey are covered separately:

Enable online payments for appointments in Theravo

For appointment types that do not use online payment, leave the payment requirement disabled and present any price information according to the practice's own process.

9. Use colour, active status and duplication carefully

A distinct colour can make appointment types easier to recognise in the internal calendar. Keep the palette calm and limited, and make sure the name still communicates the meaning. Colour should never be the only way to identify an appointment type.

Appointment types can be activated or deactivated. Deactivation is useful when an option should temporarily stop being bookable without deleting its settings.

You can also duplicate an existing configuration. This saves time where, for example, an in-person session and an online session share the same duration and cancellation and rescheduling rules. After duplicating, check the audience, visibility, location, price and payment requirement carefully.

10. Example setup for a solo practice

These values are examples, not general recommendations. Adapt them to the practice's actual arrangements.

11. Test the appointment type before publishing availability

Review every new appointment type from a patient's point of view:

1. Is the name immediately understandable?
2. Can the correct patient group see it?
3. Are duration, format and location displayed correctly?
4. Are only the intended booking channels enabled?
5. Are cancellation and rescheduling deadlines clear?
6. Does the form request only necessary administrative information?
7. Is it easy to read on a small screen?
8. Is payment accidentally required when it should not be?

Only then should you add and publish availability for that appointment type.

Common mistakes

Creating too many appointment types at the beginning

A long list makes decision-making harder. Start small and add another type only when a genuine administrative distinction is needed.

Making initial and follow-up appointments visible to everyone

This can lead to unsuitable bookings. Use the patient-access and booking-channel settings.

Publishing internal terminology

Labels that make sense within the practice may not be clear to patients.

Confusing appointment type with availability

An appointment type defines the rules, but it does not create free times. Availability is added in the calendar.

Copying payment settings into every appointment type

Configure Stripe in a structured way and link a price only where it is genuinely required.