Your phone’s ringing at 8:47 pm on a Tuesday. Again.
Sarah from Balmain needs to move her Thursday appointment because her daughter’s come down with something, and she can’t make it. Mike from Palm Beach wants to know if Dr. Chen speaks Mandarin. Mrs. Williams is wondering if she can book an earlier appointment.
By morning, there are 23 voicemails, and your reception team will spend the first hour of their day catching up on all the calls and getting back to patients while managing walk-ins at the front desk.
Behind these numbers are real people trying to access care. Your reception team members may be skipping breaks to manage endless phone queues. They’re also often juggling calls, online bookings, MyMedicare forms, and follow-up SMS tasks simultaneously.
With medical receptionists already overwhelmed by paperwork, every minute spent on routine phone calls means less time for complex calls and the face-to-face attention that only they can provide.
What is an AI Receptionist?
Helen is an artificial intelligence system designed by Healthengine. She is specifically designed to handle routine phone calls; she can answer incoming calls, book, reschedule and cancel appointments for existing patients, and make sure no call is missed. She answers every call in under three rings, 24/7, 365 days a year. Helen integrates directly with Australian practice management systems and understands the unique requirements of GP clinics.*
Why Helen?
What makes Helen different from every other solution is that she was built specifically in consultation with Australian general practices, reflecting the demands and pressures of busy front desk environments. Helen handles the routine calls so that front-desk staff can focus on more important work that requires emotional intelligence and personal interaction.
When Mrs. Williams calls at 8:47 pm wanting an earlier appointment, Helen checks your practice’s real-time availability across all GPs, books her in for next Tuesday at 2:15 pm, updates your PMS instantly, and your reception team sees the booking first thing Wednesday morning.
Helen’s Core Capabilities for GP Practices
Helen, Healthengine’s AI Receptionist, delivers real-time phone support with full practice context. Here’s how she helps:
- 24/7 Phone Coverage: Answers every incoming call within three rings, even during peak hours or after hours.
- Direct PMS Integration: Books appointments directly into your practice’s PMS* without any duplicate entry.
- Smart Call Routing: Identifies urgent and complex cases and transfers to your front desk team immediately.
- Appointment Management: Reschedules and cancels appointments for existing patients at any time, keeping your practice schedule up to date even overnight or on weekends.
- Practice Information: Responds to patient queries instantly, including practice hours, GP availability, and languages spoken, etc.
- Multiple-Call Handling: Manages multiple calls at once, so patients are never put on hold.
- Natural Conversation: Patients can speak normally, like they do with a person, without navigating complex phone menus.
How Helen’s AI Receptionist Technology Works for Australian GPs
For Patients
When patients call your practice, they can speak to Helen, the AI Receptionist, who answers within seconds with a warm, professional voice. She can book new appointments, reschedule existing ones, and cancel bookings for existing patients. She can also answer questions about GP availability, provide practice information, and transfer urgent calls to your front desk staff immediately.
For Practice Staff
Helen works quietly in the background, managing routine inquiries so your team can focus on in-person patient care and tasks that require human judgment, and building meaningful patient relationships.
How Australian GP Clinics are Saving Time with Healthengine’s AI Receptionist
Success Story: Grace Medical Care, NSW
Grace Medical Care has been using Helen, and their practice manager shares:
“The AI Receptionist is an essential day to day feature for any medical centre. The AI Receptionist is not only saving our reception team time, but our bookings have also increased because fewer calls are slipping through the cracks. It has made scheduling smoother for both our team and our patients and we are no longer stuck juggling calls while trying to help patients at the desk. It has freed us up to focus on what matters most – providing better care, and we can see the impact in our appointment numbers.”
Helen has been developed to help practices see:
- Significant reduction in missed calls and voicemails
- Increased appointment bookings due to 24/7 availability
- More time for reception staff to focus on complex patient needs
- Improved patient satisfaction with instant call responses
For many practices, the return on investment is immediate and measurable. When you consider the cost of missed appointments, the time saved on answering routine calls, and the improved patient experience, Helen quickly pays for herself.
What Helen Doesn’t Do (And Why That Matters)
What Helen Doesn’t Do
She doesn’t replace the human touch that makes your practice and healthcare dependable. She is designed in such a way that she can’t:
- Provide medical advice
- Handle complex emotional situations
- Provide an answer to complex questions
- Make clinical judgements
- Replace genuine human empathy
- Share personal details about a patient
What Helen Does Best
What Helen does is free up your reception team to do what they do best: provide personalised care to patients who need that human connection.
Think of it this way: Helen takes care of the “when is Dr. Jones available?” calls so your reception team can spend time with the elderly patient who needs help understanding their new medication schedule.
Helen handles the routine so your team can focus on the complex, the urgent, and the personal interactions that truly matter.
Security, Privacy, and Compliance You Can Trust
Helen was built with Australian healthcare standards in mind. From secure hosting to encrypted calls, she protects patient data and keeps your clinic compliant without extra effort.
- End-to-end encryption: Every interaction is protected, from call initiation to PMS sync.
- Compliant by design: Helen is built to align with the requirements of the Australian Privacy Act, helping to protect your clinic’s reputation.
Helen has been designed to fit seamlessly into your day-to-day operations, helping your team stay ahead of the phones so they can focus on patient care, and she does it without disrupting the way you already work.
Frequently Asked Questions About Healthengine’s AI Receptionist for GP Clinics
Q: How much does Healthengine’s AI receptionist cost for a GP clinic?
A: Helen is billed as a simple monthly subscription that includes a generous number of call minutes, with extra minutes billed at a fixed rate where needed. It’s a competitively priced solution, and practices already using Healthengine technology benefit from a discounted rate. Curious about pricing for your practice? We’re here to help. Please get in touch.
Q: Is Helen compliant with Australian privacy regulations?
A: Yes, Helen is fully compliant with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).
Q: Can Helen handle complex medical queries?
A: Helen handles routine appointment bookings for existing patients and general practice enquiries. For medical advice or complex situations, calls are immediately transferred to your front desk staff.
Q: What happens if Helen can’t answer a patient’s question?
A: Helen is programmed to recognise her limitations. When in doubt, she always transfers calls to your reception team to ensure patients receive proper assistance.
Q: Will patients know they’re speaking to an AI?
A: Helen introduces herself as your practice’s AI receptionist. If a patient prefers to speak with a human, they’ll be offered the option to transfer to your front desk team at the commencement of the call.
Getting Started: Designed to Fit Into Your Existing Workflow
Helen is designed to work alongside your existing systems, without requiring hardware changes or overhauls to the way your team already works. Our onboarding process includes support from Healthengine’s technical team and involves coordination with your existing providers to ensure a smooth setup.
We work closely with your practice to guide implementation in a way that minimises disruption and supports your clinic’s unique needs, so your team can focus on delivering care, not managing tech.
Ready to Meet Helen?
Helen is revolutionising how patients access healthcare, and she acts like a perfect team member for your reception team, who is always ready to help. Book a free demo.
*Healthengine’s AI Receptionist integrations are currently available for practices using Best Practice and Pracsoft practice management software.
