Summary
The Inbox is a conversation list, not a pile of individual texts. Inbound texts, staff replies, reminders, campaigns, voicemails, and many notifications share one thread per person.
Two rules run at the same time:
Unread / Read belongs to the conversation (or the inbound message that has not been opened). An automated outbound message does not mark the patient’s text as read. The red Unread badge appears on conversations that still have an unopened inbound message.
The list preview and some filters (especially Exclude campaign msgs) look at the last message in the thread.
Default view is Conversation → Open + Messages → All Messages. Under this view, patient texts are not hidden just because a later reminder or campaign arrived. If a text looks missing, the most common causes are:
The conversation is Closed
A different filter combination is active
The last-used filter is still applied (click the circular Reset Filters icon to return to the default)
What this looks like
Patient texts: “Can I come in tomorrow instead?” The thread appears in Unread (and shows the red badge). Preview shows the patient’s words.
TrackStat sends a scheduled reminder in the same thread before anyone opens it.
The thread is still Unread. The preview now shows the reminder.
If Exclude campaign msgs is active, the whole row can leave that list because the last message is a campaign.
The patient’s text is still in the thread, one message above the reminder.
TrackStat remembers the last filter combination the signed-in user chose. This is intentional, but it can make a text look missing if the active filter is different from what you expect.
How to find the conversation
Stop when you see the patient.
Look at the currently applied filters. If they are not the default (Conversation → Open + Messages → All Messages), click the circular Reset Filters icon or switch to Unread.
Check Unread (or look for the red Unread badge). Unread does not care whether the last message was a campaign. If the patient’s text was never opened, the thread belongs here.
If it is still not obvious, switch to Messages → All Messages.
Search the patient by name or phone.
Open the thread and scroll. The unread patient text is above the automated message.
Reply. Mark the conversation Closed if the request is done.
Do not refresh the page as the first step. Reset Filters or switch to Unread is usually faster.
Which view to use
View | When to use it |
Conversation → Open + Messages → All Messages (default) | Recommended starting point. Shows active work without hiding threads based on the last message. |
Unread | First stop when a patient just texted or you see the red Unread badge. Preview may show a later automated message - open the thread anyway. |
Messages → All Messages | Widest list. Use when you need proof the thread still exists. |
Messages → Exclude campaign msgs | Optional quieter view. Can hide a row if the last message is a reminder or campaign, even when the patient’s text is still unread. |
Conversation → Closed | Finished work. History is kept. A new patient text automatically reopens the conversation. |
If something looks missing under the default view, the conversation is most often Closed or the last-used filter is still applied. Click Reset Filters and check Unread.
This is not the same as a conversation merge
If the text is still missing after Unread + All Messages + search - especially right after a new patient was added, or when the message had an image - TrackStat may be merging a patient thread and a non-patient thread. That is a different issue. Most of those merges finish within about an hour.
Quick answers
The preview is not the patient’s text. Did we lose it?
No. The preview is the newest message in the thread. Open the conversation and scroll to the message above the reminder.
Why did the whole row vanish?
The active filter is excluding campaign messages and the newest message is a campaign, or the conversation is Closed, or a different last-used filter is still applied. Switch to Unread, All Messages, or click Reset Filters.
Should we turn off appointment reminders?
No. Use the default view (Conversation → Open + Messages → All Messages) or Unread. Do not disable reminders to simplify the Inbox.