Appointment Linking: Troubleshooting, Tips, and FAQ

📝 Overview

Use this article to look up error messages, find quick tips, and get answers to common questions about Appointment Linking.

📋 Looking for step-by-step instructions? See Appointment Linking: What It Is, Setup, and How to Use It.

🧭 Where to Find It

Most of the messages below appear in the Create Linked Appointments or Manage Linked Appointments window on the calendar, or in Settings → Appointment Settings → Linked Appointments. Each row names where you’ll see it.

🛠️ Troubleshooting

You see…	What it means	What to do
No Linked Appointments section in Appointment Settings, and no linking options on the calendar	The feature isn’t turned on for your location, or your location is a membership location	During the beta, ChiroHD turns linking on for each participating location. Membership locations can’t use it in this phase.
Only Welcome to Linked Appointments, with no templates	Setup hasn’t been finished at your location	Click Get Started and complete the wizard
No schedules fit these filters. (Find a Time)	Nothing on that day fits the set with your current filters	Try another day, set Desired Start Times back to Any time, or tick Other Calendars, Different Order, Wait Time or Overlap
The appointment order is fixed, so there are fewer options. (Find a Time)	The template says order matters	Click Allow a different order to see more times for this booking only
Every time already fits back-to-back, so Wait Time added nothing. (Find a Time)	The named allowance wasn’t used by any returned schedule	Nothing is wrong. You can untick the unused allowance.
No green booking button, only Find a Time	No appointment has been added yet, at least one appointment’s Calendar is still Any, or you’re viewing an unchanged saved set	Use Find a Time to place unassigned appointments or move the saved set; make a change before saving
A linked visit has to be on a single day. Schedule the other appointments separately.	The appointments you’re linking are on different days	Link only the ones on the same day
One of these appointments is part of a family booking, so it cannot be linked into this visit.	Family bookings can’t be linked in this phase	Book that appointment separately
These appointments belong to different linked visits. Save each visit on its own.	You tried to save appointments from two sets at once	Open and save each set separately, or use Link Same Day Appointments to merge them
This appointment is part of a linked visit. Change the whole visit, or unlink it first.	You tried to change one appointment’s time, calendar or type in a way that would split the set	Change it in Manage Linked Appointments, or unlink it first
These appointments can’t be unlinked, because one of them has already started or been completed. You can still cancel or delete an appointment on its own.	Part of the visit has already happened	You can still cancel or delete one appointment on its own
A patient says the app told them This appointment is part of a linked visit. Please call the office to change it.	Patients can’t move or cancel linked appointments in the patient app	Make the change for them in ChiroHD
The patient has no other appointments close enough to link (Link Same Day Appointments)	Their other appointments that day are further apart than your Maximum Wait Time, or overlap more than your Overlap Tolerance, or are already in the same set	Use Create Linked Appointments from one of them instead, or adjust your wait time setting
That plan comes to 250 visits, which is more than can be checked at once (200). Reduce the number of visits, or split it across phases you check separately.	The plan is too long to check in one go	Lower the total number of visits, or schedule separate plans of no more than 200 visits each. Adding phases in the same plan does not bypass the limit.
Red rows in the bulk scheduler and Schedule Appointments won’t click	At least one visit couldn’t be placed	Click Find a Time on each red row, or remove it with its x
This template comes from your system settings, so only a system admin can delete it. To stop using it at this location, set it to Inactive.	Location-level users can’t delete system-level templates	Hover over ACTIVE and click SET TO INACTIVE; the status change saves immediately
An appointment doesn’t appear when posting a charge	Its Charges Required switch is off	Turn Charges Required back on for that appointment, then post the charge
Part of a set seems missing in Provider View	Some appointments are on calendars you’ve switched off	Hover over the appointment — the popup lists the set and how many aren’t shown
⏳ Waiting on Adjustment on an appointment (Flow tab, queue, or chart), or a lock and faint stripes on it on the calendar	Your location locks linked appointments to the order they happen in, and the appointment ahead of this one isn’t Treated yet. The label names the appointment it’s waiting on.	Nothing is wrong. It’s free to go once the one ahead is Treated. If the patient needs to go in a different order, click Take out of order on the waiting appointment.
This Massage is waiting on the Adjustment. It can go once the Adjustment is treated, or use “Take out of order” to let it go first. (the appointment names match your set)	Someone tried to room or treat an appointment that’s still waiting its turn	Mark the appointment ahead Treated first, or click Take out of order on the waiting one. Start times don’t change.
The Adjustment is already under way, so this one can’t go first. (Take out of order)	The appointment ahead is already in a room, so the order can’t flip now	Finish that appointment and mark it Treated. The waiting one is then free on its own.
A waiting appointment still shows the lock after the one ahead was Treated	The queue and the calendar can take a moment to catch up. The Flow tab updates right away.	Give it a moment, or reload the page
Treated and completed appointments can’t be moved to another day. Their note and charges are dated for the day of the visit.	You tried to reschedule or drag a Treated or Completed appointment to a different day	Move it to a new time on the same day instead, or book a new appointment for the other day

💡 Tips and Tricks

Build templates first. Templates make every booking faster and keep notes and charges settings consistent. Start with the two or three combinations your office books most.
Run Find Appointments to Link right after setup. It links what’s already on your calendar so today’s schedule makes sense straight away.
Add appointment notes from Manage Linked Appointments. Editing a single linked appointment from the calendar asks whether to take it out of the set first, and once the visit has started it can’t leave the set.
Click the link icon. It’s the fastest way into the whole set.
Use Take out of order when the order flips. If your location locks linked appointments to their order and the doctor is running behind, click Take out of order on the waiting appointment so the patient can go to the next provider first. Times on the calendar stay the same.
Leave Wait Time and Overlap unticked at first. Find a Time looks for back-to-back times by default. Tick them only when nothing fits.
Read the green button before you book. It says how many appointments and at what time — for example, Book Three Appointments at 10:30 am.
Mix cases freely. An adjustment on an insurance case and a massage on a cash case can be one set.
Keep your subtypes. You no longer need subtypes to describe a multi-service visit, but keep using them for everything else they do.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Do linked appointments share one SOAP note?
No. Each appointment keeps its own note. You can decide which appointments are expected to have one using Notes Required.
Will the patient get one reminder for the whole set?
Linking doesn’t introduce a new reminder policy. If your appointment reminders are configured so that all appointments in the set share the same preset, ChiroHD’s existing text-reminder flow can send one message for a patient’s same-day appointments using the first appointment’s details.
Can I link appointments for two family members?
Not in this phase. Family bookings can’t be linked.
Can a linked set span two days?
No. A linked set is always one patient on one day.
Can two appointments in a set be on the same calendar?
Yes. They can sit back to back on one calendar, or across several.
If the patient checks in for the first appointment, are the others checked in too?
Yes, if they are Scheduled or Confirmed. Arriving one appointment also arrives all other Scheduled and Confirmed appointments in the set, wherever the arrival comes from, including the patient’s reply to a check-in text message. Appointments that have already progressed are not moved backward.
Can I change the order of a linked visit after the patient arrives?
Yes, if your location locks linked appointments to their order. Click Take out of order on the appointment that’s waiting, and it goes next. Start times don’t change. It can’t be used once the appointment ahead is already in a room.
Can a provider write the note on an appointment that’s waiting its turn?
Yes. The note saves as normal. The appointment can’t be put in a room or marked Treated until the one ahead of it is Treated, or until someone uses Take out of order.
Can I move a Treated or Completed appointment to another day?
No. Its note and charges are dated for the day of the visit, so it stays on that day. You can still move it to a new time on the same day.
What happens if I cancel just one appointment in the set?
ChiroHD asks first. If you go ahead, that appointment is cancelled and unlinked. If only one appointment is left, it’s unlinked too.
Can I move just one appointment of a visit that has already started?
Not out of the set. Once any appointment in the visit has started, a single move, edit or reschedule can’t take an appointment out of the set. Move the whole set with Move All or Find a Time, or cancel or delete just that appointment.
Can I reschedule a whole care plan at once?
Not yet. Delete the future visits from the patient’s Future Appointments tab, then book the new plan with the bulk scheduler.
Can I overbook a linked set on purpose?
Not in this phase. Find a Time only suggests open times.
Does deleting a template remove appointments booked from it?
No. Appointments already booked from a template aren’t affected.
Why can’t I rename a template at my location?
It’s a system-level template. Its name is set by the system admin so reporting stays consistent across locations. Create your own location-level template if you need a different name or combination.
Does Appointment Linking work at membership locations?
Not in this phase.
Does it work with SKED?
Offices that also use SKED join the beta later. If your office uses SKED, ChiroHD will let you know when linking is ready for you.