Pathways is Medbridge's new provider-driven clinical digital program platform. Learn more about Medbridge Pathways and request a demo.
Messaging in Pathways allows clinicians and care coordinators to communicate directly with patients about their care. Messages are linked to individual pathways and visible to all providers in your organization.
This article covers how to find and respond to messages, what to expect when using the messaging interface, and answers to common questions.
Navigating to Unread Messages
You can access patient messages from multiple locations in Pathways:
Alerts Tab (Recommended)
- Go to the Alerts tab from the main navigation.
- Select the Filter icon.
- Check the box for Unread messages.
- The list will update to show only patients who have unread messages. Select a patient from the list. The number you see in the preview panel represents the number of unread messages for that specific patient.
- In the preview panel, select either:
- the Messages button next to the patient’s birthdate, or
- the Check unread messages option below the alert summary.
- You’ll land on the Messages view, where each pathway with unread messages is marked with an indicator badge.
- Select a pathway to view the full message thread and respond.
Patients Tab
- From the top navigation, select Patients.
- Use the search bar to locate the patient by name.
- Select the patient’s name to open their profile.
- Choose Messages to view all messaging threads grouped by pathway. Unread messages will be indicated with a badge next to the pathway name.
Note: Messages are automatically marked as read when you open the thread. There is no manual “mark as read” action.
How to Send and Respond to Messages
- Navigate to the message view via the Alerts tab, Patients tab, or patient profile.
- Select the relevant pathway (if the patient has more than one). The full message thread for that pathway will open.
- Type your message in the input box and select the Send icon.
Messages are sent immediately and will be visible to the patient and all clinicians in your organization. If the patient has SMS or email notifications enabled, they will be notified of a new message.
FAQs and Troubleshooting
Q: Why can’t I see the Messages option?
A: Your organization’s admin may have disabled messaging. This is usually done with the intention that you use a different messaging platform, like your EMR patient portal system. You can check with your organization’s admin users if you believe this is disabled in error.
Q: Who can view and respond to patient messages?
A: Any clinician or care team member in your organization with access to Pathways can view and respond to patient messages.
Q: Can I respond directly from the Alerts tab?
A: Yes. Selecting a message from the Alerts view or preview panel takes you directly to the message thread.
Q: Can I message a patient across multiple pathways?
A: Messages are organized by pathway. If a patient is on multiple pathways, you will see a separate message thread for each.
Q: Are messages secure and part of the clinical record?
A: Yes. Messages are encrypted, HIPAA-compliant, and recorded in the Patient Activity Report.