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    WhatsApp integration

    Connect Plato Medical to WhatsApp

    When patients ask for an appointment on WhatsApp, the front desk has to check Plato, reply with the free slots and key the booking in by hand. This page compares three ways to connect WhatsApp to Plato so bookings land in Plato without being keyed in by hand.

    Volty connects to Plato Medical. Volty finds the patient by their WhatsApp number, reads the clinic's free slots, and books, moves, confirms and cancels appointments in Plato.

    Talk to Volty

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    What a clinic runs with Plato and WhatsApp connected

    • Book after hours A patient asks for a slot at 9.40pm. Volty finds them in Plato, offers free times inside opening hours as buttons, and books the one they tap.
    • Move an appointment Volty moves the existing appointment to the new time in Plato, so the clinic never holds two bookings for one visit.
    • Confirm from a reminder A reminder goes out on WhatsApp. When the patient replies that they are coming, Volty marks the appointment confirmed in Plato.
    • Cancel with a check Volty asks the patient to confirm with a button before it cancels, then records the cancellation the way the clinic does: on the cancelled calendar, with the cancelled code, or as a deletion.
    • Answer invoice questions A patient asking what they owe gets the amount and whether each invoice is settled, read from their own invoices in Plato.

    Three ways to connect Plato Medical to WhatsApp

    Plato's own tools

    Plato sends a day's appointment reminders in one click, and sends recalls to patients by SMS or email. Plato's own blog points clinics to the WhatsApp Business app for patient messages. With that setup, the front desk reads each WhatsApp message on the clinic's phone and books the appointment in Plato by hand.

    Best for clinics that take a handful of WhatsApp bookings a day and have front-desk time to answer each one.

    Build it yourself

    Plato's API is a REST API that authenticates with the clinic's API key, and its documentation sits behind a Plato login. A connection needs three parts of your own: a WhatsApp Business Platform account on Meta's Cloud API, a server that receives Meta's webhooks for incoming messages, and code that calls Plato to find the patient, read the slots and write the booking.

    What the clinic then owns:

    • The rate limit Plato allows 20 requests a minute per API key, shared with every other tool that uses the same key, and publishes no figure. Volty reads the remaining budget on every response and stays inside it.
    • The 24-hour window Meta allows free-form replies for 24 hours after the patient's last message. A reminder outside that window must be a template Meta has approved.
    • Duplicates and retries Meta retries an undelivered webhook for up to 7 days, so the same message can arrive twice and the code must recognise it.
    • Patient data Plato's API returns identity numbers, dates of birth and notes with the patient record. Volty keeps no copy of them, and the clinic stays the data controller under Singapore's PDPA.
    • Registration Plato requires a commercial app used by more than one Plato customer to register with its Developer Partner Programme.

    Best for clinics that have a developer to build the connection and keep it running.

    Use a workflow tool

    Zapier, n8n and Make each have a WhatsApp app on Meta's Cloud API that receives messages and sends replies and templates. None of them lists a Plato app, so every Plato step is an HTTP call to Plato's API that you write and maintain. Each tool also offers an AI agent step, which you prompt and test yourself. The tools run automations; people read and answer the conversations in another app.

    Zapier starts at US$19.99 a month billed annually for 750 tasks, and its WhatsApp Business app needs a paid plan. n8n Cloud starts at €20 a month billed annually for 2,500 executions, and n8n is free to self-host. Make starts at US$9 a month billed annually for 10,000 credits.

    Best for clinics that already run one of these tools and want one fixed flow, such as a WhatsApp message after each booking.

    Volty is an AI agent that answers customers on WhatsApp and Outlook email from one shared inbox. Connected to Plato, Volty finds the patient by their WhatsApp number, offers the clinic's free slots in the chat and, once an admin has turned booking on, books the one the patient picks. The table compares Volty with the three ways above.

    Plato's own toolsBuild it yourselfWorkflow toolVolty
    SetupBuilt into Plato, plus the WhatsApp Business app on a phoneA developer projectA flow per task, with HTTP calls to PlatoOne setup session
    Reads and writes in PlatoNone from WhatsAppWhat you buildWhat you buildPatients, free slots, appointments and invoices; books, moves, confirms and cancels
    AI repliesNoneWhat you buildAn AI step you prompt and testVolty writes the replies, with draft mode for staff review
    Inbox and handoffMessages on the clinic's phoneWhat you buildConversations read in another appA shared inbox, where staff take over any conversation
    Who maintains itPlato and MetaYour developerYouVoltade
    CostIncluded in Plato; the WhatsApp Business app is freeDeveloper time and hosting, plus Meta's message chargesFrom US$9 to US$19.99 a month, or free self-hosted, plus Meta's message chargesS$199 a month on Plus, plus Meta's message charges

    How Volty connects to Plato Medical

    Volty connects to Plato Medical through a connector Voltade builds and runs. An admin adds Plato on the Sources page in Volty with the clinic's API key and database name, marks which Plato calendars Volty may book into, and enters the opening hours and the notice period for changes.

    • Reads The patient, found by the WhatsApp number they have confirmed; free slots inside opening hours; the patient's appointments; the patient's invoices, with the amount and whether each is settled.
    • Writes Book, reschedule, confirm and cancel. A cancellation asks the patient to confirm with a button first.
    • Switches Every tool starts Off. Volty suggests On for tools that only read, and an admin applies the suggestions or sets each switch; a tool that changes a record, such as booking a slot, stays Off until the admin turns it on.
    • Draft mode In a draft conversation, a booking waits on the draft and runs only when staff press Send.
    • Notice period A move or cancellation inside the clinic's notice period becomes a to-do for the front desk.
    • Patient data Volty keeps a copy of your appointments and each patient's name, phone numbers and chart number. Notes, identity numbers, dates of birth and invoices never reach that copy; invoices are read live only when a patient asks.
    • Freshness Volty refreshes appointments from Plato every five minutes and whenever Plato reports a change.

    Prologue Clinic books into Plato from WhatsApp

    Prologue Clinic, a member of SL Aesthetic Group, on Voltade's AI CRM: 70% of WhatsApp enquiries are handled without a person, bookings go straight into Plato, and staff time on enquiries fell from about 3 hours a day to about 30 minutes.

    "Before, we were managing a lot of repetitive enquiries and customers asking the same things. Our customer service had to copy the same template from their notes and paste it into WhatsApp."

    Edwin Teo, Marketing Technology Lead, SL Aesthetic Group

    Read the Prologue Clinic case study

    Common questions

    Does Plato Medical integrate with WhatsApp?

    Plato sends reminders and recalls by SMS or email, and its blog points clinics to the WhatsApp Business app for patient messages. To book from a WhatsApp chat straight into Plato, a clinic uses a connector such as Volty or builds one on Plato's API.

    Can patients book Plato appointments on WhatsApp?

    Yes, once Volty is connected to Plato and an admin has turned booking on. Volty finds the patient by their WhatsApp number, offers free slots inside the clinic's opening hours, and writes the booking into Plato.

    What does Volty need to connect to Plato?

    Volty needs the clinic's Plato API key and database name, the calendars it may book into, the opening hours and the notice period for changes. In Voltade's clinic setups in September 2026, the key was in Plato under System Setup, General Settings, the API tab.

    Can Zapier, n8n or Make connect Plato to WhatsApp?

    Zapier, n8n and Make each have a WhatsApp app but no Plato app. A flow reaches Plato only through HTTP calls to Plato's API with the clinic's API key, which you write yourself and maintain when either side changes.

    Does Volty store patients' NRIC numbers or clinical notes?

    No. Volty keeps a copy of your appointments and each patient's name, phone numbers and chart number. Notes, identity numbers, dates of birth and invoices never reach that copy; invoices are read live only when a patient asks.

    How much does it cost to connect Plato to WhatsApp with Volty?

    Volty starts at S$199 a month on the Plus plan, with unlimited users and a free 7-day trial. Meta bills the clinic separately for WhatsApp message charges.

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