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Set Up Your Practice

Work through this list once, in order, and your practice is fully operational: clients can book, sessions land on your calendar, notes get written, and payment collects itself. Each step links to the detailed guide. A solo practice can finish the whole list in under an hour.

Switching from another EHR?

Do the import first, so your clients and appointments are already in place while you set everything else up. See EHR Import — upload your old system's export and the importer matches clients, couples, and history automatically.

1. Fill in your practice details​

Your practice name, logo, contact information, and address appear on invoices, superbills, client emails, and the client portal — set them before anything client-facing goes out.

  1. Go to Settings, open the Practice section, and click Practice Details.
  2. Under Practice Information, fill in your practice name, practice email, Tax ID, time zone, and phone, then upload your logo under Practice Logo. Click Save Changes.

Practice Details: the Practice Information section and the Save Changes button

  1. Further down the same page, under Locations, click Add Location for each office. A virtual (telehealth) location is what makes an appointment a video session, so keep one in the list if you see clients by video. Click the star next to a location to make it the practice's default session location.

The Locations list on Practice Details, with the Add Location button

Full guide: Practice Settings

2. Set your availability​

Your availability controls when clients can book you online and what your calendar offers when scheduling.

  1. On the calendar, click the gear icon at the top right and choose Set up appointment requests. Set the hours for each day you work, the office(s) they apply to and the services clients can request, then Save. (Add a location under Settings → Practice first if the setup asks for one.)

Set up appointment requests: the Availability step, with per-day hours, location and services

  1. Under Session Settings in Settings → Online Booking, choose the Appointment start times clients can pick. Session length and any time blocked off before or after a session are set on each service under Settings → Billing → Fee Schedule.
  2. Block off time you're never available (lunch, admin time, standing commitments) with a calendar event — see Blocking time off.

Full guide: Availability & Blocked Time

3. Define your services and rates​

Every appointment bills against a service, so set your fee schedule early — rates flow from it into invoices, superbills, and claims.

  1. Go to Settings, open the Billing section, and click Fee Schedule. A standard set of psychotherapy CPT codes is pre-loaded.
  2. Click the pencil next to each service you actually offer and set your rate. Click the star next to the service you use most to make it the default for new appointments.

The Fee Schedule page, with the star that marks the default service

Full guide: Services and Products

4. Add your first clients​

  1. Click + in the top bar and choose New Client — individual, minor, or couple.

The + button in the top bar opened, showing New Client and New Appointment

  1. Send the intake packet (consents, demographics, history) as part of creating them, or later from their profile. Clients complete everything in the client portal.
  2. If you want new clients to find and book you directly, turn on Online Booking and embed the booking widget on your website.

Full guides: Adding a Client · Intake Forms

5. Turn on reminders​

Reminders cut no-shows and chase unfinished paperwork so you don't have to.

  1. Go to Settings, open the Clients section, and click Client Notifications. Reminder emails are on by default. Under Reminder Emails, pick the timing: 24, 48 (the default), or 72 hours before the appointment.

Reminder Emails on the Client Notifications page, with the reminder timing menu

  1. Review the email templates clients receive; customize wording if you like.

Full guide: Client Notifications & Reminders

6. Run your first session​

Schedule an appointment from the calendar, then meet in person or by video — telehealth is built in, with a waiting room and one-click join for the client. During or after the session, record (with consent) or dictate, and generate your progress note with AI.

Full guides: Your First Session · Video Sessions · Note Templates

7. Set up payment collection​

The smoothest setup: collect a card during intake, then let AutoPay charge issued invoices overnight — no chasing balances.

  1. Ask for a card as part of the intake packet (how).
  2. Turn on AutoPay for clients who agreed to it.
  3. For everyone else, invoices can be paid in the client portal, or you can record cash and external payments manually.

Full guide: Collecting Payments

8. Optional — as your practice needs them​

  • Insurance billing — set up your billing identity, payers, and enrollments before filing your first claim: Insurance Setup
  • Colleagues — Invite a Team Member and choose their roles.
  • The client portal — see what your clients experience and how to introduce them to it: Client Portal