Quick Answer
Dental Intelligence marks a Dentrix appointment as Confirmed only when the Definition Text (description) of its Status — not the abbreviation you see on the appointment — contains the word "Confirmed." If a status’s description doesn’t include that word, Dental Intelligence will treat it as unconfirmed, even if your team considers the patient confirmed.
This is most commonly an issue when:
You've created custom confirmation statuses in Dentrix, or
You use a third-party confirmation service (like a texting or reminder tool) that creates its own Dentrix statuses.
The fix takes about a minute and applies automatically after the next nightly sync.
How Dental Intelligence Reads Confirmation Status
For every appointment created in Dentrix, Dental Intelligence checks the Status field on the Appointment Information window:
That dropdown is powered by a list of statuses defined elsewhere in Dentrix — Dental Intelligence doesn’t read the dropdown directly. It reads the description behind whichever status is selected.
Where these statuses are defined
In Dentrix, go to Office Manager > Maintenance > Practice Setup > Definitions.
Each confirmation status here has three parts:
Field | What it is | Does Dental Intelligence use it? |
ID | Internal reference number | No |
Abbreviation | The short label shown in the appointment's Status dropdown | No |
Definition Text (Description) | The full description of the status | Yes — this is the only field DI checks |
The Rule
If the Definition Text contains the word “Confirmed,” Dental Intelligence counts that appointment as confirmed. If it doesn’t, the appointment is counted as unconfirmed.
Important Exception: “Not Confirmed”
Dental Intelligence specifically excludes the built-in "Not Confirmed" status shown above, even though its description contains the word “confirmed.”
This exclusion is limited to that one specific default status. If you create a different custom status whose description also happens to contain the word “confirmed” (for example, something similar to “Not Confirmed” or “Unconfirmed”), it will be counted as Confirmed, because Dental Intelligence only checks for the presence of the word “confirmed” — it doesn’t understand negation. Avoid using the word “confirmed” in the description of any status meant to represent an unconfirmed appointment.
Examples
Abbreviation | Definition Text | Counts as Confirmed in DI? |
?????? | Not Confirmed | No (manually excluded — see exception) |
FIRM | Appointment Confirmed | Yes |
FIRM-E | Appt Confirmed by Email | Yes |
EMER | Emergency Patient | No |
HERE | Patient has Arrived | No |
READY | Ready for Operatory | No |
LMM | Left Message Machine | No |
Fixing a Custom or Third-Party Status That Isn't Syncing as Confirmed
This is the most common cause of appointments looking “unconfirmed” in Dental Intelligence when they were actually confirmed in Dentrix. Third-party confirmation tools often create their own status codes, and those descriptions frequently don’t include the word “Confirmed.”
To fix it:
In Dentrix, go to Office Manager > Maintenance > Practice Setup > Definitions
Set Definition Type to Appointment Status
Select the status created by your confirmation software (or your custom status).
Click Change and add the word “Confirmed” to the end of the Definition Text
Save your changes
Dental Intelligence will pick up the change automatically during the next nightly sync — no need to update past appointments manually.
FAQs
Does the abbreviation shown on the appointment matter?
No. Dental Intelligence only reads the Definition Text (description) behind the status, not the abbreviation.
Will this affect past appointments?
Once you update the Definition Text, Dental Intelligence will recognize appointments using that status as confirmed going forward, starting with the next nightly sync.
Can I just rename any status to include “Confirmed”?
Yes — simply adding “Confirmed” anywhere in the Definition Text is enough for Dental Intelligence to count it. Just make sure you're not adding it to a status meant to represent an unconfirmed appointment.
Why does my third-party confirmation tool's status not sync correctly by default?
Third-party tools create their own custom Dentrix statuses, and their default descriptions often don’t include the word “Confirmed.” Updating the Definition Text as described above resolves this.