Most clinics have a rough idea of how patients feel about their care, but a rough idea is hard to act on. A patient who had a poor experience rarely tells the front desk. A patient who had a great one rarely thinks to write a Google review. Without a simple, consistent way to ask, both stories go unheard.
SMS is a natural fit for the job. Patients already read text messages within minutes, and a short survey link takes seconds to open on a phone. The hard part has always been remembering to send it after every appointment.
This guide explains how the DataFlows and Cliniko integration handles that for you. It sends an automatic post-appointment survey link, shows responses over time on a dashboard, can prompt happy patients to leave a public review, and can log survey activity back into Cliniko as a note. You will also learn what NPS means, how to set it up, and the habits that make a patient survey worth running.
What Is an NPS Survey?
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a simple way of measuring how likely people are to recommend a business to others. It is built around a single question, usually along the lines of "How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?", answered on a scale from 0 to 10. People who answer with the highest scores are treated as promoters, people in the middle are passive, and people who answer low are detractors. The overall score comes from comparing the share of promoters with the share of detractors. Because it relies on one question, it is quick for patients to complete and easy for a clinic to track over time. The number matters less than the direction it moves and the reasons behind it. For a health practice, NPS gives a regular, comparable signal about patient experience, so you can spot a drop early, recognise what is working, and follow up with people who were unhappy.
Why Patient Feedback Matters for Australian Clinics
Australian health practices compete on trust and word of mouth. A new patient often chooses a physio, dentist or psychologist because a friend or family member recommended them, or because of what they read in online reviews. Feedback is how you find out whether you are earning those recommendations.
There are a few practical reasons to collect it by SMS:
- Surveys sent by email tend to sit unread, while a text is opened on the device patients already have in their hand.
- Asking straight after the visit captures the experience while it is fresh, rather than weeks later.
- A consistent process means every practitioner and every location is measured the same way.
Australian rules also apply. A survey link sent to a patient about a visit they just attended is a service message, but your messaging still has to respect patient consent. The DataFlows Cliniko integration checks each patient's Cliniko-recorded SMS consent setting before sending. If you want more background, read our guide to SMS consent in Australia and the Cliniko SMS consent workflows post.
Key Benefits of SMS Patient Surveys
- Consistent collection. The survey link is sent automatically after appointments, so feedback does not depend on someone at reception remembering to ask.
- Trends you can see. A dashboard shows responses over time, which helps you tell whether a change in rosters, fit-out or process made a difference.
- Early warning on unhappy patients. A low score gives your team a reason to reach out and put things right before the patient quietly books elsewhere.
- A path to public reviews. Happy patients can be prompted to leave a public review, which is far more effective than hoping they do it on their own.
- A record inside Cliniko. Survey activity can optionally be logged back into the patient's Cliniko record as a note, so the context stays with the patient file.
- Low effort for staff. There is nothing to export, merge or send by hand once it is switched on.
How the DataFlows Cliniko Survey Works
DataFlows connects to Cliniko natively. It polls the Cliniko API directly using a Cliniko API key, so there is no Zapier step, no webhook and no third-party tool in the middle. Cliniko does not offer outbound webhooks, which is why the polling approach matters. You can read the full setup in our guide to sending SMS from Cliniko.
The satisfaction survey is one of several message types in the integration. Each can be switched on or off independently, and the survey can be configured per business or location.
1. The automatic post-appointment survey link
After an appointment, DataFlows sends the patient an SMS containing a link to a short survey. The patient taps the link, answers on their phone and is done. You do not need to build the survey, schedule the send or build a list. The message template is editable, so you can write it in your clinic's voice using merge tags such as `{patient_name}`, `{practitioner}` and `{business}`.
2. The responses-over-time dashboard
Responses are collected in a dashboard inside DataFlows. Instead of a pile of individual answers, you see how patient sentiment moves across weeks and months. This is the view to open at your monthly team meeting. A steady climb tells you your changes are working. A sudden dip is a prompt to look at what changed.
3. The optional review prompt for high scorers
Public reviews are valuable, but asking everyone for one can feel awkward and can attract mixed results. With the optional review prompt, patients who score highly are invited to leave a public review. The people most likely to say something positive are the ones asked, and the ask arrives while their good experience is fresh.
4. Optional logging back to Cliniko
If you want survey activity visible in the patient's file, you can enable logging to Cliniko as a note. Reception and practitioners can then see that a survey was sent or answered without opening a separate system. This is optional, so clinics that prefer to keep survey data in the DataFlows dashboard can leave it off.
Step-by-Step: Setting Up Your Cliniko Patient Survey by SMS
1. Create your DataFlows account. Sign up at dataflows.com.au and add SMS credits. DataFlows is pay-as-you-go with no monthly or annual fees.
2. Generate a Cliniko API key. In Cliniko, go to My Info, then Manage API keys, and create a key. DataFlows reads your Cliniko region from the key.
3. Connect Cliniko in DataFlows. Follow the steps on the Cliniko integration page and paste in your key. Choose the business or location you want to configure.
4. Choose your sending number. A registered alpha Sender ID shows your clinic name but is one-way only. A dedicated virtual number supports two-way messaging, which you need if patients will reply to your reminders. Our posts on Sender ID registration and virtual numbers explain the difference.
5. Switch on the satisfaction survey. Enable the survey message type and review the wording in the template. Keep it short and friendly.
6. Decide on the optional extras. Turn on the review prompt for high scorers if you want public reviews, and turn on logging to Cliniko if you want a note added to the patient file.
7. Check the dashboard. After your first few days of appointments, open the survey dashboard and watch responses build up.
Example Messages
Keep the wording plain and warm. Here are two starting points you can adapt in the template editor:
- "Hi {patient_name}, thanks for visiting {business} with {practitioner}. We would love your feedback. It takes less than a minute: [survey link]"
- "Hi {patient_name}, how was your visit today? Tap here to let us know: [survey link]"
For the review prompt, thank the patient first and make the request light. A short thank-you with a single link is enough.
How DataFlows Helps
DataFlows is an Australian SMS platform, and the Cliniko integration is built specifically for allied health and medical practices. The patient survey sits alongside the rest of the clinic's messaging, so one account covers it all.
- Appointment reminders with rolling or fixed timing, as covered in our reminder timing guide.
- Booking, cancellation and reschedule notices sent as soon as the change happens in Cliniko.
- Post-appointment follow-up SMS, with an option to exclude patients who did not attend. See the follow-up SMS guide.
- Two-way reply handling with AI-assisted classification of confirm, cancel and reschedule replies, with confidence scores and staff escalation.
- A patient inbox where staff can see every SMS thread and step in when needed.
- Multi-location support, so each branch can have its own settings, sender and templates.
You can see everything in one place in the complete Cliniko SMS features guide.
Best Practices for Patient Feedback by SMS
- Keep it short. One tap to open, one question to answer. The shorter the survey, the more patients finish it.
- Be honest about why you ask. Say that you want to improve, and then do something with the answers.
- Close the loop. When a patient gives a low score, have a team member follow up personally. Often a quick call turns a detractor into a loyal patient.
- Do not offer rewards for good scores. Review platforms have rules about incentives, and a nudge for a positive answer skews your results.
- Review the dashboard on a schedule. Look at it monthly with your team and write down one change to try.
- Compare against yourself. Do not chase industry numbers. Track your own score over time and judge progress against where you started.
- Respect consent. Only message patients who have agreed to receive SMS, and keep your Cliniko consent records up to date.
- Send from a recognisable number. Patients are more likely to open a text from a sender they recognise, so use your clinic name or a consistent local number.
Conclusion
A patient survey only works if it happens every time. Automating the send removes the biggest barrier, and the dashboard turns scattered answers into a trend you can manage. Add the optional review prompt and your happiest patients help new ones find you.
Ready to hear from more of your patients? Sign up at dataflows.com.au, connect Cliniko with your API key, and switch on the satisfaction survey for your clinic today.