Archive a Deceased Client and Stop Communications

Losing a client is hard. The last thing you or their family needs is another appointment reminder, invoice, or automated email showing up in their inbox.

Healthie enables you to close out a client's account by archiving the client and stopping their notifications, payments, and automated emails. Their data & record stays intact to ensure compliance with data retention requirements.

Archiving a Deceased Client 

Archiving moves the client from your Active Clients to your Archived Clients tab. Nothing is deleted, the client isn't notified, and you can restore the account at any time.

What archiving a client does:

• Cancels upcoming appointments and scheduled payments
• Stops new forms and documents from being shared with or requested from the client, including "New Forms to Complete" emails
• Stops goal reminders (email and push)
• Removes the client from your notification feeds, future message blasts, and community chats

What archiving a client does not do:

• Remove contacts. A family member or caregiver added as a contact will still receive a copy of every email the client would receive if their email notifications are on
• Resolve unpaid invoices
• Prevent  manual emails that a provider sends directly to the client
• Affect tools outside Healthie, such as a connected email marketing platform or CRM
• Prevent the client's account from being accessed. By default, an archived client can still log in, view shared documents, and message you. If anyone uses an existing link to book an appointment or buy a package, the account is automatically returned to active.

Closing Out a Client

If you want to completely close out a client’s account, and prevent any and all future notifications, follow these steps.

Step 1: Review the client's contacts

• Navigate to the client’s profile
• Click Actions.
• Under Client Info, expand Family and Contacts.
• Click […] next to a contact > select Remove Contact.

Note: to prevent email notifications and maintain a contact's details on file open the contact and clear the checkbox that sends them email notifications about the client.

Step 2: Tag the client

Add a tag so your team can see at a glance that the account has been closed out. You can use a tag such as "Deceased" or any name that fits your practice's process.

• To create a tag, navigate to Clients  > locate the desired client.
• Click + Add Tag, select an existing tag or create a new tag > Apply Tag

Tags appear in the Client List and on a client's profile and are visible to any team member with permissions to view that client.

Step 3: Stop payments and review invoices

Scheduled and recurring payments

• Navigate to Billing > Payments.
• Find payments with a clock icon in the Status column.
• Click [...] next to the payment > select Stop Automatic Payment.
• Click Stop Payment in the pop-up to confirm

Unpaid invoices

1. Go to Billing > Invoices and find the client's open invoices.
2. Click [...] > Delete, mark as paid, or write off each one. Learn More. 

Open invoices can generate reminder emails, so we recommend resolving them rather than leaving them open. Check your billing and records policies before deleting or writing off a balance.

Step 4: Remove the client from groups, programs, and chats

Archived clients remain in their client group. To prevent the client or contacts from receiving group notifications, change their group or remove them from the group, and remove them from any programs and group chats.

Step 5: Set Client Portal Settings

Do this before archiving so the client's account can't be reactivated.

• Navigate to Clients, select the client, then click Actions > Settings > Client Portal Settings.
• Clear the checkbox for each feature: view and pay bills, schedule appointments, goals, journal entries, documents, intake forms, care plans, programs, and packages.
• Scroll down to the Chat section and clear the checkboxes for Allow Direct Messaging and Allow Community Chat participation.
• In the Goals section, set goal notification frequency to Never.
• Click Save in the top right

Step 6: Archive the client

1. Navigate to Clients.
2. Click [...] next to the client's name.
3. Select Archive.

Archiving the client will cancel all upcoming appointments

Step 7: Turn on Inactive Access

1. Click the gear icon, then go to Settings > Journal Entries.
2. Under Inactive Access, enable Lock archived clients out of login and stop sending them automated emails.

This is a practice-wide setting. It applies to all archived clients, including former clients, who will lose login access. Manual emails you send directly will still be delivered. 

Step 8: Verify

• Clients > Archived Clients: the client is listed.
• Billing > Payments: no scheduled payments remain.
• Calendar: no upcoming appointments remain.
• Client list: the tag appears in the Client List

If emails continue, contact hello@gethealthie.com. 

Other things to consider

These depend on your practice's policies rather than a Healthie setting. Work with your legal counsel or compliance team.

• Records: Don't delete components of the client’s chart. Retention requirements vary by state and profession.
• Records requests from family: Language here
• Pending results or orders: Decide who reviews them and document the decision per your policy. 
• Your team: Let providers who work with the client know, using a channel your practice has approved.
• Outside tools: Remove or suppress the client in any connected email marketing platform or CRM.

FAQs

Can I delete a client's account?

No. Healthie doesn't delete client accounts because of healthcare data retention requirements. Archiving is how you close out an account.

After I close out a client, can I undo those actions?

You can convert a client from Archived to Active. . Go to Clients → Archived Clients, click [...] next to the client, and select Activate. Tags, contacts and settings will need to be adjusted accordingly, and . stopped payments and would need to be set up again.

Will the client's family be notified when I archive?

No. Only contacts with email notifications on will receive copies of client emails, which is why removing a client’s contacts is the first step

Can I still see the client's chart?

Yes. Archived clients stay in your account indefinitely, and you retain full access to their information.

Emails are still going out. What should I check?

Make sure Inactive Access is on (Step 7), and contacts are removed or silenced (Step 1). If you receive report of an email or notification being sent, please reach out to hello@gethealthie.com for support.